A Study On The Influence Of Incentive Factors On Job Satisfaction And Turnover Intention Of Pediatricians In Qinghai Province

BackgroundChildren’s health is related to family happiness and the future and hope of the Chinese nation.Children’s health is affected by economic conditions and medical standards.Among them,pediatricians are an important factor in improving children’s health and ensuring their healthy growth.With the increase of the proportion of children population,the contradiction between the high demand for children’s medical treatment and the lack of pediatric medical resources in China has become increasingly prominent.Qinghai Province,which is located in the western region,is facing a more severe situation in the problem of pediatric human resources.In 2018,Qinghai Province issued the Opinions on Strengthening the Reform and Development of Children’s Medical and Health Services,which proposed to improve the pediatric medical and health service system and strengthen the construction of pediatric talents.The problem of pediatric brain drain has become a challenge for the local government to improve the current policy.Studies have shown that turnover intention has a good predictive effect on individual turnover behavior.Individual job satisfaction and various motivational factors will all have an impact on turnover intention.Therefore,understanding the turnover intention and job satisfaction of the pediatricians in Qinghai Province,analyzing the current shortage of pediatricians,and exploring the effective incentive factors for the work of pediatricians will help to alleviate the current shortage of pediatricians in Qinghai Province,and have a positive and practical significance to reduce the outflow of pediatricians.ObjectiveThis study adopted a mixed research method combining quantitative and qualitative research to understand the turnover tendency and job satisfaction status and related relationships of pediatricians in Qinghai Province.The research will analyze the influence of demographic and occupation characteristics and motivational factors on job satisfaction and turnover intention to find the main factors that affect turnover intention.At the same time,the study combined the satisfaction of the six types of incentive factors and the preference of pediatricians to determine the incentive factors that need to be improved in priority,so as to develop an effective incentive strategy for the retention of pediatricians in Qinghai Province,and provide research basis and countermeasures for solving the problems of the imbalance of the talent structure of pediatricians in Qinghai Province and the serious brain drain.MethodsAccording to the geographical distribution and socio-economic development of Qinghai Province,this study selected 12 local public medical institutions with pediatric departments in 5 cities(prefectures)as on-site survey points.The survey adopted a combination of cluster and random sampling.159 pediatricians were selected for the survey.Among them,52 pediatricians were randomly selected from a special children’s hospital,and 107 pediatricians were included in the other 11 hospitals.The questionnaire used in this study includes basic personal information(demographic and occupational characteristics),Minnesota Satisfaction Questionnaire(Abbreviated as MSQ,including general,internal and external satisfaction dimensions),six types of incentive satisfaction questionnaire,incentive preference questionnaire and turnover intention questionnaire.The questionnaire will investigate the pediatricians’ personal basic information,job satisfaction,satisfaction of six motivational factors,importance preference and resignation intention.At the same time,semi-structured interviews were conducted with pediatricians and leaders in charge of pediatrics in 12 institutions as well as heads of 4 provincial government departments(a total of 79 people).The study uses descriptive analysis,single factor analysis,multiple linear regression,and factor importance derivation models to analyze the results of the questionnaire,and uses thematic framework analysis to analyze the interview results in detail.Analyze and evaluate the job satisfaction,willingness to leave,satisfaction with various incentive factors and preferences of pediatricians in Qinghai Province,and provide research evidence for the next step in formulating incentive policies.ResultsIn this survey,a total of 159 questionnaires were distributed to 12 provincial,prefecture/city,and county-level hospitals in Qinghai Province,and 139 questionnaires were returned,including 5 invalid questionnaires and 134 valid questionnaires.The questionnaire response rate was 87.42%and the effective rate was 96.40%.The average satisfaction score of pediatricians in Qinghai Province was 74.18 points,the average internal satisfaction score was 52.44 points,and the external satisfaction score is 21.74 points.There were statistically significant differences in general satisfaction and external satisfaction of pediatricians under different age characteristics.Pediatricians aged 31-40 had the lowest satisfaction scores.The difference in general,internal,and external satisfaction of pediatricians with different monthly incomes was statistically significant.The income category with the highest satisfaction score was 10,000 yuan or more,and the income category with the lowest score was 4001-6000 yuan(P<0.05).Among the six motivating factors of salary,work intensity,working environment,training and promotion,doctor-patient relationship,and interpersonal relationship,the satisfaction score of interpersonal relationship was the highest at 3.77,and the satisfaction score of doctor-patient relationship was the lowest at 2.60.The satisfaction of the six types of motivating factors showed a positive correlation with the job satisfaction score(P<0.01).Work intensity and interpersonal relationship satisfaction would have a positive impact on the general and internal satisfaction of pediatricians.Salary,training and promotion,and satisfaction with interpersonal relationships will have a positive impact on external satisfaction.There are differences in turnover intention among pediatricians with different ages,genders and monthly income levels(P<0.05).Among them,women,31-40 years old,and the monthly income of 4001-8000 yuan have a higher tendency to leave.The six types of motivating factors and job satisfaction showed a negative correlation with the turnover intention(P<0.05).Among them,Pediatricians with high interpersonal satisfaction can be predicted to have relatively low willingness to leave.At present,pediatricians in Qinghai have the highest preference for improvement measures for various incentives that they hope to obtain,which is to increase the level of salary and benefits,which is 5.32 points,and the lowest is to improve current interpersonal relationships,which is 1.66 points.Combined with the factor importance derivation model,among the six types of motivation factors,the work intensity factor is in the opportunity zone,the doctor-patient relationship factor is in the improvement zone,the salary and benefits factor is in the advantage zone,and the three factors of training promotion,interpersonal relationship and working environment are in the maintenance zone.In the interviews related to job satisfaction and turnover intention,pediatricians mentioned four relevant keywords with higher frequency:doctor-patient relationship,income level,workload,career development and promotion system.Conclusions and SuggestionsThis study investigated the job satisfaction,turnover intention and satisfaction of various incentive factors of pediatricians in Qinghai Province,and analyzed the influence of various incentive factors and job satisfaction on turnover intention.On the whole,the job satisfaction of pediatricians in Qinghai Province is at a moderately higher level,and the willingness to resign is at a moderately lower level.To improve the general and internal satisfaction of pediatricians in Qinghai Province,it is necessary to focus on groups with high work intensity and low interpersonal satisfaction.In order to improve external satisfaction,more attention needs to be paid to groups with low satisfaction in salary and benefits,training and promotion,and interpersonal relationships.In addition,income and interpersonal relationship satisfaction are important factors that affect the turnover intention.Taken together,the satisfaction of work intensity,salary,training and promotion,and the doctor-patient relationship are the factors that pediatricians are more concerned about.For pediatricians in Qinghai Province,among the six types of motivating factors,the areas that need to be improved are work intensity,doctor-patient relationship,and logistical support factors in the working environment.In summary,in response to the research results,the following suggestions are made:(1)Broaden the recruitment channels for pediatricians,and allocate jobs and content rationally;(2)Improve the price adjustment plan for children’s medical services,and increase the salary and benefits of pediatricians;(3)Increase opportunities for pediatricians’ advanced training and optimize the promotion and evaluation mechanism of pediatrician titles;(4)Strengthen media guidance and improve the hospital-patient dispute handling system.