Medical Students' Views on Physician Working Hour Regulations in Japan—A Cross-Sectional Study

Abstract

Purpose

Many countries have introduced duty hour regulations for physicians. The perspectives of resident physicians and programme directors on working hour restrictions for physicians have been extensively studied. Conversely, the perspectives of medical students on this critical issue have been largely overlooked. Thus, we aimed to investigate perceptions of medical students regarding the scheduled implementation of physician work-hour regulation in Japan in April 2024.

Methods

We conducted a multicentre, cross-sectional study in February 2024, focused on medical students in Japan. The participants completed a questionnaire that consisted of closed questions regarding the anticipated impact of work-hour restrictions and an open-ended question regarding their expectations/concerns about the restrictions. We analysed the data using descriptive statistics for the closed-ended questions and inductive content analysis for the open-ended question.

Results

Three-hundred fifty-eight medical students responded to the survey. One hundred (27.9%) were not aware of the scheduled implementation of physician work-hour regulations. There was a discrepancy between responses to the closed-ended questions and that to the open-ended question; in the latter, more comments expressed concerns than expectations. A significant proportion of respondents were concerned about the increase in sabisu zangyo (unpaid work). Additionally, a considerable number were concerned about physicians' professional development and the system of limiting physicians' work hour.

Conclusion

This study elucidated the perspectives of future physicians, a hitherto overlooked category of stakeholders. The findings will contribute to evidence-based policy-making regarding the restrictions and inform the development of concrete support measures to assist physicians in adapting to these changes.