Job satisfaction is a term used to describe an individual's overall sense of well-being and fulfillment in their work. It refers to the degree to which an individual's job aligns with their values, interests, and goals, and the extent to which they feel motivated, engaged, and fulfilled by their work.
Job satisfaction can have a significant impact on an individual's mental health and overall well-being, as well as their productivity and performance at work. When individuals feel satisfied with their work, they are more likely to feel motivated and engaged, to be more productive and efficient, and to experience greater levels of job security and stability.
Factors that contribute to job satisfaction can vary widely depending on the individual and the nature of their work. Some common factors that can contribute to job satisfaction include a sense of purpose or mission in the work, opportunities for growth and advancement, supportive colleagues and work environment, fair compensation and benefits, and a sense of autonomy and control over one's work.
However, it is important to note that job satisfaction is not always within an individual's control, and many individuals may struggle with job dissatisfaction due to external factors such as a difficult or toxic work environment, limited opportunities for advancement or growth, or inadequate compensation and benefits. In these cases, it may be necessary to explore alternative career options or seek support and resources to address the underlying causes of job dissatisfaction.
Overall, job satisfaction is an important aspect of overall well-being and quality of life, and individuals should prioritize finding work that aligns with their values and interests, and that provides a sense of purpose, engagement, and fulfillment.
Neurosurgery residency involves a complex structure with multiple hospitals, services, and clinic days, leading to challenges in creating equitable on-call schedules. Manually prepared scheduling systems are prone to biases, error, and perceived unfairness. To address these issues, Porche et al. developed an automated scheduling system (Automated Optimization of Neurosurgery Scheduling System [AONSS]) to reduce biases, accommodate resident requests, and optimize call variation, ultimately enhancing the educational experience by promoting diverse junior-senior-attending relationships.
AONSS was developed and tailored to the University of Florida program, with inaugural use in 2021-2022 and mandatory implementation in the 2022-2023 academic year. 2019-2021 academic years were used as control. Residents were surveyed using Google Forms before and after implementation to assess its impact. Outcome measures included call and pairing variations, duty hours, as well as subjective factors such as satisfaction, fairness, and perceived biases.
Twenty-six residents (28%-39% female/year) were included in the study. AONSS was used for 6/13 blocks during the 2021-2022 academic year and 13/13 blocks for the 2022-2023 academic year. Overall call variation was reduced by 70%. All other objective secondary measures have improved with AONSS. Weekly and monthly duty hours were reduced and less varied. Satisfaction scores improved from 21% reporting being somewhat satisfied or very satisfied to 90%. Fairness scores improved from 43% reporting being somewhat fair or very fair to 95%. Perception of gender bias decreased from 29% to 0%. No resident felt there was racial bias in either system.
The newly developed automated scheduling system effectively reduces variation among calls in a complex neurosurgery residency, which, in return, was found to increase resident satisfaction with their schedule, improve their perception of fairness with the schedule, and completely remove the perception of sexual bias in a program that has a large percentage of females. In addition, it was found to be associated with decreased duty hours 1)