Abstract
BackgroundThe relationship between extended work hours and health is well documented among hospital doctors, but the effect of national differences in work hours on health is unexplored. The study examines the relationship between work hours and self rated health in two national samples of hospital doctors.MethodsThe study population consisted of representative samples of 1,260 German and 562 Norwegian hospital doctors aged 25-65 years (N = 1,822) who received postal questionnaires in 2006 (Germany) and 2008 (Norway). The questionnaires contained items on demography, work hours (number of hours per workday and on-call per month) and self rated subjective health on a five point scale - dichotomized into "good" (above average) and "average or below".ResultsCompared to Norway, a significantly higher proportion of German doctors exceeded a 9 hour work day (58.8% vs. 26.7%) and 60 hours on-call per month (63.4% vs. 18.3%). Every third (32.2%) hospital doctor in Germany worked more than this, while this pattern was rare in Norway (2.9%). In a logistic regression model, working in Norway (OR 4.17; 95% CI 3.02-5.73), age 25-44 years (OR 1.66; 95% CI 1.29-2.14) and not exceeding 9 hour work day and 60 hours on-call per month (OR 1.35; 95% CI 1.03-1.77) were all independent significant predictors of good self reported health.ConclusionA lower percentage of German hospital doctors reported self rated health as "good", which is partly explained by the differences in work time pattern. Initiatives to increase doctors' control over their work time are recommended.
Highlights
The relationship between extended work hours and health is well documented among hospital doctors, but the effect of national differences in work hours on health is unexplored
In this paper we look into the differences in doctors’ actual work hours in Norwegian and German hospitals, and whether this difference is associated with self rated health
The aim of this study is to examine and compare the associations between actual work hours and self rated health in national samples of Norwegian and German hospital doctors
Summary
The relationship between extended work hours and health is well documented among hospital doctors, but the effect of national differences in work hours on health is unexplored. The study examines the relationship between work hours and self rated health in two national samples of hospital doctors. It is well known that working long hours, as a result of extended days and on-call duties, is common among many hospital doctors in Europe. There is evidence for a considerable difference in work time burden for hospital doctors in two European countries - Norway and Germany. Hospital doctors in Germany report significantly lower job satisfaction, compared with their colleagues in Norway, and the largest difference was observed on satisfaction with work hours as one of ten components of the job satisfaction scale [8]. In this paper we look into the differences in doctors’ actual work hours in Norwegian and German hospitals, and whether this difference is associated with self rated health
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