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Canadian Physicians Report Wins and Challenges With Friendships
Carolyn Crist | March 28, 2023
| Contributor Information
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Canadian Physicians Report Wins and Challenges With Friendships
Carolyn Crist | March 28, 2023 | Contributor Information
Physicians need a strong support system to face their busy days, but they may find it difficult to form and maintain close connections amid their many obligations at work and home. It's tough to make the time, especially when on call, traveling, working weekends, taking care of kids, and feeling exhausted.
In an online survey fielded by Medscape, more than 1060 Canadian physicians across three dozen specialties expressed their views on friendship, including with colleagues, patients, and spouses, and how the COVID-19 pandemic may have affected their relationships.
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Canadian Physicians Report Wins and Challenges With Friendships
Carolyn Crist | March 28, 2023 | Contributor Information
Canadian physicians varied in regard to how many friends they considered themselves to have. Less than half said they have more than 10 friends, with 30% reporting 16 or more friends.
More than a quarter said they have five or fewer friends, and 2% said they have no friends. The numbers were comparable across gender, age, specialty, and practice setting.
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Canadian Physicians Report Wins and Challenges With Friendships
Carolyn Crist | March 28, 2023 | Contributor Information
About 6 in 10 Canadian physicians said they have one to five close friends, which is similar to what the general population reported in the 2021 Canadian Social Connection Survey.
Although physicians are more likely than the general population to report having more than five close friends, about 7% said they have no close friends. This can be difficult for maintaining work–life balance and social and emotional health.
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Canadian Physicians Report Wins and Challenges With Friendships
Carolyn Crist | March 28, 2023 | Contributor Information
Many Canadian physicians reported an assortment of friends — work friends, college friends, high school friends, childhood friends, and those met through hobbies, sports, community activities, and their children.
In general, those under age 45 years were more likely to report ongoing close friendships from childhood, school, and college, while older physicians were more likely to report relationships from the community. Women were also more likely to have a mixture of friends.
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Canadian Physicians Report Wins and Challenges With Friendships
Carolyn Crist | March 28, 2023 | Contributor Information
Overall, 83% of Canadian physicians said they would consider some of their coworkers to be friends, and 7% said "almost all" of their coworkers were friends.
Physicians expressed differing views on mixing friendships with work, however. Although many (41%) said they might make a friend at work that they spend time with in their personal hours, another 35% said they like to maintain a boundary between their work and personal lives.
Physicians under age 45 years and those based in hospitals were more likely to say that they like to make and meet friends at work. In contrast, physicians over age 45 years, men, general practitioners, and those based in office settings were more likely to keep their personal life and work life separate.
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Canadian Physicians Report Wins and Challenges With Friendships
Carolyn Crist | March 28, 2023 | Contributor Information
While at work, Canadian physicians often interact with those whom they consider friends. After work, however, they're less likely to socialize with coworkers outside of the workplace.
Nearly half said they sometimes meet up with friends outside of work, yet 39% reported that they rarely or never see work friends elsewhere.
In addition, most physicians noted that work gets in the way of maintaining friendships. Women were more likely than men to say that work "always" gets in the way, and those under age 45 years were more likely than older physicians to say that work sometimes gets in the way.
Family obligations often get in the way as well. While most physicians reported experiencing this tendency, women and physicians under age 45 years were more likely to say that family responsibilities hinder them from maintaining friendships.
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Canadian Physicians Report Wins and Challenges With Friendships
Carolyn Crist | March 28, 2023 | Contributor Information
An overwhelming proportion of Canadian physicians — 67% — said they don't have enough time to maintain their close friendships. They also reported challenges such as lack of energy, lack of communication, and growing apart.
Women in particular were more likely to say that they didn't have enough time or energy, and men were more likely to say that there was a lack of communication with friends.
For nearly every challenge listed, those under age 45 years were more likely to report struggles with maintaining friendships, while those over 45 years were more likely to say they didn't have any challenges.
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Canadian Physicians Report Wins and Challenges With Friendships
Carolyn Crist | March 28, 2023 | Contributor Information
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Canadian Physicians Report Wins and Challenges With Friendships
Carolyn Crist | March 28, 2023 | Contributor Information
About 7 in 10 Canadian physicians said they have the same number of friends as before the COVID-19 pandemic. Nearly a quarter said they have fewer friends, however, and women were more likely to report that they have fewer friends.
In general, most physicians said they shared similar viewpoints to their friends regarding the pandemic, vaccination, and treatment methods. Among those who had different viewpoints, about a third said their friendship was negatively affected by conflicting beliefs, particularly among women.
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Canadian Physicians Report Wins and Challenges With Friendships
Carolyn Crist | March 28, 2023 | Contributor Information
Most physicians — 84% — reported being in a romantic relationship, whether married, engaged, cohabitating, or dating. For nearly all of them, their partner gets along with their friends, though to varying degrees.
Few Canadian physicians reported having close friends who caused problems with a past or current spouse or partner, though some cited concerns about jealousy or insecurity.
"My romantic partner does not give me trouble for it," one doctor wrote. "I just find I'm limited in how much I can be with that person of a different gender because I fear my partner will get jealous or hurt."
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Canadian Physicians Report Wins and Challenges With Friendships
Carolyn Crist | March 28, 2023 | Contributor Information
About two thirds of physicians said they agree with their friends on most political views and come from similar backgrounds in terms of education and finances. Few reported arguing with their close friends.
Although most Canadian physicians appear to have friends from the same age group and generation, about 20% reported a mixture. Those over age 45 years were more likely to say that they had friends from different generations.
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Canadian Physicians Report Wins and Challenges With Friendships
Carolyn Crist | March 28, 2023 | Contributor Information
A large majority of Canadian physicians — 74% — said they've never become friends with a patient. Women, those under age 45 years, specialists, and doctors in hospital settings were more likely to say they had never befriended a patient.
Similarly, 43% said that doctors should "always" avoid treating close friends, and 46% said that they should avoid it when the friendship could interfere with their capacity to be objective.
The Canadian Medical Association's Code of Ethics and Professionalism acknowledges that there are times when physicians have good reasons to treat someone they know personally, but these cases should be limited to minor or emergency care when no other physician is readily available.
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Canadian Physicians Report Wins and Challenges With Friendships
Carolyn Crist | March 28, 2023 | Contributor Information
Among physicians who said they had become friends with a patient, 91% said it wasn't a barrier to making an objective diagnosis or prognosis.
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Canadian Physicians Report Wins and Challenges With Friendships
Carolyn Crist | March 28, 2023 | Contributor Information
Nearly all — 95% — Canadian physicians said they've given medical advice to a friend at some point. General practitioners were more likely to say that they've provided advice.
At the same time, some physicians expressed mixed emotions about it. About two thirds said they weren't bothered by medical questions from friends, but a third were.
Women, physicians under age 45 years, and general practitioners were more likely to say that they were bothered by giving advice to their friends about medical concerns.
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Canadian Physicians Report Wins and Challenges With Friendships
Carolyn Crist | March 28, 2023 | Contributor Information
Most Canadian physicians said they provide objective, factual information to their friends who ask for advice. Some focus on general guidance, while others point their friends to resources or suggest that they talk to their primary care physician.
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Canadian Physicians Report Wins and Challenges With Friendships
Carolyn Crist | March 28, 2023 | Contributor Information
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Canadian Physicians Report Wins and Challenges With Friendships
Carolyn Crist | March 28, 2023 | Contributor Information
It's important for any young person starting out on a medical career to know that there is no right way to achieve work-life balance.Medscape Blogs, Nov 2022
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Carolyn Crist
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