Doctor completes marathon-a-month challenge

Dr Subodh Dave, 56, has run more than 1,100 miles since January

A psychiatrist has run more than 1,100 miles and raised £11,000 for a charity aimed at reducing suicides in the medical profession.

Dr Subodh Dave wanted to raise money for Doctors in Distress after two of his colleagues took their own lives.

His running challenges included a marathon a month since January, in cities from Mumbai to London.

His final challenge was the hilly Comrades Marathon in South Africa, which is the equivalent of running up Snowdon twice and back down once.

Dr Dave, a consultant psychiatrist at Derbyshire Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust, said he came close to giving up towards the end.

"Miraculously, one of the supporters walked up to me and said ‘it’s only 4km (2.5 miles) from here. You can do it’. That pep talk was enough to get me going again," he said.

"I ran all the way to the finish, ending the long race in 8 hours and 33 minutes.”

During training, the 56-year-old said the biggest challenge was putting in the miles on top of a busy working life.

"I find that quite exhausting," he said. "Some days you have a full day of work then you have a 20-mile run to do."

Subodh Dave completed the Comrades Marathon in 8 hours and 33 minutes

Dr Dave is a trustee of Doctors in Distress, and also Dean of the Royal College of Psychiatrists.

Doctors in Distress was set up in 2019 by Amandip Sidhu following the suicide of his brother Dr Jagdip Sidhu, a consultant cardiologist. 

It is an independent charity providing peer support for UK-based healthcare workers to promote and protect their mental health and prevent suicide.

 Since the first programme was launched in 2020, the charity has supported more than 850 healthcare professionals with their mental health.

'Literally lifesaving'

Dr Dave said he is passionate about the cause.

"When you've worked with someone for years and one day they're suddenly gone, it is quite a devastating thing," he said.

"When someone dies like that, it leaves a mark on a lot of people.

"The funds we raise help us run groups that provide safe spaces for people to talk about how they are feeling. We know these safe spaces can be literally lifesaving."

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