Earning opportunities and informal payment as influencing factors in medical students' speciality choice.

BACKGROUND: The Hungarian primary care system faces a severe shortage of family physicians. Medical students' perceptions of family medicine need to be known and medical students need to be given appropriate and comprehensible information about this speciality. The expected future salary is an important factor in career choice. Most of the family doctors are self-employed and the practices have a corrected capitation-type financing. Although the majority of health care services are covered by social health insurance and are provided for the insured patients free of charge, informal payment is an existing phenomenon with different motivations and consequences. This study aimed to investigate medical students' knowledge about their future earning opportunities and their attitudes towards informal payment. METHODS: A cross sectional survey with a self-administered questionnaire was conducted. Each of the four Hungarian medical universities were represented by their medical students who attended family medicine lectures in person from December 2019 to April 2020. The students were asked about their career plans, about their estimations of current and ideal expected salaries and about the effect of expected income for the choice of specialisation. Their attitudes towards informal payment were assessed. RESULTS: Response rate was 67.3% (N = 465/691). Almost two-thirds of the participants were women. Only 5% of the respondents (N = 23/462) plan to work as a family doctor in the future. The vast majority (91.9%) of the students had already thought about their future income. On a 10-point Likert scale (1 = 'no influence', 10 = 'very big influence') 76% answered that the expected future income exerts a considerable (≥5 Likert points) influence on their career choice in general. The mean of the ideal expected monthly income of the residents, GPs and other specialists was €1154 ± 648, €1696 ± 904 and €2174 ± 1594, respectively. The mean of the monthly income for a GP, as estimated by the studenst, was €1140 in rural and €1122 in urban settings. More than four-fifths of the students (N = 375/453) rejected the practice of informal payment. CONCLUSIONS: Expected salaray is one important aspect in the career choice of medical students, students wish to have more information on this topic. The reported ideal incomes are higher than those expected. This points to a relevant gap. However, most of the students do not accept informal payment as a possibility to close this gap. The expected and the ideal income differ from the real incomes of Hungarian GPs - this indicates the need of bringing objectoive information to the students to enhance attractivity of GP as a carer choice.

[Examination of the health status and health behaviors of Hungarian family physicians]. / Magyar családorvosok egészségi állapotának, életmódjának vizsgálata.

Összefoglaló. Bevezetés: A családorvosok testi, lelki egészségi állapota hatással van a munkavégzésükre, a betegellátás minoségére, ezáltal a társadalom egészségmutatóira is. Az életmód pedig az egyik legjelentosebb, egészségi állapotot befolyásoló tényezo. Célkituzés: A vizsgálat célja a magyar háziorvosok egészségi állapotának és az azt befolyásoló életmódtényezoknek a felmérése. Módszer: Keresztmetszeti vizsgálat. Kvantitatív, papíralapú felmérés családorvosok körében (n = 569, életkor 54 ± 10 év, nok 42%). Eredmények: A háziorvosok 61%-a túlsúlyos vagy elhízott, 88%-ának a vércukorszintje ≤5,5 mmol/l. A résztvevok 50%-a legalább heti rendszerességgel végez testmozgást, 20%-uk egyáltalán nem. A háziorvosok 13%-a dohányzik jelenleg, 5%-a tekintheto nagyivónak. Enyhe fokú depressziós tünetegyüttes 19%-uknál, közepes fokú 6%-uknál, súlyos fokú 5%-uknál fordult elo. A súlyos fokú kiégés mindkét nemben, mindhárom dimenzióban 18­39% volt. Következtetés: A magyar háziorvosok általános egészségi állapota nem mondható jobbnak sem a hazai nem orvos populációénál, sem a külföldi orvoskollégákénál. A magyar háziorvosok dohányzási mutatói kedvezobbek a lakossági adatoknál, míg az alkoholfogyasztás terén kedvezotlenebb eredményeket kaptunk. Nemzetközi összehasonlításban, a káros szenvedélyek terén a hazai kollégák eredményei jónak tekinthetok. A depresszió és a kiégés gyakori elofordulása jelentos probléma a háziorvosok körében. Mentális egészségük monitorozása és gondozása a hatékony egészségügyi ellátórendszer kulcskérdése. Orv Hetil. 2021; 162(12): 449­457. Summary. Introduction: General practitioners' somatic and mental health status have an impact on their work and the quality of care they provide and thus influence the health indicators of the society. Lifestyle is one of the most important influencing factors of health. Objective: The study aims to assess the health status of Hungarian general practitioners and the lifestyle factors influencing it. Method: Cross-sectional study. Quantitative, paper-based questionnaire among general practitioners (n = 569, age 54 ± 10 years, female 42%). Results: 61% of family physicians are overweight or obese, 88% of them have blood glucose level ≤5.5 mmol/l. 50% of the participants do exercise at least once a week, 20% do not take any exercise at all. 13% currently smoke, 7% are considered heavy drinkers. Mild, moderate and severe depression symptoms occurred in 19%, 6% and 5% of them, respectively. A severe level of burnout syndrome was reported in 18­39% in both sexes, in all three dimensions. Conclusion: The health status of Hungarian general practitioners is not better than that of the non-medical Hungarian population or than that of foreign colleagues. The smoking indicators of Hungarian doctors are more favorable than the Hungarian population data, while we obtained worse results in the field of alcohol consumption. In international comparison, the results of Hungarian colleagues in the field of smoking and alcohol consumption are good. The frequent occurrence of depression and burnout is a significant problem among family physicians. Monitoring and caring for their mental health is a key factor in the effective health care system. Orv Hetil. 2021; 162(12): 449­457.

[A családorvosok alvási apnoéval kapcsolatos ismeretei és attitudjei. Megvalósul-e az OSAS szurése a jármuvezetok egészségi alkalmasságának vizsgálata során?] / A családorvosok alvási apnoéval kapcsolatos ismeretei és attitudjei. Megvalósul-e az OSAS szurése a jármuvezetok egészségi alkalmasságának vizsgálata során?

BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE: Obstructive sleep apnea syndrome (OSAS) without treatment can cause serious cardiovascular, cardiorespiratory, neurological and other complications. Family physicians have an important role in recognizing the disease. The aim of the study is to assess the knowledge and attitude of family physicians related to sleep apnea. Whether OSAS screening is realized during the general medical checkup for drivers. METHODS: In the cross-sectional study we used a validated OSAKA questionnaire in mandatory continuous medical education courses, supplemented with four additional questions. RESULTS: 116 family physicians and 103 family medicine residents filled out the questionnaire. Hungarian family physicians, especially male doctors lack the adequate knowledge of sleep apnea. The average score of female physicians was significantly higher than that of males (13.4±1.8 vs. 11.7±2.6, p=0.005). The more specializations the doctor has, the higher the score. Zero or one special examination holders reached 12.5±2.3 points, two special examination holders 12.7±2.2 points. three or four special examination holders reached 14.0±2.1 (p=0.05). Residents' average score was 12.1±2.4 points, which is higher than that of family doctors (p=0.012). Female residents also had higher average points than male residents (12.6±2.0 vs. 11.3±2.7; p=0.008). The size, location and type of the practice or the doctor's age did not show any statistically significant correlation with the number of points achieved. According to our regression analysis, corrected to variables in the model, we found correlation between gender and medical knowledge, but there was no correlation between age, number of specialities, body mass index and the theoretical knowledge of the doctors. In terms of attitude female GPs had higher average scores than male GPs (3.5±0.6 vs. 2.9±0.6, p<0.001). Despite the modification of the 13/1992 regulation only 39% of the practices carried out regularly the required OSAS screening as part of the medical examination for a driving licence. CONCLUSION: Despite the high prevalence and clinical importance of OSAS, GPs often do not recognize sleep apnea and they have difficulty in treating their patients for this problem.

[Opinions of Hungarian family physicians and residents on vocation and informal payment]. / Hivatással és hálapénzzel kapcsolatos vélekedések a magyarországi családorvosok és családorvos rezidensek körében.

INTRODUCTION: The changing of the family medicine can be observed in the New Millennium. Migration, the aging of the healers and informal payment are crucial to the human resource crisis of the health sector. AIM: The aim of this study was to investigate the family physicians' and residents' opinions about the vocation and informal payment. METHOD: Exploratory, quantitative study was carried out among family physicians (n = 363) and family physician residents (n = 180). The central questions of the study were the vocation, the income and the informal payment. RESULTS: The most decisive factors of the carrier choice were altruism, service and responsibility. Residents were significantly rejective (19.7% vs. 38.3%, p<0.001) about informal payment. They would accept smaller amounts of informal payment (14.3% vs. 8.9%, p<0.034), and would spend it on praxis development (1.4% vs.9.4% p<0.023). CONCLUSIONS: The attitudes of family physicians and residents are the same in case of the vocation, but on the issue of informal payment, the two generations have different opinions. Orv. Hetil., 2016, 157(36), 1438-1444.

[Hungarian Society for Sleep Medicine guideline for detecting drivers with obstructive sleep apnea syndrome]. / A Magyar Alvásdiagnosztikai és Terápiás Társaság módszertani ajánlása a közúti jármuvezetok egészségi alkalmasságának vizsgálatához az obstruktív alvási apnoe szindróma vonatkozásában.

Obstructive sleep apnea is the most frequent sleep-disordered breathing. The prevalence of sleep apnea in the general population is 2-4% and the main characteristics of the disease are the intermittent cessation or substantial reduction of airflow during sleep, which is caused by complete, or near complete upper airway obstruction. Decreased airflow is followed by oxygen desaturation and intermittent arousals. Untreated patients are 4-6 times more likely to cause traffic accidents than their healthy counterparts. The aims of the obstructive sleep apnea screening are to prevent and reduce the incidence of serious car accidents, which are often caused by one of the most dangerous sleep disorders. Since April 1, 2015 a modification of the 13/1992 regulation has been in force in Hungary which orders screening of obstructive sleep apnea during medical checkup of drivers. The Hungarian Society for Sleep Medicine made a guideline according to the regulation which was adapted to national circumstances and family doctors, occupational health specialists can more easily screen obstructive sleep apnea in suspected patients. In sleep ambulances the disease can be diagnosed and effective treatment can be started. Patients receiving appropriate treatment and with appropriate compliance can get their driving licence under regular care and control.