A survey of physicians working in a community health center

In Korea, physicians of the public health sector have significantly contributed to health services such as prevention and treatment of disease. However, advances in the field of public health have not provided sufficient institutional strategies and systems for reinforcement of administrative capabilities and health services. As a result, the satisfaction of physicians working in community health centers has been decreasing and their advances in the field of public health have also decreased. This study was conducted to examine the work status, working conditions, and overall job satisfaction physicians in order to strengthen of the role of physicians who work in community health centers. The subjects of the study included 191 individuals. The data were analyzed by frequency analysis and descriptive analysis using SAS. It was found that among physicians working in a community health center, the overall degree of job satisfaction was satisfactory, at 52.2% of respondents. However, it was found that employment stability (81.3%), salary increases (78.8%), the abolition of new recruitment of managing physicians on the basis of temporary (5-year term) employment (75.4%), and the provision and support for education (71.2%) should be improved to increase the job satisfaction of physicians in the community health center. Regarding this, the physicians responded that the most important conditions for them to work in the community health center were actualization of salary (63.3%) and the change of job status from temporary to full-time employment (17.0%). In conclusion, we must increase the job satisfaction of physicians working in community health centers to improve the quality of the public health care system in Korea and systematically improve the personnel system, salary, administration, and job status to increase job satisfaction.