Assessment of the quality of life of gynecologic surgeons: A national survey in France

Abstract

IntroductionWell-being and quality of life (QoL) in the workplace have become a priority in all professions. Both academic studies and the media seek to assess how physicians feel. Nonetheless, few studies have focused on the specific situation of surgeons in terms of their work/life balance and their satisfaction at work. These observations led us to conduct a survey to describe these factors among gynecologic surgeons, as a function of their lifestyles and professional practices. Material and methodsThis self-administered cross-sectional survey was distributed by email to the gynecologic surgeons currently practicing in France, both those who do and do not continue to cover on-call obstetrics duty. This analysis compared responses by gender. ResultsBetween February and June 2019, we collected 253 responses: 105 from women and 148 from men. In all, 59.6% of the surgeons reported working from 50 to 75 h weekly, and 23.7% considered their workload very high and difficult to manage. Indeed, 32.4% reported they had already experienced an episode of burnout. At the same time, 51.8% of the women but only 18.2% of the men reported they had previously experienced discrimination in the workplace. The women felt they received less recognition by their peers than their male colleagues. They held fewer management and other posts of responsibility. They were notably less satisfied with their salaries. Overall, 73.5% of the surgeons would make the same career choice, if they could do it over again. ConclusionThis assessment of gynecologic surgeons shows marked gender differences in the impact of workload on the time they have for themselves, their family, and their friends. Given the diseases it deals with, this profession is stressful and can involve notable psychological repercussions. The burnout rate is high, consistent with the literature. Despite their desire for some changes, the response by three quarters of the respondents that they would choose the same career path if they had it to do over again is evidence of professional satisfaction.