Influential Factors in the Persistence of Family Physicians in the Health Centers Affiliated to Hormozgan University of Medical Sciences and Health Services (2017)

One of the challenges of implementing the family physician program is the decrease in the number of doctors, especially in rural and deprived areas, the present study aimed to determine the intentions of family physicians to persist in the health centers affiliated in Hormozgan city. This cross-sectional study was conducted on 195 physicians in the health centers implementing the family physician program. Data were collected using a questionnaire. Data analysis was performed in SPSS version 21 using independent t-test, Pearson’s correlation-coefficient, and ANOVA. In total, 57.9% of the participants were female, and 42.1% were male. The majority of the subjects (61%) were aged 30-60 years. The results of Pearson’s correlation-coefficient indicated that income, payment status, working hours, willingness to continue education, job security, motivation to serve, commitment to service provision, and confidence in the family physician program had significant, positive associations with the intentions of family physicians to stay in the health centers (P < 0.001). According to the results, health ministers, policymakers, and planners could help with the persistence of family physicians in the healthcare centers in deprived areas through reviewing the number of the healthcare team members and their job descriptions.