October 10, 2013 | According to a recent RAND Corporation study, physicians report more professional satisfaction when they perceive the quality of patient care in their practices to be high. In particular, obstacles to extended face time with patients were major drivers of stress and job dissatisfaction. Among the items most frequently cited as barriers to quality care were productivity quotas that limit the time that can be given to each individual patient, and clerical tasks associated with electronic medical records. The study was based on 220 interviews in six states. RAND Corporation