A 33 year old doctor shared his dilemma on the social media platform Reddit on September 24.
The doctor explained that he works at two hospitals located 25 kilometers apart, and his work schedule demands that he drive approximately 60 kilometers a day. “Should I hire a driver?” asked the doctor.
H2: What Did the Doctor Say in His Reddit Post About Hiring a Driver?
He further explained that he feels consistently exhausted from driving because of traffic congestion and parking challenges, and that hiring a driver would ease his mental burden.
“Should I be frugal and drive myself, considering a driver’s salary can be around 2.5 lakh per annum?” He explained that he currently earns a gross income of around 3.5 lakh per month and a driver would cost him around 18 thousand per month.
Reddit users encouraged the doctor to view the cost not just as an expense, but as an investment to reduce daily stress and reclaim his time.
One user offered the practical advice, “Does fatigue affect your performance? Then hire a driver, so that more opportunities can be opened up for you.”
“Don’t look at the cost; look at the benefits. The improvement in your quality of life will be significant. You could take a nap, or catch up with reading, or just about anything while being driven. And, that’s not even the biggest benefit: the biggest benefit will be the reduction in stress that driving brings,” commented another individual.
“You not only get some time to relax, but you also end up supporting a family. Money is a tool and an enabler, so don’t stress too much about it,” offered another user.
Doctor fatigue is not only a potential risk factor for medical errors at the hospital, but according to a new study, it can also be the cause of car accidents after long shifts. According to Mayo Clinic researcher, 11% of medical interns reported being involved in a car accident while 43% reported having a close call.1
Working for extended periods — sometimes more than 16 hours — is often associated with fatigue, workplace errors, mental health problems, and motor vehicle accidents.2 Furthermore, resident physicians face an elevated risk of falling asleep behind the wheel and motor vehicle collisions.2
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In a recent incident, neurosurgeon, Dr. K. Jagadeesh from Khammam, Telangana was burnt to death after the car he was driving collided with a road driver and caught fire on the NH-365BB near Pilalamarri in Suryapet district. The vehicle was engulfed in flames within minutes leaving absolutely no time to escape.
The victim’s body was severely charred, and police initially had difficulty establishing his identity. The police suspected that lack of sleep may have caused him to lose control of the vehicle and hit the divider. He was the head of the neurosurgery department at a private medical college and a neurosurgeon at a hospital in Khammam.
References:
HuffPost, “Doctor Fatigue, Car Accidents, Medical Residents, Sleepiness,” accessed September 29, 2026, https://www.huffpost.com/entry/doctor-fatigue-car-accidents-medical-residents-sleepiness.
Nicola Bonnell, Kaiz Jamal, Bianca Boicu, and Jeffrey R. Brubacher, “Resident Physicians Have an Increased Risk of Adverse Driving Events Following Extended-Duration Work Shifts: A Systematic Review,” Cureus 16, no. 11 (November 18, 2024): e73922, https://doi.org/10.7759/cureus.73922 .
(Rh/APC/MSM)
