Payesh (Oct 2021)
Factors affecting the retention of specialist physicians in less developed provinces and deprived areas
Abstract
Objective(s): The maintenance of medical specialists in deprived areas is of great importance. This study aimed to identify a retention model for medical specialists in deprived areas. Methods: The was a descriptive study. Participants in the study included a sample of specialist physicians in less developed provinces and disadvantaged areas in Iran. They were selected by random cluster sampling. The questionnaire was prepared using theoretical foundations, upstream documents and interviews with experts, which included 8 indicators on the retention of specialists in deprived areas. Structural equation and factor analysis were used to analyze the data in SPSS software version 25 and AMOS. Results: In all 209 female specialists and 175 male specialists from 21 provinces and 37 cities were studied. The mean age of study participants was 34.8 years. The average scores for job characteristics, payment system, welfare facilities, job facilities, work environment, rules and regulations, personality traits and job motivation were equal to 4.20, 4.66, 4.38, 4.49, 4.69, 3.86, 4.15, 4.18, respectively. The results of confirmatory factor analysis of the components showed proper fit for the data. Also, the effect of all factors on the retention of physicians in the regions was significant (P<0.05) and among these, job characteristics had the greatest effect among other factors. Conclusions: Three organizational, environmental and individual factors and 8 factors of job characteristics, job facilities, job motivation, work environment, laws, welfare facilities, personality traits and payment system were effective in keeping specialized physicians in deprived and less developed areas, respectively. The findings might help decision-makers and health care authorities to improve the maintenance conditions and provide the required manpower in deprived areas.
