Impact of the financial crisis on the workload, training, personal and social life of the residents in surgical specialties in Greece (first results)

Aim. Aim of this study was to present the effects of financial crisis and the increased workload at public hospitals on personal life, training and working life of residents in surgical specialties of 2 hospitals in Greece. Methods. A questionnaire was answered by 40 residents in surgical specialties; 28 of them were men and 12 women ;3 12 of them were 25-30 years old, 22 were 31-35 years old and 6 were 36-40 years old. 10 of them were married and 10 had at least one child. Afterwards, the answers of this questionnaire were analyzed regarding to fatigue, stress, quality of life, time spending with their families, quality of work and their training. Results. The increased workload of both Emergency and outpatient departments of public hospitals due to financial crisis has a great impact on the working life of the residents. 90-95% of them feel extremely fatigued, stressed and they often reach the limits of their endurance, Their overtime hours reduce their time for leisure and 80% of them is not satisfied with their quality of life. Lower level of training due to excessive fatigue and lack of time for studying make the decision to get specialized in surgery dubious. Conclusion. Despite the fact that this study was limited in only 2 hospitals in Greece, it can be easily assumed that the workload of the public hospitals has been increased due to financial crisis, and they medical services provided by them are often inadequate. As a result residents at these hospitals face exhaustion. Therefore, protection of personal life, relaxation and high level of training of residents seems to be vital. Our study continues so that more hospitals and larger number of participants to be involved