Mental Health Professionals in China from 2017 to 2019: More Educated, Better Paid, but Less Satisfied

Background: The shortage of mental health professionals has been a global issue, and the importance of job satisfaction to lower turnover and higher productivity cannot be overstated. However, no research has been carried out on the development of job satisfaction over time and its associated factors in China. This study specifically examined the dynamics of mental health professionals’ job satisfaction. Methods: Two cross-sectional surveys were conducted nationwide in 2017 and 2019. A total of 25,824 mental health professionals working in tertiary psychiatric hospitals participated in this study. Job satisfaction was assessed using the Minnesota Satisfaction Questionnaire-Short Form (MSQ-SF). Sociodemographic and job-related characteristics were collected. Multiple linear regression analyses were performed, including hospital fixed effects, to explore the factors associated with job satisfaction. Findings: Job satisfaction score decreased significantly from 73.09 in 2017 to 67.41 in 2019 (β = -6.16, 95%CI=-8.06 – -4.26). Levels of intrinsic and extrinsic job satisfaction in 2019 were also significantly lower than those in 2017, as well as across all subgroups (p<0.001). Compared with the year 2017, more participants in 2019 had a bachelor’s degree or above (75.6% vs 69.3%, p<0.001) and earned more than 8,000 per month (26.0% vs 19.7%, p<0.001); however, more mental health professionals worked overtime (30.0% vs 19.2%, p<0.001) and encountered medical disputes (36.5% vs 33.2%, p<0.001). Longer working days per week, and having experienced medical disputes had a significantly and consistently negative influence on job satisfaction. In addition, the association between job satisfaction and some other factors such as gender and marital status is mixed. Interpretation: Mental health professionals got better educated and paid in 2019 than did they in 2017, but their job satisfaction significantly declined. Early awareness of decreased job satisfaction and its associated risk factors are crucial. Targeted interventions of reducing workload and alleviating medical disputes are recommended. Funding: None. Declaration of Interest: All authors declare no competing interests. Ethical Approval: Ethical approvals were gained by the Ethics Committee of the School of Public Health, Peking Union Medical College (SPH201711EPH207) in 2017, and the Ethics Committee at the Chaohu Hospital of Anhui Medical University, China (No. 201903-kyxm-02) in 2019.