Sleep duration and satisfaction among physicians in tertiary public hospitals in China: a large sample national survey

Abstract

Objectives: To investigate the sleep duration and level of satisfaction among physicians in tertiary public hospitals in China, and to explore associated factors. Methods: A national online cross-sectional survey was conducted. Totally 20,786 physicians from 136 hospitals participated in the survey. Data were collected using an online self-reported questionnaire. Descriptive and logistic regression statistics were performed using the STATA software. Results: The mean total sleep duration was 6.37 ± 0.87 h. Of all participants, 61.06% (n = 12,691) reported short sleep duration (less than 7 h per day). 46.97% (n = 9764) were not satisfied with their sleep. An older age and job-related factors (longer working hours per week, specialty including internal medicine, Ob/GYN and emergency medicine, working more night shifts, heavier workload, and working in East China) were significantly associated with reported short sleep duration. Conclusions: The majority of physicians in Chinese public hospitals experienced insufficient sleep duration. Changes are required to improve the wellbeing of physicians and patient outcomes.