Professional Quality of Life among Medical Doctors Working in Kathmandu: A Descriptive Cross-sectional Study

INTRODUCTION: The practice of medicine is an honorable profession besides being accompanied by a demanding environment. This study aimed to find out the professional quality of life of medical doctors working in Kathmandu valley. METHODS: A descriptive cross-sectional study was conducted among 174 Nepalese medical doctors working in different hospitals of Kathmandu valley. Ethical approval was taken from the Ethical Review Board of the Nepal Health Research Council (Reference Number: 830). The data collection tool used in the study was WHO Professional Quality of Life Scale-5 to collect data about Compassion satisfaction, Burnout and Secondary traumatic stress among medical doctors working in Kathmandu valley. Data analysis was done in the Statistical Package for the Social Sciences version 16.0. RESULTS: Out of 174 participants, 101 (58%), 126 (72.4%) and 135 (77.6%) were found to have moderate level of Compassion satisfaction, Burnout and Secondary Traumatic Stress respectively. CONCLUSIONS: More than half, nearly two-third, and more than two-third participants had moderate levels of Compassion satisfaction, Burnout and Secondary Traumatic Stress respectively. The overall study findings reflected good balance between Compassion satisfaction and Compassion fatigue (burnout and secondary traumatic stress) among the Nepalese medical doctors. Further assessment of professional quality of life of doctors as well as other health care workers via Multifaceted and large-scale study is recommended.