title: Moving into medical practice in a new community: the transition experience.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Physicians undertake many transitions during the course of a medical career. The purpose of this study was to explore the experiences of physicians who moved to a new community.
  
  
  METHODS
  A semistructured interview format was used to explore transitional experiences, including reasons for moving; the role of colleagues, learning, and organizational structures; how various mediating factors affected perceptions; and how the experience affected the physicians personally. We used qualitative methods in which data were collected, coded, and analyzed concurrently.
  
  
  RESULTS
  20 physicians from family medicine, internal medicine, and pediatrics described their experiences. Both the professional context and the geographic location affected physicians' perceptions of the move. Both internal and external mediating factors appeared to influence how physicians experienced and adjusted to the move. Physicians who joined functioning units appeared to have fewer problems. The physicians who had more difficulty were physicians who did not come to a specific job, often coming as the result of a spousal move; did not have a professional network in the city; had not sorted out licensure requirements; and were entering community (not institutional) practice.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  This study demonstrates the critical nature of institutional support structures to integrate the newcomer, collegial relationships within the workplace, and the importance of family and friends in mediating the adjustment period. Consideration should be given to structured mentorship or peer-buddy programs and longitudinal educational programs (eg, rounds) that may enable physicians to establish networks and gain practical local knowledge quickly.
authors.affiliation: Department of Community Health Sciences, University of Calgary, Calgary, Alberta, Canada. lockyer@ucalgary.edu
authors.forename: Jocelyn
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Lockyer
authors.forename: Keith
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Wycliffe-Jones
authors.forename: Maitreyi
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Raman
authors.forename: Amonpreet
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Sandhu
authors.forename: Herta
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Fidler
mesh_terms: D000223:Adaptation, Psychological; D000416:Alberta; D001291:Attitude of Health Personnel; D003153:Community Health Services / Q000458:organization & administration*; D005194:Family Practice; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007388:Internal Medicine; D007400:Interprofessional Relations; D008297:Male; D010372:Pediatrics; D010820:Physicians / Q000523:psychology*; D011365:Professional Practice Location; D036301:Qualitative Research; D017132:Workplace / Q000458:organization & administration