GP burnout putting pressure on healthcare systems worldwide
19 Jan 2026
A 2025 survey by the Commonwealth Fund gathered responses from nearly 11,000 GPs across 10 countries, including Australia, the UK, the US, Canada and New Zealand. It found that burnout is closely linked to job dissatisfaction, emotional stress and, in some cases, doctors considering reducing or stopping patient care.
In Australia, almost one in three GPs (32%) reported feeling burned out. This was lower than the United States, which recorded the highest rate at 43%, but significantly higher than the Netherlands, where just 11% of GPs reported burnout.
Administrative work was identified as the biggest contributor to burnout globally. Australian GPs spend about 15% of their working time on paperwork and related tasks, with 21% naming administration as the main reason for their burnout. More than 80% of burned-out Australian GPs said they were unhappy with the amount of time admin work takes away from patient care.
Patient complexity is also adding pressure. Around a third of Australian GPs experiencing burnout said their patient load was too large or too complex. Many reported short consultation times, with around a quarter spending less than 15 minutes per routine visit, while more than one in four see over 150 patients in a typical week.
RACGP NSW & ACT Chair Dr Rebekah Hoffman said the survey reflects what GPs experience every day.
She explained that much of the administrative workload is unpaid and often done outside normal hours, with many doctors arriving early, staying late or working through lunch just to keep up. She said better-connected IT systems, streamlined paperwork and fairer Medicare funding for admin time would make a significant difference.
The survey also found Australian GPs are more likely than their overseas counterparts to feel their work is undervalued. Despite this, they were among the least likely to say they plan to stop seeing patients in the next few years.
RACGP President Dr Michael Wright said the findings support ongoing calls to reduce red tape and better support general practice.
He said increasing care complexity, financial pressures and excessive administration are driving burnout and taking time away from patients. Addressing these issues, he added, is essential to protect both doctors and the healthcare system.
The results align with the RACGP’s 2025 Health of the Nation report, which found dissatisfaction with administration among GPs has risen sharply, with more than three-quarters unhappy with the amount of paperwork involved in their work. Authority prescriptions were identified as the biggest administrative frustration.
While the Commonwealth Fund report praised Australia for having centralised systems for billing and communication, Dr Hoffman strongly disagreed, saying GPs still use multiple systems that don’t connect with each other. Different logins for referrals, prescriptions and hospitals, she said, add unnecessary time and frustration to already long days.
The report concluded that although GPs play a vital role in preventive care and managing chronic disease, they often lack adequate support for their own wellbeing. Without action, ongoing burnout could seriously affect the performance of health systems around the world.
https://www1.racgp.org.au/
Source: Commonwealth Fund – 2025 International Health Policy Survey of Primary Care Physicians; RACGP Health of the Nation 2025 report