Job Satisfaction Among Health Care Workers

Have you ever wondered if a career in health care will make you happy? Though it appears to be a very rewarding job, are some employees in the health care industry happier than others? What affects job satisfaction in this field? Whether you're a student who's considering a career in health care or a current health care professional looking for a job, these are important questions to ask.

Actually, health care workers tend to be very satisfied with their job overall. Most people in this field report that they are happy with their work and enjoy the rewarding experience of helping others. However, there are specific factors to consider that affect the level of satisfaction for certain positions. Furthermore, some health care jobs tend to have a higher satisfaction rate than others.

For example, a 2002 study of physicians in the U.S. found that about 7 out of 10 physicians were satisfied or very satisfied with their job. A similar study was done in Canada, with a satisfaction of about 75% in that country. Nurses, on the other hand, show a slightly lower satisfaction rate than physicians. In the U.S., about 63% of the 76,000 registered nurses surveyed reported that they were satisfied with their job.

How come nurses didn't score as highly for satisfaction as physicians? Believe it or not, their annual salary wasn't one of the reasons. In fact, the top three factors affecting job satisfaction are generally stress, autonomy and the relationship with supervisors. For nurses, it's easy to see how stress would play a major role in their day-to-day responsibilities. Furthermore, a bad relationship with one of the physicians on their team may affect their satisfaction. Many nurses may also feel they lack autonomy when they are not given the opportunity to take a leadership role or complete tasks on their own. Despite these factors, however, the 63% satisfaction rate is still relatively high when compared to other career paths in the U.S.

There are other factors which may affect job satisfaction in health care. A large workload and working overtime hours may also affect the level of satisfaction in a job. Because nurses often work longer hours, this may contribute to the fact that their satisfaction was lower than that of physicians, who normally work more structured hours.

The majority of nurses and physicians, despite the slight differences in percentages, still are satisfied or very satisfied with their jobs. They aren't the only ones, however. Allied health workers also report very high satisfaction rates, with about 85% to 98% reporting that they are happy with their work and would choose the same career if they could start over again. Other health care career paths enjoy high satisfaction rates as well. Physical therapists are one of the most satisfied groups of working professionals in health care, with 75% of these workers reporting that they are very satisfied with their jobs. In fact, they are the second-most satisfied group of workers in the entire country, second only to clergy, according to a National Opinion Research Center survey. In general, choosing a career in health care is a safe bet that you'll be happy with your career choice in the long run.