Factors Affecting Leave out of General Practitioners from Rural Family Physician Program: A Case of Kerman, Iran.
BACKGROUND
Rural family physician program as the new reform in the Iranian health system has been implemented since 2005. Its success depends much on physicians' retention. The present study aimed to identify influential factors on physicians' willingness to leave out this program in Kerman province.


METHODS
The present cross-sectional study was performed in Kerman province in 2011. All family physicians working in this program (n = 271) were studied using a questionnaire. Data analysis was carried out using descriptive statistics and logistic regression through SPSS version 18.0.


RESULTS
Twenty-six percent (70) of the physicians had left out the program in the past. In addition, 77.3% (208) intended to leave out in the near future. Opportunity for continuing education, inappropriate and long working hours, unsuitable requirements of salary, irregular payments, lack of job security and high working responsibility were regarded as the most important reasons for leaving out the program in the past and intention to leave out in future orderly. According to univariate logistic regression, younger physicians (odds ratio [OR] =2.479; 95% confidence interval [CI]: 1.261-4.872) and physicians who had older children (OR = 4.743; 95% CI: 1.441-15.607) were more willing to leave out the plan in the near future, however it was not significant in multivariate logistic regression.


CONCLUSIONS
Physician retention in family physician program is faced with serious doubts due to different reasons. The success of the program is endangered because of the pivotal role of human resources. Hence, the revision of human resources policies of the program seems necessary in order to reduce physicians leave out and improving its effectiveness.
Department of Health Management, Policy and Economics, Research Center for Health Services Management, Institute for Futures Studies in Health, Kerman University of Medical Sciences, Kerman, Iran.
Mohammadreza
M
Amiresmaili
Department of Health Management, Policy and Economics, Research Center for Modeling in Health, Institute for Futures Studies in Health, Kerman University of Medical Sciences, Kerman, Iran.
Sajad
S
Khosravi
Department of Health Management and Economics, School of Public Health, Tehran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran ; Department of Health Management, Policy and Economics, Research Center for Health Services Management, Institute for Futures Studies in Health, Kerman University of Medical Sciences, Kerman, Iran.
Vahid Yazdi
VY
Feyzabadi
Human resources for health; Iran; leave out; rural family physician