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U.S. physician satisfaction: A systematic review
Author(s) -
Scheurer Danielle,
McKean Sylvia,
Miller Joseph,
Wetterneck Tosha
Publication year - 2009
Publication title -
journal of hospital medicine
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.128
H-Index - 65
eISSN - 1553-5606
pISSN - 1553-5592
DOI - 10.1002/jhm.496
Subject(s) - medicine , job satisfaction , burnout , hospital medicine , family medicine , medline , specialty , incentive , patient satisfaction , cross sectional study , multivariate analysis , nursing , clinical psychology , psychology , social psychology , pathology , political science , law , economics , microeconomics
There is concern in the US about the burden and potential ramifications of dissatisfaction among physicians. The purpose of this article is to systematically review the literature on US physician satisfaction. METHODS: A MEDLINE search with the medical subject headings (MeSH) phrases: (physicians OR physician's role OR physician's women) AND (job satisfaction OR career satisfaction OR burnout), limited to humans and abstracts, with 1157 abstracts reviewed. After exclusions by 2 independent reviewers, 97 articles were included. Physician type sampled, sample size/response rate, satisfaction type, and satisfaction results were extracted for each study. Satisfaction trends were extracted from those studies with longitudinal or repeated cross sectional design. Variables associated with satisfaction were extracted from those studies that included multivariate analyses. RESULTS: Physician satisfaction was relatively stable, with small decreases primarily among primary care physicians (PCPs). The major pertinent mediating factors of satisfaction for hospitalists include both physician factors (age and specialty), and job factors (job demands, job control, collegial support, income, and incentives). CONCLUSIONS: The majority of factors associated with satisfaction are modifiable. Tangible recommendations for measuring and diminishing dissatisfaction are given. Journal of Hospital Medicine 2009;4:560–570. © 2009 Society of Hospital Medicine.