All doctors are high earners but not all of them are rich. Sounds confusing? This claim is proven by the recent survey conducted by Medscape – a doctor-focused information service from WebMD. Although doctors earn really high salaries, some of them feel still feel that they are not well-endowed.
A doctor’s earning ranges from around $156,000 per year to around $315,000 per year. Of course, there are a lot of factors that can influence the yearly pay of physicians such as location, work environment, educational attainment and many more.
Based on the information presented by Medscape, the highest earners among all types of physicians are orthopedic surgeons and radiologists. Second in place are those who hold the title of a cardiologist and anesthesiologist who earn $314,000 and $309,000 respectively.
The lowest earning physicians, on the other hand, include the family practitioners and pediatricians. The former earns $156,000 while the latter receives $158,000 every year. Internists and psychiatrists are paid a nick higher than them. These doctors have a pay check of $165,000 and $170,000, respectively.
As the years go by, there are changes in the salaries that various physicians get every year but there’s always just a little difference – it’s either an increase or decrease.
Overview of Physician’s Pay
- Radiologists – $315,000
- Orthopedics – $315,000
- Cardiology – $314,000
- Plastic surgery – $270,000
- General surgery – $265,000
- Obstetrics and Gynecology – $220,000
- Psychiatry – $170,000
- Pediatrics – $156,000
Furthermore, one of the reasons that push potential doctors to choose more lucrative specialties are the big student loans that they incur for studying medicine. Foreseeing that they will owe around $140,000 when they graduate, they would choose to specialize in cardiology or urology rather than become a family doctor or a pediatrician.
To dream big in the medical field is to dream of becoming an orthopedic surgeon or a radiologist. As shown above, they are the highest paid physicians today. Some of them even make as much as $519,000 every year and this amount still does not include bonuses or benefits.
Sadly, the disparity in pay has caused a decline in the interest in some fields of medicine. Take for example, primary care physicians spends an average of 45 minutes with a diabetic patient and he or she is paid less than an orthopedic surgeon who only needs at least 10 minutes to fix a broken bone. If it’s not for passion and all for the money, surely all aspiring doctors would choose the higher path.