Radiology’s $495,451 average annual compensation places the profession 12th among the highest paid medical specialties, according to new data from Doximity released Thursday.
Neurosurgery landed the top spot at more than $773,000, while thoracic and orthopedic surgeons rounded out the top three at nearly $685,000 and $634,000, respectively. The findings are part of the digital platform’s fifth annual Physician Compensation Report, based on surveys of more than 46,000 U.S. medical doctors.
Doximity also polled providers about their state of mind amid the pandemic and found high levels of burnout. More than 73% said they feel overworked, while nearly half are contemplating career changes because of COVID-19.
“Medical professionals' responsibilities, hours and stresses grew dramatically during the pandemic and, as a result, we've seen an increase in burnout, especially among female physicians,” Peter Alperin, vice president of product for San Francisco-based Doximity, said in a statement.
Women in medicine are also facing persisting pay inequality, earning about 28% less than their male counterparts or a difference of nearly $123,000. Doximity said that gap has increased from 26.5% in 2017 up to 28.2% in its latest survey at a time when nurse practitioners and physician assistants have seen their own gender-compensation differences steadily decline.
Overall, physician pay climbed 3.8% from 2020 to 2021. That’s compared to a 1.5% uptick from 2019 to 2020, which Doximity said may be attributable to a tight labor market. Radiology’s average compensation increased about 2% year-over-year versus the 2020 report’s $485,460 estimate, with the specialty falling out of the top 10 highest paid in the latest report.
Preventative medicine recorded the biggest leap at 12.6%, followed by hematology (12.2%) and nuclear medicine (10.4%).
“While compensation increased across all specialties in 2021, growth rates varied significantly,” Doximity noted. “Many of the specialties with highest growth in compensation are notably small specialties and may be subject to tight labor markets or regional hiring trends.”
You can read the full report 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.