Improving work force in health sector: A survey on motivation of medical graduates and residents on willingness to practice in rural community

Abstract

Background: Health work force is a bottle neck of health system of any country so production and placements of good quality of doctor’s proportionate to country demand is the need of time.  To address  the current and emerging challenging issue of shortage of rural health force in low and middle income countries current health system need different strategies to reduce the gap in health work force. Future career choice to practice in rural community is influence by large number of factors but motivation is the key intention factor in the working life span of doctors that plays an important role in attraction, recruitment and retention of medical graduates for rural practice.

Purpose: To determine the intention of medical graduates and residents on willingness to practice in rural community and to identify factors that influence their motivations.   

Literature Search: PubMed, Google Scholar

Study Design and Method:  This descriptive, cross sectional study was conducted in Sharif Medical and Dental College and Lady Willingdon hospital Lahore and Nawaz Sharif medical college Gujrat in June 2018.

Results:  240 medical graduates and house officers participated in study.  Out of  which 159 (66.3%) medical graduates showed positive response for willingness to practice in rural community with 47% degree of intention for likely to work in rural community. Response was more marked in fourth year students as compared to final year medical graduates and house officers.

Conclusion: Motivation is the key determinant in working life span strategy and is effected by large number of factors both intrinsic and extrinsic. Both internal and external motivation predicts future career choices of doctors for rural placement. So appropriate planning, refinement in educational programs, remuneration in form of financial incentive, initiation of scholarship schemes and mandatory rotations to serve in rural area, effective support of health system, , and job safety in addition to selection policy at induction of training program remove major obstacle in shortage of workforce in health sector.

Key words:   Motivation, Medical Graduates, Carrier Choices, Community Based Medical Education, Rural Practice