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Keith L. Martin | May 14, 2021
| Contributor Information
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Medscape Dermatologist Compensation Report 2021
Keith L. Martin | May 14, 2021 | Contributor Information
Many physicians' offices closed temporarily or saw fewer patients in 2020 due to COVID-19, making it a worrisome year for physician compensation, on top of concerns about the well-being of both patients and providers. Dermatologists' practices were not immune. While the worst business days are over for some physicians, others still struggle to recover.
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Medscape Dermatologist Compensation Report 2021
Keith L. Martin | May 14, 2021 | Contributor Information
Average dermatologist income was down somewhat in 2020 ($394,000) from 2019 ($411,000), with 65% of dermatologists reporting at least some decline in compensation. Average income for physicians overall varied little from 2019 to 2020, despite the hardships brought by COVID-19.
Almost 18,000 physicians in over 29 specialties told us about their income, bonuses, hours worked, greatest challenges, and the surprising impact of COVID on their compensation. Survey respondents reported their compensation for patient care. For employed physicians, that includes salary, bonus, and profit-sharing contributions. For self-employed physicians, it includes earnings after taxes and deductible business expenses, before income tax. Only full-time salaries were included in our results.
Some totals in this presentation do not equal 100% due to rounding.
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Medscape Dermatologist Compensation Report 2021
Keith L. Martin | May 14, 2021 | Contributor Information
Most dermatologists who saw a drop in income cited COVID-19–related issues such as job loss, fewer hours, and fewer patients. Seventeen percent pointed to non–COVID-related factors. (Respondents could choose more than one answer.)
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Medscape Dermatologist Compensation Report 2021
Keith L. Martin | May 14, 2021 | Contributor Information
Around half of dermatologists who suffered financial or practice-related ill effects due to the pandemic expect their income to return to normal this year. Close to a third believe it will take 2 to 3 years. Eighty-three percent of such physicians overall anticipate a return to pre-COVID income levels within a couple of years. Notably, 45% of physicians overall said the pandemic did not cause them financial or practice-related harm.
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Medscape Dermatologist Compensation Report 2021
Keith L. Martin | May 14, 2021 | Contributor Information
Dermatologist respondents reported how much time they spent on medical-related work outside of patient visits, including time devoted to paperwork, EHR documentation, administrative and managerial work, participation in professional organizations, and clinical reading. This year's average is greater than last year's (13.2 hours per week). Physicians overall spend an average of 16.3 hours per week on such tasks.
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Medscape Dermatologist Compensation Report 2021
Keith L. Martin | May 14, 2021 | Contributor Information
Physician work hours generally declined for at least some time during the pandemic, and some physicians were even furloughed, but most are now working about the same number of hours they did prior to COVID-19. Dermatologists are back to an average 45 hours per week. Perhaps not surprising, intensivists, infectious disease physicians, and public health and preventive medicine physicians are pulling longer hours now, about 6 or 7 more per week than before.
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Medscape Dermatologist Compensation Report 2021
Keith L. Martin | May 14, 2021 | Contributor Information
While physicians who see patients generally are working about the same number of hours per week that they did pre-pandemic, they are typically seeing fewer patients due to time spent on medical office safety protocols, answering questions around COVID-19, and other factors. Pediatricians are experiencing one of the largest average declines (78 patients per week prior vs 64 now — down about 18%), followed by dermatologists, orthopedists, and otolaryngologists (each down about 15%).
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Medscape Dermatologist Compensation Report 2021
Keith L. Martin | May 14, 2021 | Contributor Information
Among self-employed dermatologists, 51% believe that a drop in patient volume of up to a quarter is permanent.
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Medscape Dermatologist Compensation Report 2021
Keith L. Martin | May 14, 2021 | Contributor Information
A majority of physicians overall plan to keep taking Medicare and/or Medicaid patients; nearly a fifth of dermatologists are yet undecided. (Respondents could choose more than one answer.)
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Medscape Dermatologist Compensation Report 2021
Keith L. Martin | May 14, 2021 | Contributor Information
A bit more than half of dermatologist respondents were planning to participate in the Merit-based Incentive Payment System (MIPS) in 2021; nearly a fifth had yet to decide. "The stakes for the Quality Payment Program — the program that incorporates MIPS — are high, with a 9% penalty applied to all Medicare reimbursement for failure to participate," says Elizabeth Woodcock, MBA, CPC, president of physician practice consulting firm Woodcock & Associates in Atlanta, Georgia. "With margins already slim, most physicians can't afford this massive penalty. It makes sense to protect your revenue by complying with — at least — the bare minimum." (Respondents could choose more than one answer.)
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Medscape Dermatologist Compensation Report 2021
Keith L. Martin | May 14, 2021 | Contributor Information
Similar to last year's report (65%), 67% of dermatologists said they feel fairly compensated. Nearly 8 in 10 oncologists feel that they are fairly compensated, up from 67% last year — putting them at the top of the list again. Plastic surgeons' attitudes saw the largest positive change (to 68%, up from 55% last year) while otolaryngologists' slid the furthest (to 57%, down from 66%).
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Medscape Dermatologist Compensation Report 2021
Keith L. Martin | May 14, 2021 | Contributor Information
Despite professional challenges, most physicians find their work rewarding. Close to one third of dermatologists pointed to gratitude from and relationships with patients as their main source of career satisfaction. One quarter said being very good at what they do brings the most reward.
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Medscape Dermatologist Compensation Report 2021
Keith L. Martin | May 14, 2021 | Contributor Information
Rules and regulations continue to bog down physicians' daily work — 23% of respondents from across the profession said this is their biggest challenge. A similar percentage of dermatologists agreed.
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Medscape Dermatologist Compensation Report 2021
Keith L. Martin | May 14, 2021 | Contributor Information
If they had a choice, 85% of dermatologists would pick medicine again, a somewhat greater percentage than physicians overall (78%). Despite the shock, safety issues, stress, and grief wrought by the pandemic, this is the same response among dermatologists as in the prior year, and nearly the same among all physicians (77%). In our 2013 Compensation Report, with almost 22,000 physician respondents, only 51% of physicians said they would choose medicine again as their career.
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Medscape Dermatologist Compensation Report 2021
Keith L. Martin | May 14, 2021 | Contributor Information
As they were in last year's report, dermatology, orthopedics, oncology, and ophthalmology are among the top of the list. Family medicine and internal medicine are typically toward the bottom, as they are again this year.
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Medscape Dermatologist Compensation Report 2021
Keith L. Martin | May 14, 2021 | Contributor Information
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Medscape Dermatologist Compensation Report 2021
Keith L. Martin | May 14, 2021 | Contributor Information
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Medscape Dermatologist Compensation Report 2021
Keith L. Martin | May 14, 2021 | Contributor Information
'Death by 1000 Cuts': Medscape National Physician Burnout & Suicide Report 2021
Burnout and depression are still serious problems among physicians, especially amid COVID-19. More than 12,000 physicians told us how burnout has affected their relationships, career, and happiness.Medscape Features Slideshow, Jan 2021
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Comments on Medscape are moderated and should be professional in tone and on topic. You must declare any conflicts of interest related to your comments and responses. Please see our Commenting Guide for further information. We reserve the right to remove posts at our sole discretion.
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