Exploration of Meaningful Work for Pediatricians and Pediatric Nurses

Within the high demands of the pediatrics, many practitioners and nurses report high burnout rates. This issue has become imperative for the well-being of both the patient and practitioner to comprehend how people in the pediatric field remain engaged in their work. Meaningfulness at work is presented to be an important concept in our understanding of physician’s engagement in their work and negatively associated with burnout symptoms. We were intrigued to seek what pediatric service providers found meaningful about their work while working at a large children’s hospital and associated outpatient clinics. Our group interviewed thirty-seven pediatric service providers at a large Midwestern children’s hospital. The interviews were transcribed, then analyzed using a thematic analysis paradigm with multiple rounds of review from multiple judges. Our participants appeared to conceptualize their work as meaningful from working at a prestigious hospital, having enough time with patients, and especially working with children. The multiple layers of administration endemic with working in a larger hospital system was seen by the participants to be an obstacle to experiencing meaningfulness at work. Results provided us with some initial evidence that hospitals may benefit from a continuous evaluation on how system wide policy changes influence the provider’s perception of meaningfulness in their work