NHS doctors working on the front line of the pandemic are angry at being treated as “Covid cannon fodder” rather than heroes, a study revealed today.

The research highlighted that medics have often lacked sufficient places to rest, food to eat and appropriate psychological support during the crisis, despite many facing relentless shift patterns as they work at permanent maximum capacity. 

Co-authored by academics from the Universities of Bath, Bristol and the West of England alongside the Royal College of Emergency Medicine (RCEM), the study, which consulted 1,379 doctors across Britain and Ireland, is the first to capture their views of the pandemic’s impact.

Workers told researchers of their frustrations at those not following public health advice and of their anger at Tory ministers for failing to support them.

The biggest issues identified included doctors feeling exposed and unprotected, the relentlessness of the virus, the “ugly truth” of the front line and an overwhelmed system.

One senior doctor said: “I feel, at times, that I am considered totally expendable and that, if I die or become ill, not only will it have been preventable with political will, I will simply be an inconvenient statistic. I’m not a Covid hero, I’m Covid cannon fodder.”

A junior colleague added: “We, as healthcare providers, were alone and utterly unsupported, apart from the weekly round of applause that was a pointless gesture and felt like a kick in the teeth.”

Reflecting on the “truly shocking” results, lead researcher Dr Jo Daniels said: “We are seeing increasing levels of staff attrition, absenteeism, poor psychological health and loss of life, yet front-line doctors are expected to just carry on.

“Despite the popular media narrative of healthcare workers being our Covid-19 heroes, many simply do not feel that way in terms of how they are being supported,” she stressed.

RCEM’s Professor Edd Carlton warned that the crisis has “compounded issues that were already commonplace pre-pandemic and now are putting a tangible strain on doctors’ own physical and mental health.

“As the NHS attempts to recover, this research shows that there needs to be a renewed focus on properly supporting doctors to protect their health and wellbeing so that they can be there for all of us when we most need them.”