We become burnt out, not because of who we are, but because of what happens to us.Dr Richard Duggins, Burnout-Free Working
About Richard
Clinical depth, practical leadership, human conversations.
Richard is a Consultant Psychiatrist in Medical Psychotherapy and Associate Medical Director for Leadership and Culture in an NHS Foundation Trust. Colleagues know him as "the doctors' doctor", because so many doctors have turned to him when work has started to take its toll.
He leads the North East and North Cumbria Staff Health and Wellbeing Hub, supporting more than 175,000 health and social care staff, and works with NHS Practitioner Health. Over two decades of clinical work have shown him that burnout is rarely a story about weak individuals. It is far more often a story about the systems and relationships around them.
Alongside his clinical work, Richard teaches, coaches senior leaders and speaks to professional audiences across healthcare, emergency services, education, publishing and business, and to the public at book festivals and events, about creating cultures where people can do meaningful work without sacrificing their health.
Consultant PsychiatristMedical psychotherapy, staff mental health and occupational wellbeing
Psychoanalytic PsychotherapistAccredited with the British Psychoanalytic Council
Associate Medical DirectorLeadership, culture and wellbeing in an NHS Foundation Trust
Executive CoachLeadership, reflection and sustainable performance
Author and speakerBurnout, wellbeing and psychologically informed leadership
The book
Burnout-Free Working
Your Expert Guide to Thriving in a Stressful Workplace
A practical and compassionate guide to spotting the early signs of burnout, steering clear of the burnout cliff and changing the conditions that keep capable people at the edge of exhaustion. It moves the conversation away from "be more resilient" and towards living and working in ways that prevent burnout in the first place.
Paperback
Jessica Kingsley Publishers, 2025. Save 25% at JKP with code HEALTHCARE25
Evidence-informed ideas, made practical and human.
Richard speaks to audiences in healthcare, education, business and beyond about why capable people burn out and what organisations can do differently. Talks are grounded in research and two decades of clinical experience, and leave audiences with ideas they can use on Monday morning.
The burnout cliff
Why dedicated people keep going for too long, the early warning signs that are easy to miss, and how recovery becomes possible.
For all staff and teams
Hope is a system
What burnout can teach us about leadership: how leaders create the conditions for psychological safety, belonging and early help-seeking.
For leaders and boards
Burnout as a failure of holding
A psychoanalytic and organisational view of what happens when the systems around people can no longer contain pressure and strain.
For clinicians and therapists
Formats
Conference keynotes
Panels and chairing
Workshops and masterclasses for teams and leaders
In-conversation sessions and book signings
Podcasts, broadcast and print interviews
Audiences
NHS and healthcare organisations
Royal colleges and professional bodies
Emergency services
Schools, teachers and educators
Publishers and the media
Businesses and employers across sectors
General audiences, book festivals and public events
Coming up
Hope Is a System, at TEDx Maid Marian Way
Richard is one of 11 speakers at TEDx Maid Marian Way in Nottingham, on the theme Rediscovering Narratives. His talk asks why burnout is not a personal failure, and what it tells us about the leadership and systems around people.
Conversations about work, wellbeing and what helps people thrive.
Recording The Talk Works Podcast with Dr Jen Cottam. Richard is happy to join podcasts and broadcast programmes on burnout, leadership and workplace wellbeing.
Burnout as an organisational story, not just an individual one.
New Associations, Issue 48, Spring 2026
Burnout as a Failure of Holding
Drawing on Winnicott's idea of holding and Bion's containment, this article reframes burnout as more than exhaustion or a lack of resilience. It asks what happens when the organisation around people can no longer contain pressure, uncertainty and emotional strain.
When the system stops providing enough psychological holding, the person can end up carrying what the organisation cannot.
Burnout-Free Working: Your Expert Guide to Thriving in a Stressful WorkplaceJessica Kingsley Publishers, 2025. About the book
The Doctors' DoctorChapter in Gerada, C. (ed.) Beneath the White Coat: Doctors, Their Minds and Mental Health. Routledge, 2021.
How can I support a colleague who is being investigated?Harkensee, Kapur and Duggins. BMJ, 2019. Read in the BMJ
Get in touch
Speaking, media and book enquiries.
If you're planning an event, a programme or a piece of coverage, Richard would be glad to hear about it. A few details about your audience and dates help him reply quickly.
Not for clinical enquiries
Richard is not able to offer clinical assessments, treatment or referrals through this website, and messages sent here are not monitored as a support service.
If you're a UK-registered health professional who can't access confidential support locally, NHS Practitioner Health may be able to help. For other health concerns, speak to your GP or call NHS 111. If you or someone else is in immediate danger, call 999.
