Physician compensation has increased 17% since 2018, with the average salary growing from $299,000 to $352,000 in 2023, according to the Medscape Physician Compensation Report. However, physician burnout rates are worsening, with rates increasing to 53% in the past year. Clinician shortages and burnout continue to pose challenges for healthcare organizations, with paperwork and administration identified as some of the most challenging aspects of a physician’s job. The report also notes the persistent gender and racial pay gaps in healthcare.
As healthcare organizations across the United States grapple with clinician shortages and record levels of burnout, physician compensation continues to increase. According to the Medscape Physician Compensation Report for 2023, the average physician salary has grown from $299,000 in 2018 to $352,000 this year, an increase of over 17 percent during that time. Despite concerns about burnout, physicians continue to earn more money than ever before.
The report highlights the persistent gender pay gap in healthcare, although there was some progress in closing the gap for physicians. Women doctors in primary care earn 19 percent less than their male counterparts, compared to 25 percent less in 2018. Women specialists make 36 percent less than male physicians, versus 31 percent in 2022. Women primary care physicians earn an average of $239,000 in 2022, compared to $286,000 for male physicians. Men specialists earn an average of $415,000, compared to $327,000 for women.
Unfortunately, the racial pay gap remains unchanged, with African American and Black physicians earning about 13 percent less than their White peers. Latinx and Hispanic physicians also earn less than White physicians on average.
Leslie Kane, senior director of Medscape Business of Medicine, commented on the progress made in reducing gender pay disparities: “While there is more work to be done, the progress on gender pay disparities was a positive development in this year’s report. That said, the issue of physician burnout, fueled by long hours and bureaucratic burdens, continues to have an impact on how physicians view their careers, their satisfaction with pay, and other aspects of medicine.”
The report also highlights the worsening rates of physician burnout, with rates increasing to 53 percent in the past year, up from 47 percent in 2021 and 26 percent in 2018. More than one in five physicians also said they had experienced depression since last year. Burnout is one of the primary factors contributing to physician shortages, along with other job-related challenges such as healthcare rules and regulations, long work hours, and difficult patients.
The Physician Compensation Report identifies paperwork and administration as some of the most challenging aspects of a physician’s job. Physicians spend an average of 15.5 hours per week on paperwork and administration, with 9 hours dedicated to electronic health record (EHR) documentation. The specialties with the most paperwork include physical medicine and rehabilitation, critical care, internal medicine, nephrology, and neurology. Family medicine physicians also spend an average of 17 hours per week on paperwork and administration.
However, these specialties are not among the top-earning areas in the report. The top-earning specialties based on average salary include plastic surgery ($619,000), orthopedics ($573,000), cardiology ($507,000), urology ($506,000), and gastroenterology ($501,000). Medscape notes that these top-earning specialties have been relatively consistent over the past decade, except for plastic surgery, which started to rise to the top in 2017.
The lowest-compensated specialties include public health and preventative medicine ($249,000), pediatrics ($251,000), family medicine ($255,000), infectious diseases ($262,000), and diabetes and endocrinology ($267,000).
Despite the increasing compensation for physicians, the healthcare industry must continue to address the persistent clinician shortages and burnout crisis. These issues pose significant challenges to healthcare organizations, clinicians, and patients alike.
