Quality of working life of employees in public healthcare organization in Finland: A cross‐sectional study

Abstract

Abstract Aim Work dissatisfaction, burnout and workforce shortage are major problems in healthcare globally, all of which are associated with QWL. Previous studies have found that the QWL of healthcare professionals is moderate or low. The aim was to describe the quality of working life (QWL) of employees working in public healthcare and describe the association between QWL and background variables. Design This study had a quantitative cross‐sectional survey design. Methods Data was collected from the employees of a Finnish healthcare organization in autumn 2021 using an online questionnaire (n = 837). Convenience sampling was used in the selection of the healthcare organization. The study was reported according to STROBE guidelines. Results The QWL was moderate, and the mean QWL index calculated from the questionnaire responses was 0.524. The QWL index was lowest in healthcare professionals and highest in upper management, with some dissatisfaction towards leadership noted.

Keywords

• employees
• healthcare professionals
• management
• public sector
• quality of working life