Association of part-time clinical work with well-being and mental health in General Internal Medicine: A survey among Swiss hospitalists.

Bretagne, Lisa; Mosimann, Stefanie; Roten, Christine; Perrig, Martin; Genné, Daniel; Essig, Manfred; Mancinetti, Marco; Méan, Marie; Darbellay Farhoumand, Pauline; Huber, Lars C; Weber, Elisabeth; Knoblauch, Christoph; Schoenenberger, Andreas W; Frick, Sonia; Wenemoser, Eliane; Ernst, Daniel; Bodmer, Michael; Aujesky, Drahomir; Baumgartner, Christine (2023). Association of part-time clinical work with well-being and mental health in General Internal Medicine: A survey among Swiss hospitalists. PLoS ONE, 18(9), e0290407. Public Library of Science 10.1371/journal.pone.0290407

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INTRODUCTION

Burnout and low job satisfaction are increasing among the General Internal Medicine (GIM) workforce. Whether part-time compared to full-time clinical employment is associated with better wellbeing, job satisfaction and health among hospitalists remains unclear.

MATERIALS AND METHODS

We conducted an anonymized cross-sectional survey among board-certified general internists (i.e. hospitalists) from GIM departments in 14 Swiss hospitals. Part-time clinical work was defined as employment of <100% as a clinician. The primary outcome was well-being, as measured by the extended Physician Well-Being Index (ePWBI), an ePWBI ≥3 indicating poor wellbeing. Secondary outcomes included depressive symptoms, mental and physical health, and job satisfaction. We compared outcomes in part-time and full time workers using propensity score-adjusted multivariate regression models.

RESULTS

Of 199 hospitalists invited, 137 (69%) responded to the survey, and 124 were eligible for analysis (57 full-time and 67 part-time clinicians). Full-time clinicians were more likely to have poor wellbeing compared to part-time clinicians (ePWBI ≥3 54% vs. 31%, p = 0.012). Part-time compared to full-time clinical work was associated with a lower risk of poor well-being in adjusted analyses (odds ratio 0.20, 95% confidence interval 0.07-0.59, p = 0.004). Compared to full-time clinicians, there were fewer depressive symptoms (3% vs. 18%, p = 0.006), and mental health was better (mean SF-8 Mental Component Summary score 47.2 vs. 43.2, p = 0.028) in part-time clinicians, without significant differences in physical health and job satisfaction.

CONCLUSIONS

Full-time clinical hospitalists in GIM have a high risk of poor well-being. Part-time compared to full-time clinical work is associated with better well-being and mental health, and fewer depressive symptoms.

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