ArticleInternational journal for equity in health2017
It's all about the money? A qualitative study of healthcare worker motivation in urban China.
Article in International journal for equity in health, 2017. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 11 papers.
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Who cites it
11 citing papers in PubMed, 33 citations in OpenAlex.
- From Habit to Justification: A Dual Process Theory Approach to Primary Care Bypassing in China.Health care analysis : HCA : journal of health philosophy and policy · 2026Article
- Job autonomy and career development satisfaction among healthcare professionals: the moderating role of organizational identification.Frontiers in psychology · 2026Article
- The relationship between effort-reward imbalance and job satisfaction among primary care general practitioners in Gansu of China: the mediating role of public service motivation.Human resources for health · 2025Article
- Evaluation of the mental health status of community frontline medical workers after the normalized management of COVID-19 in Sichuan, China.Frontiers in psychiatry · 2023Article
- Qualitative study of in-kind incentives to improve healthcare quality in Belize: Is quality work better than wealth?PloS one · 2023Article
- 'You say you are a TB doctor, but actually, you do not have any power': health worker (de)motivation in the context of integrated, hospital-based tuberculosis care in eastern China.Human resources for health · 2022Article
- Public Service Motivation and Determining Factors to Attract and Retain Health Professionals in the Public Sector: A Systematic Review.Behavioral sciences (Basel, Switzerland) · 2022Review
- From Mao to McDonaldization? Assessing the rationalisation of health care in China.Sociology of health & illness · 2021Review
- Incentive Preferences and Its Related Factors Among Primary Medical Staff in Anhui Province, China: A Cross-Sectional Study.Frontiers in public health · 2021Article
- Article
- How job stress influences job performance among Chinese healthcare workers: a cross-sectional study.Environmental health and preventive medicine · 2019Article
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Authors and funding
7 authors at 5 institutions in 2 countries.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
backgroundChina'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.
methodsThe 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.
resultsThe 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.
conclusionsThrough 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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