Richard describes the six months as 'purgatory' as he struggled to live with constant anxiety about the possible outcome. "My MDU adviser said the investigation would most likely come to nothing but it could go all the way. And that's horrifying because I had no way of knowing. I just had that uncertainty hanging over my head the whole time and it really, really affected my life."

It wasn't long before the situation started to take a toll on Richard's mental and physical health. "I was a wreck," he recalls. "I couldn't work well and so I voluntarily withdrew from clinical practice because I didn't think I was safe. My sleep was disturbed. My days were disturbed. I was drinking too much and I was probably a complete nightmare to live with.

"I am usually quite resilient, having spent a lot of time in the military and served in places like Iraq, Afghanistan and Bosnia. However, this whole business was actually more terrifying. If you are a soldier, there is a kind of counter-intuitive camaraderie with your adversary as they are engaged in the same business for the same reason, albeit on different sides. This felt like being alone and almost powerless as people were making decisions and judging you."

Although Richard eventually heard from the GMC that it was concluding its investigation with no action, his brush with the regulator has left him with some long-term side effects. "Of course, it was an enormous relief initially," he says. "I must admit that I only read the first few lines of the letter at the time. I told my wife immediately and we wept with the sheer relief of it.

"However, there seems to be an assumption that if you go through a legal process and they don't find against you, then everything should be okay. It's all done and dusted and you carry on as normal. But the experience does leave deep scars and there is the physiological effect of having been under severe stress for a long period of time. I still get pangs. In fact, I am having them now as I resurrect those thoughts."

"It's good to talk."

Looking back on his difficult period under investigation, Richard is tremendously grateful for the network of support that sustained him. His message for other doctors who find themselves in his situation is that it's good to talk.

"Be completely open with your family about what is happening and engage with them," he advises. "If you try to keep things back or feed them bits of information, they don't have the complete picture. And of course, they worry too.

"It was very hard for me at first because I wasn't used to asking for help and I was nervous about how my family would see me. But they were fully supportive and absolutely fantastic. If you haven't got any immediate family then talk to your good mates as I'm sure they would understand.

Speaking from experience: the value of peer-to-peer support

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Speaking from experience: the value of peer-to-peer support