title: Doctors' enjoyment of their work and satisfaction with time available for leisure: UK time trend questionnaire-based study.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Doctors' job satisfaction is important to the health service to ensure commitment, effective training, service provision and retention. Job satisfaction matters to doctors for their personal happiness, fulfilment, service to patients and duty to employers. Monitoring job satisfaction trends informs workforce planning.
  
  
  METHODS
  We surveyed UK-trained doctors up to 5 years after graduation for six graduation year cohorts: 1996, 1999, 2002, 2005, 2008, 2012. Doctors scored their job enjoyment (Enjoyment) and satisfaction with time outside work (Leisure) on a scale from 1 (lowest enjoyment/satisfaction) to 10 (highest).
  
  
  RESULTS
  Overall, 47% had a high level of Enjoyment (scores 8-10) 1 year after graduation and 56% after 5 years. For Leisure, the corresponding figures were 19% and 37% at 1 and 5 years, respectively. For Leisure at 1 year, high scores were given by about 10% in the 1990s, rising to about 25% in the mid-2000s. Low scores (1-3) for Enjoyment were given by 15% of qualifiers of 1996, falling to 5% by 2008; corresponding figures for Leisure were 42% and 19%. At 5 years, the corresponding figures were 6% and 4%, and 23% and 17%. Enjoyment and Leisure were scored higher by general practitioners than doctors in other specialties. Both measures varied little by sex, ethnicity or medical school attended.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Scores for Enjoyment were generally high; those for Leisure were lower. Policy initiatives should address why this aspect of satisfaction is low, particularly in the first year after graduation but also among hospital doctors 5 years after graduation.
authors.affiliation: UK Medical Careers Research Group, Nuffield Department of Population Health, University of Oxford, Oxford, UK.
authors.forename: Geraldine
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Surman
authors.affiliation: UK Medical Careers Research Group, Nuffield Department of Population Health, University of Oxford, Oxford, UK.
authors.forename: Trevor W
authors.initials: TW
authors.lastname: Lambert
authors.affiliation: UK Medical Careers Research Group, Nuffield Department of Population Health, University of Oxford, Oxford, UK.
authors.forename: Michael
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Goldacre
mesh_terms: D001291:Attitude of Health Personnel; D002321:Career Choice; D006240:Happiness; D006306:Health Surveys; D006801:Humans; D007588:Job Satisfaction; D007899:Leisure Activities / Q000523:psychology*; D008019:Life Style; D009042:Motivation; D010549:Personal Satisfaction; D010820:Physicians / Q000523:psychology / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D006113:United Kingdom / Q000453:epidemiology
keywords: MEDICAL EDUCATION & TRAINING