Anesthetists are experts in intensive care, perioperative patient care, acute and chronic pain management, as well as research, and teaching, both at undergraduate and postgraduate levels [
The WHO in 2013 reported that health-care worker shortages are common globally and the world will be debt of 12.9 million health workers by 2035. Shortage and misdistribution of anesthetists is a social problem in many countries leading to workload, job dissatisfaction, and finally burnout [
A study conducted in Switzerland suggests that employees’ satisfaction needs to be evaluated, to improve their working condition and to ensure strategies and coping mechanisms to reduce professional stress [
A study of Netherlands found that job satisfaction as one of the most important and well-investigated work attitudes in organizational behavior, and turnover intention is related to dissatisfaction with job [
One review commented that improving overall health and improving work satisfaction may decrease burnout among operation theatre team members [
Particularly, stress, arising from handling severe illness and death, operating complex equipments, and experiencing a lack of recognition with members of other occupational groups or managers lead to burnout and job dissatisfaction [
Job satisfaction of anesthetists is an important key issue for their well being and for improved quality of patient care. The specialty of anesthesia has been classified as high risk for the development of job dissatisfaction. Dropout from the profession due to stress, fatigue, and long working hours is the problem of anesthetists throughout the world. According to the report by Ethiopian Association of Anesthetists, there are a total of 1200 anesthetists serving a population of 100 million in the country showing that there is shortage of anesthesia professionals which may lead to increased workload and job dissatisfaction.
In Ethiopia, the number of anesthetists in intention of turnover, dropout from the profession, and leaving the working area is increasing which is a challenge for the health-care system. One study also showed that job satisfaction is determinant factor for motivation and increased work effectiveness, efficiency, and quality [
The present study was designed to assess the overall job satisfaction and determine factors affecting the level of job satisfaction among anesthetists which may help health policy makers to implement health policies that focus on incentives, conducive working conditions, fair workloads, and employee retention.
Multicenter cross-sectional study was conducted from April to May 2017 in Amhara National Regional State, Northwest Ethiopia.
There are five referral and 12 general hospitals in Amhara National Regional State. According to the information from the Amhara Regional Health Bureau, there are about 104 anesthetists working in the region.
All anesthetists working in Amhara National Regional State were included in this study.
Anesthetists working in Amhara National Regional State who were available during data collection period were included in this study.
Level of job satisfaction which was recorded on a five-point Likert scale was the dependent variable.
Sociodemographic variables including, age, gender, religion, educational status, marital status, years of practice, work-related characteristics, working position, salary, and working hours per week were independent variables.
Job satisfaction subscales such as control responsibility, schedule, coworker interaction, praise and recognition, and social interaction were also incorporated as independent variables.
To measure level of job satisfaction of each individual, the mean (average) value of all subscales was calculated. Mean value of subscales was taken as a cut point value to determine whether an anesthetist was satisfied with his/her job or not. As a result, anesthetists for whom score was below mean were considered as dissatisfied and those with mean and above were regarded as satisfied.
Having approval from Institutional Ethical Review Board of University of Gondar, a self-administered questionnaire consisting of sociodemographic variables and 24-item of job satisfaction tool was sent through hand-delivered questionnaire for all anesthetists working in Amhara regional state, and the data were collected by five data collectors within a month after administration of the questionnaires, and it was supervised by the principal investigator.
Study participants were oriented on how to fill the questionnaire, and data collection was supervised by the supervisor. The data were cleaned and checked for completeness using Epi info.
Data was coded, entered, and analyzed using SPSS version 20 statistical software. Each item of the job satisfaction was measured by a 5 point Likert scale having a total of 24 items as validated by Tourangeau et al. The reliability coefficient (Cronbach’s alpha) of this instrument for our total respondents was 0.88. The 24 items were further divided into seven subscales. Predictor items were also summated accordingly to determine agreement status of the respondent by using computed mean for each sub scale and the higher means score indicating higher satisfaction from the subscales. Descriptive statistics was presented as frequency and percentage.
Using binary logistics regressions model, bivariate and multivariate analyses were employed to determine the association between dependent and independent variables. Variables with
Ethical clearance was obtained from the School of Medicine Ethics Committee of University of Gondar. Written informed consent was obtained from each study participant after clear explanation on what the study entails. Anyone not willing to participate in the study was informed that they have full right not to participate or stop at any time. Confidentiality was ensured by keeping the secrecy of personal identification, completed questionnaires, and results in well secured area.
Out of 104 eligible anesthetists working in Amhara National Regional State, 98 responded the self-administered questionnaire, giving a response rate of 94%. Of study participants, 77 (78.6%) were male while 21 (21.4) were females and most of the respondents were unmarried 57 (58.2%). Of study subjects, 61 (62.2%) were in the age group of 25–30 years followed by 9 (9.2%) above 30 years. Of the total respondents, 62 (63.3%) were BSc, 17 (17.3%) MSc, and 19 (19.4%) were diploma anesthetists (Table
Sociodemographic characteristics of anesthetists working in Amhara National Regional State April to May, 2017 (
Variables | Frequency | Percent |
---|---|---|
|
||
Male | 77 | 78.6 |
Female | 21 | 21.4 |
|
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<25 | 17 | 17.3 |
25–30 | 61 | 61.2 |
31–35 | 11 | 11.9 |
>35 | 9 | 9.2 |
|
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Single | 57 | 58.2 |
Married | 41 | 41.8 |
|
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BSc | 62 | 63.3 |
Diploma | 19 | 19.4 |
MSc | 17 | 17.3 |
|
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Orthodox | 70 | 71.4 |
Muslim | 16 | 16.3 |
Protestant | 12 | 12.3 |
|
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<5000 | 17 | 17.3 |
5000–7000 | 38 | 38.8 |
7000–9000 | 27 | 27.6 |
>9000 | 16 | 16.3 |
Regarding work experience of anesthetists more than half of them were served about 1–5 years and 6 (6.1%) of them served above 9 years. Of the study participants, 56 (57.1%) were clinical staffs, and 42 (42.9%) were academic staffs.
Overall, forty six (46.9%) of respondents were satisfied (Table
Satisfaction level among participants by job satisfaction subscales in Amhara National Regional State April to May, 2017 (
Job satisfaction subscales | Level of satisfaction | |
---|---|---|
Satisfied |
Dissatisfied |
|
Control and responsibility | 58 (59.2) | 40 (40.8) |
Scheduling | 43 (43.9) | 55 (56.1) |
Social interaction | 54 (55.1) | 44 (44.9) |
Professional opportunities | 46 (46.9) | 53 (54.1) |
Salary and benefits | 50 (51) | 48 (49) |
Praise and recognition | 48 (49) | 50 (51) |
Coworker | 37 (37.8) | 61 (62.2) |
Overall | 46 (46.9) | 53 (53.1) |
Univariate analysis indicated that age of respondents, gender, working position, and medical resource and supply were significantly associated with job satisfaction. The cut point for statistical significance was
Multivariate analysis for predictors of job satisfaction of anesthetists, Amhara National Regional State April to May, 2017 (
Independent predictors | Job satisfaction | COR (95% CI) | AOR (95% CI) | |
---|---|---|---|---|
Satisfied | Dissatisfied | |||
|
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Male | 39 | 38 | 2.05 (0.74–5.64) |
|
Female | 7 | 14 | 1 |
|
|
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<25 | 9 | 8 | 1 |
|
25–30 | 23 | 38 | 0.53 (0.18–1.59) | |
31–35 | 6 | 5 | 1.06 (0.23–4.88) | |
>35 | 8 | 1 | 7.11 (0.72–6.85) |
|
|
||||
Single | 24 | 33 | 1.23 (0.55–2.76) | |
Married | 16 | 25 | 1 |
|
|
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Academic | 25 | 17 | 2.45 (1.08–5.56) |
2.91 (1.20–7.05) |
Clinical | 21 | 35 | 1 | 1 |
|
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≤50 | 14 | 13 | 2.38 (0.83–6.83) | |
51–70 | 11 | 8 | 2.62 (0.81–08.43) | |
71–90 | 7 | 13 | 1.56 (0.49–4.90) | |
>90 | 8 | 24 | 1 |
|
|
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MSc | 5 | 12 | 2.66 (0.67–10.58) | |
BSc | 25 | 37 | 2.4 (0.75–7.62) | |
Diploma | 10 | 9 | 1 |
|
|
||||
<5000 | 9 | 8 | 1 |
|
5000–7000 | 12 | 26 | 0.64 (0.20–2.04) | |
7000–9000 | 11 | 16 | 0.71 (0.25–2.40) | |
>9000 | 8 | 8 | 1.14 (0.29–4.50) | |
|
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1–3 | 23 | 33 | 1 |
|
4–6 | 11 | 21 | 1.17 (0.49–2.81) | |
7–9 | 1 | 1 | 1.33 (0.07–22.41) | |
≥10 | 5 | 3 | 4.00 (0.74–21.58) | |
|
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Inadequate | 22 | 33 | 1 |
|
Adequate | 24 | 19 | 1.89 (0.84–4.25) |
Job satisfactions of health-care workers play a vital role in improving the quality of client care. The finding of the present study indicated that less than half (46.9%) of anesthetists were satisfied with their job which is in line with a study conducted in Jimma (Ethiopia) where 45.8% of anesthetists and 41.4% of health workers were satisfied with their job [
The result of the present study is inconsistent with the survey conducted in Canada and Nigeria which indicated that 75% and 58.7% of anesthesiologists, respectively, reported overall satisfaction with their job [
The result of our study showed that anesthetists in academic position were more satisfied compared to those of clinical staffs (AOR = 2.91; CI = 1.20–7.056.740). This might be due to advancing opportunities and difference in salary and incentives. Additionally, professional development might build up the confidence of anesthetists and increase their satisfaction.
In contrast to earlier findings [
In our study, satisfaction with working schedule was low (43.9%) in accordance with [
The result of the present study showed respondents were less (51%) satisfied with recognition. It could be argued by the reasons that the anesthesia professional is a new specialty in our country and public awareness about the role of anesthetists might be low. Scholars promote that acknowledging employees for their good work is motivator for job satisfaction.
This study revealed that strong control over work and responsibility produces higher job satisfaction (59.5%) in good agreement with [
The possible weakness may come from the small sample size, and there is not a special standardized job satisfaction measurement tool for anesthetists, and we modified the job satisfaction scale developed for nurses.
Job satisfaction of anesthetists working in Amhara National Regional State is low. The only factor associated with job satisfaction was working position. Anesthetists were most satisfied with their control and responsibility and least satisfied with coworker interaction.
Ethiopian birr
Intensive care unit
Job satisfaction
World Health Organization
University of Gondar.
The authors declare that there are no conflicts of interest regarding the publication of this paper.