OBJECTIVE

This study was conducted in order to investigate the professionalism, job stress and job satisfaction in western and oriental doctors in Korea.

METHODS

The authors conducted a survey using a selfadministered questionnaire, conducted between August and September, 2001. The study subjects were 457 western doctors and 161 oriental doctors practicing at local clinics in Daegu City.

RESULTS

For the professionalism scale, the score for 'belief in service to the public' of western doctors was significantly higher than that of oriental doctors (p< 0.05) whereas the scores for 'sense of calling to the field' and 'feeling of autonomy' were higher in oriental doctors (p< 0.01). For the job stress scale, the scores for 'work factor', and 'clinical responsibility/decision factor' of western doctors were significantly higher than those of oriental doctors (p< 0.01). Of the western doctors, 59.7% expressed satisfaction with their job as a doctor, 69.5% responded that the role of a doctor was appropriate to their aptitude, and 61.8% answered that they wouldn't consider other kinds of job even if offered. In case of oriental doctors, these responses were83.1%, 82.5%, and 82.3%, espectively.

CONCLUSIONS

The job stress scores of western doctors were higher than those of oriental doctors, but the job satisfaction was lower. The reasons for the above results are not clear. Further studies are required to understand the characteristics of job stress and job satisfaction in doctors.