Office managers' perception of stress, control, and satisfaction: a comparison between primary care and specialty practices.

Perception of stress, control, and satisfaction was measured by office managers in medical practices. Office managers spend enormous amounts of time each day handling difficult interpersonal issues among staff physicians, and patients. As a group, physician disruptions were the most prevalent per day. Other staff members were considered the most stressful by rank order. Significant differences were discovered between primary care practices versus specialty practices in the areas of interactions with physicians.