Patient-Centredness, Job Satisfaction and Psychological Distress: a Brief Survey Comparing Oncology Nurses and Doctors

Abstract

<b>Background:</b> We aimed to explore whether levels of patient-centredness, job satisfaction and psychologicaldistress varied between oncology nurses and doctors. Materials and <br/><b>Methods</b>: In a cross-sectional study usingself-administered questionnaires, a total of 24 nurses and 43 doctors were assessed for patient-centredness,psychological distress, and job satisfaction using the Patient-Practitioner Orientation Scale, Hospital Anxietyand Depression Scale, and Job Satisfaction Scale. Data were analysed using descriptive statistics, independentsamples t-test and MANCOVA, with p<0.05 considered significant. <br/><b>Results</b>: Overall response rate was 95.6%(43/45) for physicians and 85.7% (24/28) for nurses. Even after adjusting for known covariates, our principalfinding was that doctors reported greater psychological distress compared to nurses (p=0.009). Doctors alsoreported lower job satisfaction compared to nurses (p = 0.017), despite higher levels of patient-centrednessfound in nurses (p=0.001). Findings may be explained in part by differences in job characteristics and demands.<br/><b>Conclusions</b>: Mental health is an important concern not just in cancer patients but among healthcare professionalsin oncology.