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Sep 24, 2018: PHYSICIANS SATISFIED WITH CAREER, LESS SATISFIED WITH PAY

New 2nd Annual Physician Salary Survey from PracticeMatch Reveals Low Income Growth for the Year Across All Specialties Surveyed

St. Louis, MO, September 12, 2018- Physicians are satisfied with their jobs, but less so with their actual income, according to the second annual physician salary survey from PracticeMatch, a company that provides the largest physician recruitment marketing tool to healthcare employers nationwide. More than half of physician respondents report being "very" or "extremely" satisfied with their current position, which is promising news especially considering nationwide physician shortages and physician burn-out and attrition rates reportedly increasing over recent years.


Average annual income reported by physicians across most specialties remained relatively flat over the previous year, which may account for mediocre satisfaction rates respondents reported regarding their 2017 income. The physician specialty reporting the largest increase from 2016 to 2017 was Emergency Medicine, with nearly five percent growth. Emergency medicine physicians reported an average annual income of $321,398 in this year's survey, compared to $306,389 in last year's survey. Pulmonary medicine grew about two percent, to $286,813. Pediatricians reported an increase of about two percent as well, with a $4,000 increase, to $198,306.

Cardiology, Family Medicine, and Hospitalists were all relatively flat year over year, with fluctuations within just $2,000. Average income reported by those specialties this year (based on 2017 income) were:
  • Cardiology: $366,241
  • Family Medicine: $211,923
  • Hospitalists: $265,000


Psychiatrists participating in the 2nd annual PracticeMatch salary survey reported an average income of $253,820, which is competitive by most industry benchmarks. However, psychiatry income data was not collected by PracticeMatch last year for comparison.

Additionally, female physicians, who comprised 35% of this year's 1,218 respondents, reported slightly lower satisfaction rates (with their pay and careers) than their male counterparts. The annual report aims to help healthcare employers gather real-time data regarding physician salary trends and other physician perspectives related to recruiting and pay.

Nearly one-third of physicians surveyed (30%) report having an outstanding student loan balance in 2017, which is similar to the previous year's percentage (29%) of physicians who reported outstanding school debt. However, only eight percent of those with outstanding school debt reported receiving loan assistance in 2017, compared with about one-third receiving assistance the previous year. The average amount of financial assistance reported in this year's survey was $25,000.

A few additional survey findings include:
  • Only one-third (37%) of physicians reported earning more in 2017 than they did in 2016.
  • One-fourth of respondents reported receiving a signing bonus when they accepted their current job, with the average signing bonus being $15,000.
  • A larger proportion of respondents reported proactively contacting a physician recruiter at least once this year (60%), compared to about 44% the previous year.


The respondents were geographically diverse and represented a combination of hospital settings and office practice settings. Compensation results were similar among the two groups by practice setting.

"As the provider of the nation's leading physician database, we know how important it is for healthcare employers to stay current on workforce trends, and with our unrivaled access to physicians, PracticeMatch can help provide real-time data for that purpose," states Mike York, chief executive officer of PracticeMatch. "Compensation is always a key driving factor for physicians when deciding on a practice opportunity. Therefore, it's vital for employers to offer an attractive physician compensation package in today's highly competitive physician recruiting environment."

For more information about the survey, or about PracticeMatch products and services, please visit PracticeMatch online or contact Mike York directly: mike.york@practicematch.com, or (800) 489-1440.


About PracticeMatch:

PracticeMatch is one of the most established companies providing healthcare employers with recruiting and staffing resources including job boards, career fairs, and candidate leads, to help them fill their physician and advanced practice hiring needs. Established more than 25 years ago, its Pinpoint physician database includes over 350,000 interviewed, pre-screened physicians. Based in St. Louis, MO, the company hosts more than 30 physician career fairs annually, across the country. For media inquiries, or to schedule an interview with a PracticeMatch executive, please contact Andrea Clement - aclement(at)usa(dot)M3.com. For more information regarding healthcare recruiting resources provided by PracticeMatch, please contact Mike York (800) 489-1440, or email mike.york(at)practicematch(dot)com.




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