Tu1073 Work-Life Balance of Gastroenterology Trainees: A Nationwide Cross-Sectional Survey

Abstract

Purpose: Work-life balance is increasingly being recognized as an important factor for the productivity, punctuality, commitment, performance and well-being of employees in the workplace. Without work-life balance, there may be deleterious effects on health, interpersonal and sexual relations and increased stress. Gastroenterology is one of the most competitive and demanding medical specialties, but issues of work-life balance in gastroenterology trainees have not been studied. Method: A 20-item survey was created based on the Profession-Family-Career model, which is a validated work-life balance assessment tool. The survey was sent to gastroenterology program director/coordinators across the country, identified using the online AGA directory, to be forwarded to their respective fellows. We then calculated odds ratios for demographic factors and prior exposures on perceived worklife balance and satisfaction both at work and with one's personal life. Results: There were 139 respondents (12.2% response rate), with a mean age of 33 years (range 25-44 years). Most respondents were males (70%), with 82.5% in a clinical track, and 56% having received some formal education/counseling regarding work-life balance during their training. There were 89% who were in a relationship, and 50% reported having children. While 84% of fellows felt appreciated by colleagues, only 70% felt appreciated by their program directors. Less than one-third of fellows were satisfied with salary. An overwhelming majority felt they were neglecting their social life (98.5%), hobbies (98.0%) and family (91.5%) because of work. Female fellows felt less appreciated by colleagues (OR 0.35, CI 0.13-0.93) and less satisfied with personal life (OR 0.52, CI 0.29-0.91) compared to male counterparts. Fellows who had received prior work-life balance education were more satisfied with their worklife balance (OR 3.87, CI 1.85-8.12) and felt more appreciated at work (OR 15.7, CI 6.534.7). Conclusion: To our knowledge, this is the first study analyzing the work-life balance issues of gastroenterology fellows. We discovered a higher perception of work-life imbalance among female fellows as compared to their male counterparts and receiving any work-life balance education was associated with improved satisfaction with work-life balance. Further studies are needed to explore this phenomenon, and appropriate measures implemented in order to bring work-life balance education and awareness to gastroenterology fellows.