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International Journal for Equity in Health
Published in: International Journal for Equity in Health 1/2017

Open Access 01-12-2017 | Research

It’s all about the money? A qualitative study of healthcare worker motivation in urban China

Authors: Ross Millar, Yaru Chen, Meng Wang, Liang Fang, Jun Liu, Zhidong Xuan, Guohong Li

Published in: International Journal for Equity in Health | Issue 1/2017

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Abstract

Background

China’s healthcare reform programme continues to receive much attention. Central to these discussions has been how the various financial incentives underpinning reform efforts are negatively impacting on the healthcare workforce. Research continues to document these trends, however, qualitative analysis of how these incentives impact on the motivation of healthcare workers remains underdeveloped. Furthermore, the application of motivational theories to make sense of healthcare worker experiences has yet to be undertaken.

Methods

The purpose of our paper is to present a comparative case study account of healthcare worker motivation across urban China. It draws on semi structured interviews (n = 89) with a range of staff and organisations across three provinces. In doing so, the paper analyses how healthcare worker motivation is influenced by a variety of financial incentives; how motivation is influenced by the opportunities for career development; and how motivation is influenced by the day to day pressures of meeting patient expectations.

Results

The experience of healthcare workers in China highlights how a reliance on financial incentives has challenged their ability to maintain the values and ethos of public service. Our findings suggest greater attention needs to be paid to the motivating factors of improved income and career development. Further work is also needed to nurture and develop the motivation of healthcare workers through the building of trust between fellow workers, patients, and the public.

Conclusions

Through the analysis of healthcare worker motivation, our paper presents a number of ways China can improve its current healthcare reform efforts. It draws on the experience of other countries in calling for policy makers to support alternative approaches to healthcare reform that build on multiple channels of motivation to support healthcare workers.
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Metadata
Title
It’s all about the money? A qualitative study of healthcare worker motivation in urban China
Authors
Ross Millar
Yaru Chen
Meng Wang
Liang Fang
Jun Liu
Zhidong Xuan
Guohong Li
Publication date
01-12-2017
Publisher
BioMed Central
Published in
International Journal for Equity in Health / Issue 1/2017
Electronic ISSN: 1475-9276
DOI
https://doi.org/10.1186/s12939-017-0616-9

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