Abstract
Background Transforming primary care (PC) through the development of multidisciplinary teams can represent a challenge in terms of occupational well-being.
Aim This study aimed to investigate associations between occupational stress, job satisfaction among general practitioners (GPs) and the professional composition of PC teams.
Desing and setting We conducted a secondary analysis of the data from 11 Western countries that participated in the 2019 Commonwealth Fund International Health Policy Survey of Primary Care Physicians (N = 13,200).
Method PC practice types (N=5) were defined in a previous study, based on their composition of healthcare professionals: the Traditional, Multidisciplinary, Nurse-centred, Psychologist-centred and Physiotherapist-centred models. Using ordered logistic regression analysis, we assessed associations between the five practice models and two GP-reported indicators of well-being at work: job satisfaction and occupational stress.
Results Working in multidisciplinary teams, when compared to traditional (GP-centred) practice, was associated with higher occupational well-being, both through lower occupational stress (OR = 0.77, 95% CI [0.68–0.87]) and greater job satisfaction (OR = 1.43, 95% CI [1.26–1.62]). This positive association was also observed in psychologist-centred practices (OR = 0.81, 95% CI [0.71–0.93] for occupational stress and OR = 1.24, 95% CI [1.09–1.42] for job satisfaction). Working in nurse-centred practices was associated with greater satisfaction but only in the smallest practices (OR = 1.59, 95% CI [1.14–2.22]) with <1.4 full-time equivalent GPs.
Conclusion Positive associations between multidisciplinary PC teams and occupational well-being are important results for the future of healthcare systems in Western countries, providing interesting avenues for improvements for healthcare professionals and policy-makers.
- Received August 15, 2024.
- Revision received December 12, 2024.
- Accepted April 7, 2025.
- Copyright © 2025, The Authors
This article is Open Access: CC BY license (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/)