Comparative survey to establish the satisfaction of junior doctors participating in medical training programmes in Germany, taking the example of the HELIOS Kliniken Group, and junior doctors participating in medical training programmes in Switzerland

Aim The status of salary and working hours is currently having an evidently negative impact on levels of satisfaction of German hospital doctors. This low level of job satisfaction among doctors aggravates the shortage of junior medics. For German clinic operators who want to assert themselves on the market, the development of solutions that improve their doctors’ job satisfaction will be a crucial factor for future success. To analyse and benchmark influencing factors of job satisfaction, the HELIOS Kliniken Group performed a survey on their employed doctors in comparison to the situation in Switzerland. Methods The standard questionnaire used in the survey is based on a questionnaire that is used to evaluate residents’ training programs in Switzerland. The survey was conducted on doctors who were still participating in medical training programmes at the time of the survey and doctors who had been working for the HELIOS Kliniken Group for at least 2 years. A total of 1,079 questionnaires were sent out to the relevant junior doctors for this purpose. Results The results of the survey show that the job satisfaction of junior doctors working at HELIOS is significantly lower than the job satisfaction of junior doctors working in Switzerland. The most significant problems were evident in the communication of evidence-based medicine and error culture. Overall, the respondents did not evaluate their work situation as satisfactory. The majority of junior doctors feel that their high administrative workload places restrictions on their work. The vast amount of non-medical work that doctors are required to perform is one of the main reasons why they decide to leave the medical profession. Conclusion Future work structuring requirements necessitate new approaches. The survey of the work and medical training situation of junior doctors is an important and exemplary step toward improving the work situation of junior doctors at the HELIOS clinics. It is the beginning of a learning process in which the first steps are the definition of weaknesses and the initiation of the necessary measures to improve the job satisfaction of the doctors.