Journal of Pain Research (May 2023)
Job Satisfaction Among Pain Medicine Physicians in the US
Abstract
Jillian A Maloney,1 Ryan S D’Souza,2 Skye A Buckner Petty,3 Michal J Turkiewicz,4 Debarshi Sinha,4 Ajay Patel,5 Natalie H Strand1 1Department of Anesthesiology and Perioperative Medicine, Mayo Clinic, Phoenix, AZ, USA; 2Department of Anesthesiology and Perioperative Medicine, Mayo Clinic, Rochester, MN, USA; 3Department of Quantitative Health Sciences, Mayo Clinic, Scottsdale, AZ, USA; 4Mayo Clinic Alix School of Medicine, Scottsdale, AZ, USA; 5Department of Rehabilitation & Regenerative Medicine (Patel), New York-Presbyterian Hospital-University Hospital of Columbia and Cornell, New York, NY, USACorrespondence: Jillian A Maloney, Department of Anesthesiology and Perioperative Medicine, Mayo Clinic, 5777 East Mayo Boulevard, Phoenix, AZ, 85054, USA, Email [email protected]: Data are lacking on the factors that contribute to job satisfaction among pain medicine physicians. We sought to determine how sociodemographic and professional characteristics relate to job satisfaction among pain medicine physicians.Methods: In this nationwide, multicenter, cross-sectional observational study, an electronic questionnaire related to job satisfaction was emailed in 2021 to pain medicine physicians who were members of the American Society of Anesthesiologists or the American Society of Pain and Neuroscience. The 28-item questionnaire asked physicians about sociodemographic and professional factors. Eight questions related to job satisfaction were based on a 10-point Likert scale, and 1 question was a binary (yes/no) variable. Differences in responses based on sociodemographic and professional factors were assessed with the Kruskal–Wallis rank sum test for Likert scale questions and with the Pearson χ2 test for yes/no questions.Results: We determined that several variables, including gender, parental status, geographic location, specialty, years of practice, and volume of patients, are associated with pain medicine physicians’ outlook on job satisfaction. Overall, 74.9% of respondents surveyed would choose pain medicine as a specialty again.Conclusion: High rates of poor job satisfaction persist among pain medicine physicians. This survey study identified several sociodemographic and professional factors that are associated with job satisfaction among pain medicine physicians. By identifying physicians at high risk for poor job satisfaction, healthcare leadership and occupational health agencies can aim to protect physicians’ well-being, enhance working conditions, and raise awareness about burnout.Keywords: economics, outcomes, pain management
