Wednesday, December 5, 2018

Physician demand grew 7% this year, outpacing 2017, Doximity says



Dec. 5, 2018
Dive Brief:
  • Job postings for physicians on Doximity, a social networking site for doctors, increased substantially in some areas of the country, outpacing the 7% average of growth nationwide. For example, Tuscon, Arizona, saw a 20% growth in job opportunities, according to Doximity's review of 8,000 physician jobs posted on its site in 2017 and 2018.
  • The most in-demand physicians are those that practice family and internal medicine followed by emergency medicine and psychiatry. Obstetrics and gynecology is the fifth most in-demand specialty.
  • Fresno, California, was the No. 1 metropolitan area with the greatest pay growth for physicians, according to the survey of 70,000 physicians. For nurses, the metropolitan area with the greatest pay growth in 2018 was Little Rock, Arkansas.
Dive Insight:
As the population ages more quickly, it is expected to place more demand on healthcare services. Roughly 10,000 baby boomers turn 65 each day at become eligible for Medicare, according to the Pew Research Center.
"As the U.S. population ages and the number of Americans over 65 increases, the need for more physicians will likely expand and drive up employment opportunities and compensation in concert," according to the Doximity report.​
Healthcare job growth is expected to outpace all other sectors through 2026, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, which again cites an aging population. Hospital job growth has remained strong throughout 2018, averaging about 9,000 jobs per month compared to 6,000 per month during 2017, according to the latest monthly report.
The latest monthly report shows the sector added 36,000 jobs in October and 323,000 over the past 12 months. Job growth was seen in hospitals, ambulatory centers and residential care facilities.
With the ongoing threat of a physician shortage, nurse practitioners and other interdisciplinary providers are stepping in to fill the void. In 2016, NPs made up a quarter of the provider workforce in rural practices (up from 17.6% in 2008) and 23% in nonrural practices (up from 15.9%), according to a Health Affairs study.

No comments:

Post a Comment