"I would have retired from general practice early if Babylon hadn’t come along” Dr Debbie says

50% of GPs in England “often feel unable to cope” according to a recent General Medical Council report. Three years ago, I was one of them - practicing as a GP in North London I often felt stressed and feared burnout. I worried about the impact this would have on my patients, and on me. So, I considered early retirement.

This was a difficult decision for me. I was acutely aware of the GP shortages in England, and was worried I’d miss what I love – seeing patients and looking after people. But I was juggling caring responsibilities for a close relative and I remained concerned about my stress levels and mental health.

Reluctant to give up completely, I thought I’d give Babylon a go. I was pretty sceptical at first, but three years later I can honestly say my experience with them has stopped me from retiring early. I think I will practice for at least 10 years longer than I would have done otherwise.

Nowadays, I practice as a remote GP for 16 hours a week. I spend this time doing video or phone consultations from my own home. I love the flexibility, it means I can fulfil my caring responsibilities and do something else I love – teaching medical students.

Because of the full-time support team that helps with paperwork I spend all of my time on call with patients. The Babylon GP portal also makes generating prescriptions and referral letters much simpler, so I do almost no admin.

The Babylon network, that includes medical professionals from several disciplines, makes me feel less isolated and more informed than I did being in a physical practice.

And because patients aren’t waiting as long for appointments my relationships with my patients are better.

If it weren’t for Babylon, I would have retired from clinical practice. And I know there are others at Babylon who feel the same. GPs who were reluctant to return to general practice after having children and others like me considering early retirement.

They took the leap, and are now fellow Babylonians. We enjoy the benefits of a multidisciplinary team to call upon when we need them. As well as a healthier and happier work life balance.

So that we can spend our time taking care of people – which is why we became doctors in the first place.