Job Satisfaction and Mental Health of Health Professionals in Croatia during the COVID-19 Pandemic

Abstract

The aim of this study was to identify the determinants of job
satisfaction and the mental health of health workers during
the COVID-19 pandemic. A total of 498 health professionals
participated on a voluntary basis. The variables investigated were: socio-demographic variables, work characteristics ((non-)change of job during the pandemic, (non-)stay
in self-isolation, and working hours), and personal
characteristics of the employees (resilience, burnout,
mental health, job satisfaction, and (non-)change of job
satisfaction during the pandemic). The results indicate that
job satisfaction and mental health cannot be explained by
the change in working conditions during the pandemic.
Exhaustion was a negative predictor of job satisfaction and
mental health, while the dimension of disengagement was a
negative predictor of job satisfaction, and resilience was a
positive predictor of mental health. The respondents whose
job satisfaction increased during the pandemic had the
longest working hours and worked more often with
COVID-positive and suspicious patients. Respondents whose
job satisfaction decreased during the pandemic had lower
resilience, mental health and higher levels of burnout
compared with those whose job satisfaction remained the
same or increased.