Job stress and satisfaction among clinical radiologists

AIMS: Consultant radiologists appear to be at greater risk of burnout than consultants working in other specialties. The aim of this study was to exam ine sources of stress and satisfaction at work for radiologists and hospita l consultants in other specialties in order to try to understand this diffe rence. MATERIALS AND METHODS: A postal questionnaire survey of psychiatric morbidi ty (12-item General Health Questionnaire), burnout (Maslach Burnout Invento ry) and sources of job stress and satisfaction (study-specific questionnair es) was carried out among a random sample of 882 hospital consultants worki ng in radiology and three other specialties (surgery, gastroenterology and oncology), RESULTS: The most stressful aspect of work for radiologists was work overlo ad. Inadequacies in current staffing and facilities and concerns about fund ing were also major sources of stress, as were impositions made on radiolog ists by other clinicians. The most important sources of satisfaction for ra diologists were their relationships with patients and being perceived to do their job well by colleages. Importantly, radiologists reported less satis faction than the other specialists from many of the aspects of work measure d. A greater proportion of radiologists than other specialists felt insuffi ciently trained in communication skills [80% (n = 168) vs 47% (n = 310); P < 0.001] and management skills [84% (n = 179) vs 76% (n = 506); P < 0.05], CONCLUSION: These data highlight aspects of radiologists' work which need t o be tackled in order to reduce their stress and increase their satisfactio n, and thereby their risk of burnout. (C) 2000 The Royal College of Radiolo gists.