How does a shortage of physicians impact on the job satisfaction of health centre staff?
OBJECTIVE
The aim was to determine how a shortage of physicians at Finnish health centres has affected the job satisfaction of the entire staff.


METHODS
A questionnaire was posted to 2848 employees working with patients at health centres in the Finnish provinces of Satakunta and Varsinais-Suomi. The information concerning the shortage of physicians at health centres was taken from research undertaken by the Finnish Medical Association in October 2003. The health centres were divided into four groups according to the severity of the shortage.


RESULTS
The questionnaire was returned by 1447 employees. The staff at health centres with the most severe shortage of physicians were less satisfied with the management of the organization. Employees at health centres with a minor shortage of physicians were more satisfied with the quality of services in their operational unit. The shortage of physicians had no impact on staff satisfaction regarding the operation of their work unit, the strain of dealing with issues within their work environment, feelings of stress, the strain of working under pressure that they experienced, or interest in finding a new job.


CONCLUSIONS
The majority of healthcare employees are satisfied and motivated in their work. The shortage of physicians has only a slightly negative impact on their satisfaction.
Saxén
Ulla
U
Department of Family Medicine, Institute of Clinical Medicine, University of Turku, Sweden. Georgios.Stratelis@blixtmail.se
Jaatinen
Pekka T
PT
Kivelä
Sirkka-Liisa
SL
D003151:Community Health Centers / Q000458:organization & administration / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D005194:Family Practice / Q000458:organization & administration / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D005387:Finland; D006801:Humans; D007588:Job Satisfaction; D010563:Personnel Turnover; D010821:Physicians, Family / Q000523:psychology* / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D000078329:Workforce; D016526:Workload