Physician Jobs – How is the Marketplace and Outlook?

The 2008 outlook for physician jobs is expected to be very good – especially in the low-income and rural areas (source: US Department of Labor Bureau of Labor and Statistics). Interestingly, the training perquisites for physicians remain among the most formidable and demanding of any occupation. Subsequently, physician earnings remain among the highest of most occupations. In this brief, we examine some of the key elements of the physician job market, outlook, and projections.

Market - In 2006, Physician and Surgeon jobs total approximately 633,000. In 2006, more than 30% of full time physicians worked greater than 60 hours per week. Nearly half of salaried / wage physicians worked in offices; 18% worked for hospitals; 15% were self-employed. Based upon data extracted from the American Medical Association, Physician Characteristics and Distribution in the US, 2007, Primary Care comprises 40.4%, and Specialties comprise 59.6% of all physician jobs in the US. The AMA further states that New England and the Mid-Atlantic States have the highest physician to population ratio; the South Central and Mountain States have the lowest. The Medical Group Management Association, Physician Compensation and Production Report, 2005 lists the Median compensation for physicians over one year in specialty as: Anesthesiology $321,686, General Surgery $282,504, General OB/GYN $247,348, General Psychiatry $180,000, General Internal Medicine $166,420, General Pediatrics $161,331, Family Practice without OB $156,010.

Outlook & Projections – Substantial growth is expected in the physician job market. This growth is anticipated in all specialties, and is projected to be faster than average. Much of this is in part due to the increasingly extended life span of our aging population. Additionally, those areas with physician shortages (rural, low-income) will realize large increases in growth. This growth will however see market fluctuations dependent on the consumer – the patient. As demands for services based upon out of pocket costs change, so will the individual demands. This will continue to trend to utilize mid-level providers (Physician Assistants, Nurse Practitioners, CRNAs, etc.) to meet the patient demands for cost and convenience. Likewise, information technology will increase physician efficency in areas of electronic medical records, core measures, quality, physician order entry, portability of medical and laboratory data.

Despite working long, irregular hours, the physician job outlook remains very good. Physician training will remain among some of the most highly competitive occupations. Today’s Physicians will practice in a much different environment than their predecessors allowing for more back up and time off.