Continuous rotation is the norm. Sample survey of the working hours of top three doctors: at least 10 hours of surgery per day | Chen Yu | scientific research | telling | hospitals | finance | doctors | hours
Recently, it was reported online that a hospital has issued a notice to implement a 40 hour workweek based on feedback and rectification requirements from special work inspections, and to cancel weekend overtime pay and staggered subsidies.
The source of this news is unknown, but it has sparked a heated response online. A doctor and netizen said, "Cancel overtime pay? How come I have never seen overtime pay before?" Another person said, "I work 80 hours a week now, I don't know when I can halve my work?"
Several doctors interviewed by First Financial reporters have stated that a 40 hour workweek sounds like a "fantasy", with their basic working hours ranging from 60 to 80 hours per week, and "continuous rotation" is often the norm. Moreover, many large medical institutions in Shanghai basically do not have the concept of "overtime pay". Some doctors from top tier hospitals in Jiangsu and Zhejiang also stated that although overtime pay is "very meager", it has not been paid for a long time.
Ruan, the deputy director of a department at a large tertiary hospital in Shanghai, told a reporter from First Financial News that he works more than 10 hours a day and generally works more than 60 hours a week. He also has to be busy with work-related matters when he gets home, and he needs to be online 24/7. In the past, when there was a night shift, he needed to work continuously for 24 hours, and two night shifts a week would be close to 50 hours.
"The night shift starts from 8am to 8am the next day, and there are also room rounds. When leaving, at least 10:30am, I work continuously for more than 26 hours." Ruan told a reporter from First Financial News, "There's nothing to complain about, and everyone is basically the same."
He also stated that generally being promoted to the level of department director can eliminate night shifts, even the chief doctor still needs to work night shifts, but the specific regulations vary from hospital to hospital.
Wang Xi, a deputy chief physician in the cardiology department at the same hospital as Ruan, told First Financial that this means that even if scientific research time is not included, Wang Xi's weekly working hours are already close to 70 hours. "This is all about risking one's life," he joked. "Occasionally, when I have free time, I play basketball on weekends."
Li Ming, who plays basketball with Wang Xi, is also the deputy chief physician of the cardiology department at a top tier hospital in Shanghai. Li Ming told First Financial that medicine, teaching, and research are his three parts of work, and the "medical" part alone may reach 80 hours per week. "Boiling frogs in warm water always feels like it will get better in a while, but it turns out that it will always be the least busy time in the past, and the busier it will be in the future," he sighed.
Another attending doctor at a large tertiary hospital in Shanghai, Chen Yu, told First Financial reporters that his normal working hours are 8 hours a day, but it is basically impossible to complete it. "Overtime is a very common thing, such as incomplete surgery, incomplete case writing, sudden need for emergency treatment, and so on," said Chen Yu.
He stated that doctors do not receive any additional "overtime pay" for overtime work. "This is basically the same in the medical industry, and overtime work is also part of the job." He said, "Our job mainly involves outpatient, surgical, and ward work. According to our department's arrangements, I am currently mainly responsible for the ward and surgery, while other people specifically scheduled for outpatient work do not need to go to the ward."
The large tertiary hospital where Chen Yu is located has extremely high requirements for scientific research. "Everyone needs to do scientific research, but research must be funded, otherwise they have to pay for it themselves, including animal experiments, reagents and consumables, labor costs, etc. There is no place to reimburse them," he told a reporter from First Financial News. However, due to the close relationship between the promotion of doctors and scientific research achievements, many people have to do it hard even if they pay for it.
A former manager of the hospital where Chen Yu works told First Financial that "if we estimate it conservatively, we work 65 hours a week, which does not include overtime at night or scientific research. If we are on duty on weekends, it would be over 70 hours." Xu Jing, a attending medical student at a large tertiary hospital in Shanghai, told First Financial reporters.
"The better the department, the more tiring it is." She added that she had witnessed a director of the neurosurgery department at our hospital on a business trip, who continued to use WeChat to send work messages after the Red Eye flight landed. "Surgery requires surgery during the day, and other scientific research work can only be discussed at night."
Not only do doctors in big cities work long hours, but doctors in some local hospitals are also not "idle". Liu Tao, the deputy chief physician of a tertiary hospital in a certain city in Jiangsu, told First Financial that according to Liu Tao's work schedule, the longest continuous "combat" time is three days and two nights, which means working continuously for more than 60 hours, and then continuing to work the next day. "In fact, these are not mandatory by hospitals. We are all here to fulfill our responsibilities, which is normal in our industry. Everyone is like this," Liu Tao told reporters from First Financial.
"Many doctors' working hours range from 8-12-6996, which is not a big deal," a doctor wrote on social media. "When they reach the deputy senior level, the expert clinic costs 40 yuan, the regular clinic costs 25 yuan, and now a haircut costs 50-100 yuan. A very small amount of corruption really does not represent the hardworking group of doctors."
