Table 1. Comparison of Work Satisfaction Among Three Types of Practice Settings
Likert RatingsSettingsP value
CommunityMicropracticeResidency
Work satisfaction
    How satisfied are you with your current income?1 = not satisfied, 5 = very satisfied2.76 (0.49)2.32 (0.58)3.21 (0.36)0.38
    How satisfied are you with the amount of family time you have?1 = not satisfied, 5 = very satisfied2.97 (0.444.09 (0.45)2.34 (0.32)<.001*
    How would you rate the quality of the working relationships among physicians in your work group?1 = poor, 5 = excellent3.79 (0.43)4.39 (0.42)3.97 (0.33).099
    How satisfied are you with your ability to provide continuity of care?1 = not satisfied, 5 = very satisfied3.45 (0.44)4.50 (0.46)3.50 (0.33)<.001*
Practice issues
    How often do you work under time pressure?1 = never, 5 = always4.07 (0.31)2.50 (0.42)4.05 (0.21)<.001*
    Do you agree or disagree that the amount of paperwork you process is reasonable?1 = strongly disagree, 5 = strongly agree2.21 (0.37)2.86 (0.57)2.13 (0.33).089
    How much influence do you have over management decisions that affect your practice?1 = very little, 5 = very much2.72 (0.39)4.64 (0.49)2.32 (0.36)<.001*
    How often are you able to match the amount of time you have to spend with patients to the level of complexity of each patient's case?1 = never, 5 = always3.29 (0.28)4.62 (0.25)3.03 (0.24)<.001*
Outcomes
    How satisfied are you with your opportunities to fully utilize your skills in your practice situation?1 = not satisfied, 5 = very satisfied3.55 (0.36)4.38 (0.44)3.58 (0.3).001*
    How satisfied are you with being a physician?1 = not satisfied, 5 = very satisfied4.00 (0.36)4.00 (0.53)4.39 (0.25)NS
    Given your work situation in total, how would you rate the overall quality of the medical care you are able to provide?1 = poor, 5 = excellent4.21 (0.18)4.68 (0.27)4.26 (0.2).003*
    To what extent are you able to achieve your overall professional goals within your current practice situation?1 = not at all, 5 = very much3.66 (0.38)4.50 (0.5)3.86 (0.33).001*
    I plan to leave my practice in the near future.1 = strongly disagree, 5 = strongly agree2.66 (0.54)1.52 (0.42)2.50 (0.39).004*
  • Data are shown as means (95% confidence intervals) of Likert scale ratings. Bolded values indicate significant differences between micropractice and residency/community physicians.

  • * Values are significant at P < .004 (Kruskal-Wallis tests).