Active Job, Healthy Job? Occupational Stress and Depression among Hospital Physicians in Taiwan

Abstract

Adverse mental health conditions among physiciansincluding stress, burnout, and depression-can result in errors in professional conduct and interfere with the quality of healthcare provision [1][2][3] . Physicians are usually exposed to high levels of occupational stress resulting from heavy workloads and high levels of time pressure, and those in certain employment positions or specialties are at higher risk of suffering from depression disorders than the general population 4,5) . High occupational stress and depression within physicians can even lead to higher suicide ideation or suicide rates 6,7) .Among various risk factors in the work environment, job stress is central to workers' daily lives; its asso- Abstract: This study assessed the levels and association of occupational stress and depression rate among physicians, and to compare physicians' occupational stress with that of Taiwanese employees in other occupations. The subjects were physicians employed at 14 participating regional hospitals in the Around Taiwan Health Care Alliance. Self-administered questionnaires capturing data on demographics, occupational characteristics, occupational stress measured using Job Content Questionnaire (C-JCQ), and health status measured using Taiwanese Depression Questionnaire (TDQ) were sent to eligible physicians. Results revealed that the depression rate (13.3%) was higher than that found in the general population (3.7%) of Taiwan. The mean scores of the JCQ dimensions "work demands" and "job control" were both much higher than those in most occupations in Taiwan. Higher depression scores were found in subjects with higher work demands, 8-10 d of being on duty per month, and more frequent alcohol consumption, while lower depression scores were found in subjects working in the east Taiwan area, with higher job control and with greater workplace social support. On the other hand, gender, smoking, and working hour were not independently correlated with depression, but the interaction of gender and job control also had an independent effect on depression. This study suggests that job stress plays an important role in depression in physicians; it is necessary to pay attention to physicians at high risk of depression, as well as their work environments, for early detection and intervention.

Which health professionals are most at risk for cardiovascular disease? Or do not be a manager

“…Physicians are more at risk for occupational stress than the general population, as seen from a Japanese study, with a work stress score being 114 in 383 anesthesiologists as compared with 100 in average workers [12], or a study in Taiwan [13]. Moreover, the Taiwanese study reported a higher proportion of persons suffering from depression among physicians than in the general population (13.3% vs. 3.7%).…”

Physician, heal thyself: The paradox of anxiety amongst house officers and work in a teaching hospital

“…However, studies done in the UK (Firth, 1987), Turkey (Erdur et al, 2006), Saudi Arabia (Niku, 2004) and Taiwan (Wang et al, 2011) showed that more female doctors had anxiety symptoms. Interestingly, some studies showed that doctors with children had less anxiety symptoms compared to doctors without children (Taylor et al, 2004).…”

Social support in the workplace for physicians in specialization training

“…Social support helps one manage uncertainty, increases one’s perception of personal control over one’s life experiences [4], and helps one toward goals [5]. In medical work, support from both leaders and co-workers is strongly connected to lowered job strain and improved health outcomes [6–9]. Social support can promote coping [10], diminish occupational stress [11,12] and reduce perceptions of depersonalization [13].…”