At work we recently bought two new locations. The doctor at one of them is set to
make over $500,000 a year. I will never see that amount of money at this job, but I also don’t
save lives, but I will have additional education… I have recently begun to learn the payroll
process at my job and it has left me quite disillusioned. The amount of pay these doctors get
is massively higher than I expected. I do understand that to get someone to live and work in a
rural area you likely have to pay them well to keep them. I work more hours than almost all
the providers (during a regular time) and I find and write the grants to keep the doors open. I
don’t know, I feel a bit offput by this. I can’t imagine that I am the only one in the healthcare
field that feels this way about doctors’ salaries.
In 2019 salaries on average increased 3.79% (Gooch, 2021). Now it averages between
2.6% and 4.5% increases (Darves, 2021). A doctor’s salary will likely continue to rise over
the next decade or so as a large portion of Americans age (Gooch, 2021). This will mean
there are more chronic conditions to be addressed through acute care because America does
not typically seek to treat illness before it happens. This will keep the demand for doctors
increasing which will also increase their pay (Darves, 2021). It really will come down to
governmental regulations, what is an equitable amount to make compared to all others in the
healthcare field. I personally feel anything over $500,000 is not it.
Darves, B. (2021, August 18).4Physician compensation still rising in primary care and fast-
growing urgent care sector, but flattening is expected. NEJM CareerCenter Resources.
Retrieved March 6, 2022, from https://resources.nejmcareercenter.org/article/physician-
compensation-still-rising-in-primary-care-and-fast-growing-urgent-care-sector-but-
flattening-is-expected/
Gooch, K. (2021, August 19).4Physician pay increases, decreases in 11 specialties. Becker's
Hospital Review. Retrieved March 6, 2022, from
https://www.beckershospitalreview.com/compensation-issues/physician-pay-increases-
decreases-in-11-specialties.html#:~:text=Median%20physician%20compensation%20in
%20medical,the%20American%20Medical%20Group%20Association.
