Working Condition, Health and Perceived Patient Safety among Doctors in Training: 2014 Korean Interns & Residents Survey

Abstract

We conducted a nationwide survey in 2014 to understand working conditions, health and perceived patient safety among medical interns/ residents in South Korea. The survey included 359 interns and 1,386 residents from 25 medical specialties. On average, interns/residents worked 93 hours per week. The prevalence of physical, verbal, sexual violence in the preceding 3 months of interns was 13.1%, 61.5%, and 10.2% while that of residents in the preceding 12 months was 11.4%, 44.4%, and 6.0%, respectively. Regarding health conditions, interns and residents reported significantly higher prevalence of all physical (e.g., musculoskeletal pain) and mental health problems (e.g., depressive symptoms) compared to full-time waged workers. Over the preceding 3 months, the prevalence of medical error and attentional failure was 13.8% and 89.3% among interns, while the figures for residents were 8.7% and 68.6%. This is the first nationwide survey about Korean medical interns/residents. Future studies are required to investigate how the work environment is related to health conditions of interns/residents, and patient safety outcomes in South Korea.