Interventional radiology among top 5 specialties facing greatest physician shortages
Vascular and interventional radiology is among the five medical specialties facing the greatest physician shortages, according to recently released workforce data.
Pathology came in at No. 1 on the list, followed by IR, ophthalmology, urology and anesthesiology. The findings are from Axuall, a Cleveland-based “workforce intelligence” company offering real-time data on staffing trends.
It singled out California as one geography experiencing “significant growth” in healthcare demand, particularly for interventional radiologists. The specialty is the fastest growing in the Golden State, with IR demand at 1.5 to 2 times the national average.
“Despite this surge, the provider population remains relatively unchanged, leading to substantially higher physician utilization rates,” Axuall said in the report, released June 11. “This widening gap between increasing demand and static provider numbers suggests a potential strain on California’s healthcare system, especially within this specialty.”
The state primarily attracts interventional radiologists from Texas, New York and Florida, the top three contributors, along with Pennsylvania. About 78% more vascular and interventional radiologists are migrating to California then leaving, Axuall estimated.
"We so frequently discuss workforce shortages on a countrywide level, but shortages are local, and radiologists are no exception,” CEO Charlie Lougheed told Radiology Business by email. “With the advent of large provider data models and AI, healthcare organizations and recruiters are utilizing these insights to understand supply and demand, as well as predict the career trajectories of these in-demand resources.”
The report also offered demographics for the typical physician in IR, along with the other top five in-demand specialties. On average, vascular and interventional radiologists earn about $523,000, typically with 20 years of experience and a 32-month tenure at their current gig. IR specialists are an average age of 55 and 91% are male, the report noted. And about 68% of their payments come from commercial insurers versus 32% from government programs such as Medicare and Medicaid.
Axuall also offered several other specialty lists, with radiology claiming spots. Among the top 10 specialties by provider count, diagnostic radiology was No. 7, with family medicine first. For specialties with the highest utilization based on claims volume, diagnostic radiology was No. 3, behind family and internal medicine. And among the top 10 specialties by patient volume, diagnostic radiology was No. 2, behind family medicine. The website also detailed specialties facing the biggest surpluses of physicians. Emergency medicine led the way followed by surgical critical care at No. 2, neonatal-perinatal medicine, pulmonary disease, and physical medicine/rehab.
Axuall said it produced the report by analyzing historical claims data totaling 19,000 primary sources and “over 25 billion data points.” You can read the full findings for free here.
Marty Stempniak has covered healthcare since 2012, with his byline appearing in the American Hospital Association's member magazine, Modern Healthcare and McKnight's. Prior to that, he wrote about village government and local business for his hometown newspaper in Oak Park, Illinois. He won a Peter Lisagor and Gold EXCEL awards in 2017 for his coverage of the opioid epidemic.