How well mental health workers are motivated: A case study from Croatia

Abstract

Like the other medical professions, mental health workers need appropriate motivation for effective treatment work. This study aims to determine the motivators and assess working conditions of mental health workers and how they differ from the motivators and working conditions of other health workers on the example of one of the largest hospital institutions in Croatia – University Hospital Centre Zagreb. The study chose a survey method and distributed a questionnaire among 124 Zagreb University Hospital Centre health workers. The sample covers about 16% of the entire medical staff of the observed departments (psychiatry, emergency, microbiology, gynecology, anesthesiology, COVID-19 unit, and orthopedic surgery). The ANOVA method was used to detect differences in data groups. The results show that Croatian mental health workers are mainly motivated extrinsically. However, compared to other medical professions, e.g., gynecologists, orthopedists, or anesthesiologists, they are upper-middle motivated and leaders in several motivators. Observed Croatian mental health workers are more satisfied with their patient interactions than their colleagues. Female mental health workers are more motivated but less satisfied with the working conditions than males. The study showed that even in one medical institution, there are significant differences in the needs of representatives of different professions. The paper concludes that mental health workers have different motivations, which can be satisfied by creating appropriate working conditions. AcknowledgmentsThe authors acknowledge the COST Action CA19113 «The European Researchers’ Network Working on Second Victims» (ERNST) for short-term scientific mission grant and supporting this study; staff of University Hospital Centre Zagreb for participating in the survey; and the Hauge School of Management of the NLA University College (Kristiansand, Norway) for supporting this publication.