A study of physician retention in the Regina Qu'Appelle Health Region

Building, enhancing and maintaining a strong physician workforce is fundamental to the future of the Regina Qu'Appelle Health Region (RQHR) and the province of Saskatchewan, Canada. Physicians play a fundamental role in health service delivery within the province and make up seven percent of the province's health workforce. The RQHR recognizes that without activities aimed specifically at the retention of their current workforce, the needs for physician recruitment will only escalate as will the frustrations for the current workforce. Recruitment needs coupled with potential retirements over the next 10 years could significantly impact the region's ability to maintain a high quality of health service delivery and negate any opportunity to enhance care and become a business dedicated to best practice.;Thirty physicians who joined the RQHR from 1996 to 2001 were mailed a survey on the issues of retention. Views from the 15 respondents (a 50% response rate) were collated and themed. To add richness to the survey findings, three physician leaders who act as heads of various medical departments, were interviewed using the survey questions as a starting point for discussions and their commentaries were transcribed verbatim. Narratives and themes from both the surveys and interviews are reported in the study.;The themes were discussed in relation to current literature on physician retention and new and emerging themes were identified and investigated. The results indicated that changes to the current practice environment, keeping the physician's family happy and achieving a balance between work and family priorities are critical components of physician retention. Also important is the recognition that the recruitment and retention of new and younger physicians may require a change in current philosophy. Many physicians reported enjoying family life in Regina and pleasure with being able to participate in a full scope of practice in their specialty. They also enjoyed having the support of colleagues in specialty and sub-specialty areas available for patient consultations but most were frustrated with system related delays that hindered the care of their patients (i.e. difficulty accessing in-patient beds, surgical waitlists and cancellations, and wait times for procedures).;The study concludes with recommendations specific to the retention of RQHR medical staff, endorses current employment screening and orientation efforts undertaken by the region, and suggests opportunities for future research. The findings of this study will be useful in planning and operational efforts of the RQHR and will add to the body of research on physician retention.;The study uses a qualitative grounded theory research approach to gain an understanding of the reasons why physicians remain within the RQHR workforce. Physicians who choose to stay can speak to the positive aspects of their work environment as well as to the frustrations that they encounter which may lead to their departure. Grounded theory allows feedback to direct the study and as suggested by Pope and Mays (2006) allows the categories and hypotheses to emerge from the data rather than defining them in advance of the study.