Derbyshire doctor takes on marathon-a-month challenge

Prof Subodh Dave says the biggest challenge was putting in the miles on top of a busy working life

A doctor is running a marathon a month to fundraise for a healthcare workers' mental health charity.

Prof Subodh Dave, a consultant psychiatrist at Derbyshire Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust, is building up to a 55-mile ultra marathon in June in aid of Doctors in Distress.

The 56-year-old is training by running up to 60 miles (96.5km) a week.

He said remembering the cause he was raising money for "will be more than worth all the pain I am going through".

Prof Dave ran the Tata Mumbai Marathon, in India, in January

So far this year, the father of two has run the Tata Mumbai Marathon, in India, and the Warwick Half Marathon as well as the Naseby 16.4-mile (26.4km) road run in February.

He said: "I am running at least a marathon every month. I am building up to an ultra-marathon in June which is in South Africa, the world's oldest ultra-marathon. That is 55 miles, almost 88km of running uphill.

"It's a good job I'm in Derbyshire because hopefully the hills will come in handy to train there."

He 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."

Prof Dave has so far raised more than £2,370

Prof Dave, a trustee of Doctors in Distress, said he was passionate about this cause as he had lost two colleagues to suicide.

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

"Part of you feels should you have done something different. When someone dies like that, it leaves a mark on a lot of people.

"The funds we raise helps 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."

If you've been affected by the issues raised in this report, the BBC Action Line has a list of organisations that may be able to help.