10% of doctors and nurses have had suicidal thoughts: threats, assaults and sexual harassment at work

European doctors and nurses are working in conditions that affect their mental health and well-being , with an alarming proportion experiencing suicidal thoughts or considering self-harm. This is according to research conducted by the World Health Organization ( WHO ), published this Friday to mark World Mental Health Day .

The Mental Health of Nurses and Doctors (MeND) survey is the largest of its kind to date, with more than 90,000 responses from all 27 European Union countries, plus Iceland and Norway . According to the WHO, its findings reveal the true cost of years of underinvestment in Europe 's health systems and workforce .

Among the new data, the WHO highlights that in the last year, 1 in 3 doctors and nurses experienced harassment or threats of violence at work, and 10% experienced physical violence and/or sexual harassment .

The survey figures are similar to the data presented in July by the Spanish Ministry of Health. Specifically, in 2024, a record number of assaults on healthcare professionals was recorded , with a total of 17,070 reports from the autonomous communities, representing 2,364 more than the previous year (+16%).

Furthermore, the WHO also highlights that one in four doctors works more than 50 hours a week. Meanwhile, almost a third (32%) of doctors and a quarter (25%) of nurses are on temporary contracts, which is closely linked to increased anxiety about job security. This widespread precariousness that experts have been denouncing in Spain for years .

One of the survey's most troubling findings is that 1 in 10 doctors and nurses reported having thoughts of "being better off dead" or "harming themselves" in the past two weeks. This issuicidal ideation , which mental health professionals use as a warning sign.

The working conditions , work overload , job instability , difficulties in reconciling work and workplace violence suffered by nurses, together with secondary traumatic stress , derived from permanent contact with the suffering of people, are producing serious consequences for the health of nurses, which translate into a higher incidence of mental pathologies .

For Spanish doctors , the study accurately reflects the current situation, “but within all of Europe, Spain may be one of the most affected countries because the conditions are even worse, both the legal and regulatory conditions in which we operate with emergencies, the economic remuneration very different from the rest of Europe and the generational change that has failed in many aspects, so there is a total lack of personnel. This leads to very significant problems , not only in mental health from the perspective of anxiety and depression , but also with behavioral disorders , psychotic disorders and even sleep disorders as a basic element,” Lorenzo Armenteros , spokesperson for the Spanish Society of General and Family Physicians (SEMG), explains to El Confidencial.

Regarding suicide, she emphasizes that physicians "have sufficient knowledge to know how to do it. So this suicidal ideation often leads to the achievement of that suicidal goal because the characteristics of our profession make it more feasible. It's a structured suicidal ideation and often achieved." Although she clarifies that in Spain there are no official data on healthcare suicides, "the evidence suggests that the profile is predominantly male among healthcare personnel , and especially among physicians. Seventy percent of the cases are men ."

For its part, the Spanish nursing union SATSE is also not surprised by the new WHO study. "The working conditions, work overload, job instability, difficulties with work-life balance, and workplace violence experienced by nurses, along with secondary traumatic stress resulting from constant contact with people's suffering, are producing serious consequences for the health of nurses, resulting in a higher incidence of mental illness," María José García Alumbreros , spokesperson for SATSE, told this newspaper.

Alumberos adds more specific data from our country: “ 8 out of 10 nurses suffer from burnout and 9 out of 10 feel stress and emotional exhaustion . Furthermore, 9 out of 10 nurses have been attacked throughout their working lives, a fact that increases stress, generates defenselessness, and impacts the mental health of professionals.” “On several occasions, we have proposed a law against this situation in Congress, which has been rejected by parliament. It is urgent to develop regulations that effectively protect the profession , because going to work in fear is the worst situation a nurse can encounter,” she adds.

The WHO concludes that such an unsafe work environment is directly linked to poor mental health . Healthcare workers who experience violence, work long hours, and work shifts (especially at night) are much more likely to suffer from depression , anxiety, and suicidal thoughts . In fact, doctors and nurses have twice the prevalence of suicidal thoughts compared to the general population.

Despite poor working conditions and mental health problems , three out of four doctors and two out of three nurses express a strong sense of purpose and are satisfied with their jobs. This suggests that healthcare workers are motivated by their work, but need adequate support to do their jobs and care for their patients effectively.

But, in any case, their condition affects not only them , but also patients and society. Depending on the country, up to 40% of healthcare workers with symptoms of depression have taken sick leave in the last year. Between 11% and 34% of them are considering leaving their jobs. All this staffing shortage can mean that patients suffer longer wait times, lower quality of care , and that healthcare systems lose vital personnel.

“Across Europe, the pressures doctors and nurses face may be different—whether it’s long hours in one country, temporary contracts in another, or workplace violence in yet another—but the impact on mental health is universal ,” says Dr. Natasha Azzopardi-Muscat , Director of Health Systems at WHO/Europe. “We measure hospital capacity by counting beds and surgical outcomes by survival rates, but we often fail to measure the well-being of those providing care. These findings show that mental health must be treated as a fundamental performance measure, just like patient safety or hospital capacity. The resilience of our health and care systems is only as good as the resilience of the women and men who dedicate their lives to caring for others,” she adds.

A call to action

These findings further reinforce the WHO's 2022 'Time to Act' report, which concluded that recruitment of health and care workers is not keeping up with growing demand , placing unbearable pressure on our health systems and health workers. Without action, Europe will face a projected shortage of 940,000 health workers by 2030 .

The WHO, along with the healthcare professionals consulted by this newspaper, emphasizes that improving working conditions would help reduce absences due to illness and discourage employees from leaving their jobs, in addition to attracting more doctors and nurses to the profession. This would help ensure that European health systems are equipped to cope with current and future demographic changes and population needs, and are better able to withstand future health emergencies .

The report sets out seven urgent policy actions that countries must take to improve working conditions and change organizational cultures, all of which can be achieved by repurposing existing resources. These are:

• Zero tolerance for violence of any kind.
• Improve shift predictability and flexibility for healthy work.
• Manage overtime to end the culture of working to exhaustion.
• Address excessive workloads.
• Train and hold leaders accountable.
• Expand access to mental health support.
• Conduct regular monitoring and reporting on the well-being of healthcare workers.

"With Europe facing a shortage of nearly one million health workers by 2030, we cannot afford to lose them to burnout, despair, or violence. Their well-being is not only a moral obligation , but the foundation of safe, high-quality care for every patient. Let this survey be an urgent call to action," concludes Dr. Hans Henri P. Kluge , WHO Regional Director for Europe .