Studies: Young doctors stressed, but enjoying the work

Two surveys of young doctors in New Zealand and Australia show they are stressed and at high risk of burnout.

But despite an "excessive" workload leading to fears they would make mistakes, doctors were also likely to report they enjoy what they do.

The first study, by Dr Alex Markwell and Dr Zoe Wainer from the Australian Medical Association's Council of Doctors in Training, covered 914 junior doctors in both countries.

"We were pleased to discover that 77 per cent of respondents enjoyed working as a doctor, and 73 per cent were looking forward to working that year," Dr Markwell said.

On the flip-side, 54 per cent reported their workload had been excessive, and 53 per cent believed an "adverse event" could occur as a result of their high workload.

Forty-one per cent and believed their workload compromised patient safety.

A majority of the junior doctors met established criteria indicating low job satisfaction (71 per cent), burnout (69 per cent), and compassion fatigue (54 per cent).

The second survey - the National Junior Medical Officer Welfare Study - covered 276 doctors who had recently completed internships in Western Australia, NSW and Queensland.

Study co-author Dr Daniel Heredia said 65 per cent of the young doctors in this study reported high levels of stress and 47 per cent believed their workload was excessive. Again, it showed the doctors enjoyed what they did.

Dr Heredia said: "Although it is impossible to remove all stress associated with work as a doctor, these findings indicate a need for junior doctors to be adequately trained in stress management and provided with suitable support services such as counselling."

- AAP