Factors associated with less-than-full-time working in medical practice: results of surveys of five cohorts of UK doctors, 10 years after graduation

Abstract

BackgroundThe greater participation of women in medicine in recent years, and recent trends showing that doctors of both sexes work fewer hours than in the past, present challenges for medical workforce planning. In this study, we provide a detailed analysis of the characteristics of doctors who choose to work less-than-full-time (LTFT). We aimed to determine the influence of these characteristics on the probability of working LTFT.MethodsWe used data on working patterns obtained from long-term surveys of 10,866 UK-trained doctors. We analysed working patterns at 10 years post-graduation for doctors of five graduating cohorts, 1993, 1996, 1999, 2000 and 2002 (i.e. in the years 2003, 2006, 2009, 2010 and 2012, respectively). We used multivariable binary logistic regression models to examine the influence of a number of personal and professional characteristics on the likelihood of working LTFT in male and female doctors.ResultsAcross all cohorts, 42 % of women and 7 % of men worked LTFT. For female doctors, having children significantly increased the likelihood of working LTFT, with greater effects observed for greater numbers of children and for female doctors in non-primary care specialties (non-GPs). While >40 % of female GPs with children worked LTFT, only 10 % of female surgeons with children did so. Conversely, the presence of children had no effect on male working patterns. Living with a partner increased the odds of LTFT working in women doctors, but decreased the odds of LTFT working in men (independently of children). Women without children were no more likely to work LTFT than were men (with or without children). For both women and men, the highest rates of LTFT working were observed among GPs (~10 and 6 times greater than non-GPs, respectively), and among those not in training or senior positions.ConclusionsFamily circumstances (children and partner status) affect the working patterns of women and men differently, but both sexes respond similarly to the constraints of their clinical specialty and seniority. Thus, although women doctors comprise the bulk of LTFT workers, gender is just one of several determinants of doctors’ working patterns, and wanting to work LTFT is evidently not solely an issue for working mothers.Electronic supplementary materialThe online version of this article (doi:10.1186/s12960-016-0162-3) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.

Motherhood and medicine: systematic review of the experiences of mothers who are doctors

“…Some studies reported that female doctors believed that career progression would be slowed by motherhood, 28,29 similar to findings in other professions. In business careers, for example, leaves of absence have been associated with fewer promotions and poorer annual review outcomes, 46 especially for women who take leave of absence to have children; 47 in managerial positions, each year of delayed motherhood was found to increase earnings by 9%.…”

“…The second theme, derived from 17 quantitative studies (32 to 10 866 participants) 8,13,[19][20][21][22][23][24][25][26][27][28][29][30][32][33][34] and one qualitative study (eight participants), 31 was the impact of being a mother on working as a doctor (Supporting Information, table 3).…”

“…The number of hours worked after maternity leave was influenced by childcare availability, personal and family preferences, and working arrangements. 8,19,27,28,34 A Japanese survey (224 respondents) found that 38% of female surgeons changed their work plans to accommodate childcare; further, acute childhood illnesses, educational activities, and parenting responsibilities affected decisions about work, and 11% had resigned their jobs. 27 Time required for parenting also affected working hours.…”

Releasing GP capacity with pharmacy prescribing support and New Ways of Working: a prospective observational cohort study

“…3 There is also a need to redress these pressures; to enable a better work-life balance to allow GPs to fulfil personal responsibilities and needs. 4,5 All of this is driving general practice staff away from the NHS, away from their professions, and away from patients. 3,6 Specially trained clinical pharmacists and prescribing support teams have worked with general practices for more than two decades to support GPs and practices, primary care services, and patients.…”

The Gender Penalty: Reasons for Differences in Reported Weekly Work Hours Among Male and Female Family Physicians

“…This likely reflects a cultural shift in medicine with millennial physicians placing a higher value on work-life balance over salary and career progression. 4 Compared with previous generations, dual-career couples are more the norm, making childcare more logistically challenging. 5 Younger male physicians are more than twice as likely as older male physicians to make career changes for their marriage and children.…”