The workplace and psychosocial experiences of Australian junior doctors during the COVID-19 pandemic

Abstract

Background: Junior doctors experience high levels of psychological distress and emotional exhaustion. The current Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic has resulted in significant changes to healthcare globally, with quantitative studies demonstrating increased fatigue, depression and burnout in junior doctors. However, there has been limited qualitative research to examine junior doctors' experiences, challenges and beliefs regarding management of future crises. Aims: To investigate the workplace and psychosocial experiences of Australian junior doctors working during the second wave of the COVID-19 pandemic. Methods: Australian healthcare workers were invited to participate in a nationwide, voluntary, anonymous, single time point, online survey between 27 August and 23 October 2020. A qualitative descriptive study of responses to four free-text questions from 621 junior doctors was undertaken, with responses analysed using inductive content analysis. Results: Participants were predominantly female (73.2%), aged 31–40 years (48.0%) and most frequently reported working in medical specialties (48.4%), emergency medicine (21.7%) or intensive care medicine (11.4%). Most (51.9%) participants had 0–5 years of clinical experience since medical graduation. Junior doctors described experiences related to four key themes: a hierarchical, difficult workplace culture; challenging working conditions; disrupted training and career trajectories; and broader psychosocial impacts. The COVID-19 pandemic exacerbated longstanding, workplace issues and stressors for junior doctors and highlighted the threat that crises pose to medical workforce retention. There is an urgent need for authentic, positive workplace cultural interventions to engage, validate and empower junior doctors. Conclusions: Challenging workplace cultures and conditions, which have worsened during the COVID-19 pandemic, are associated with poor psychological well-being in junior doctors. There exists a need for long-term, widespread improvements in workplace culture and working conditions to ensure junior doctors' well-being, facilitate workforce retention and enhance the safety and quality of patient care in Australia.