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UK Doctors' Salary Report
Tim Locke; Véronique Duquéroy | April 4, 2018
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UK Doctors' Salary Report
Tim Locke; Véronique Duquéroy | April 4, 2018 | Contributor Information
What's the financial situation for UK doctors? Has it changed from previous years — and why? More than 800 doctors took part in our first UK-specific Medscape income survey alongside our global questionnaire. The answers from GPs and specialists reveal factors affecting income, challenging aspects of their jobs, and thoughts on future plans — including the impact of the UK preparing to leave the EU after Brexit — and their experiences working in the NHS as it prepares to mark its 70th birthday.
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UK Doctors' Salary Report
Tim Locke; Véronique Duquéroy | April 4, 2018 | Contributor Information
The survey was completed online between October 20th and December 5th 2017 by 815 UK doctors who are members of Medscape. The majority of respondents were male, practising full-time, aged over 45, and working in hospitals, and most were employees. More women were employed part-time than men. Part-time employees were more likely to be aged over 65. The survey was also taken by full-time Medscape registered physicians in the US (16,474), Germany (549), Spain (526), and France (937). The margin of error was +/- 3.85% (IC90%). Unless otherwise indicated the graphs are based on data from those practising full-time.
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UK Doctors' Salary Report
Tim Locke; Véronique Duquéroy | April 4, 2018 | Contributor Information
Nearly three-quarters of respondents were male, and the most common age group was 50-54. The ethnic mix of respondents shows that of those who answered, more than half were white, followed by Asian/British Asian, then black British/African-Caribbean.
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UK Doctors' Salary Report
Tim Locke; Véronique Duquéroy | April 4, 2018 | Contributor Information
The UK scores highest for doctors trained abroad (46%), followed by the US (23%), Germany (19%), France (18%), and Spain (14%). More than half of UK doctors studied medicine in the UK, followed by EU countries and India, Grenada, and Pakistan. Following the relative population sizes of the UK nations, most practise in England, followed by Scotland, Wales, and Northern Ireland.
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UK Doctors' Salary Report
Tim Locke; Véronique Duquéroy | April 4, 2018 | Contributor Information
General practitioners were the most widely represented in our survey (12%), followed by anaesthetists (11%), and paediatricians and mental health professionals (both at 7%).
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UK Doctors' Salary Report
Tim Locke; Véronique Duquéroy | April 4, 2018 | Contributor Information
The average full-time income of UK doctors who responded to the survey was £114,600, with a median value of £95,000. Our survey suggests full-time male physicians earn around 56% more than their full-time female counterparts. This echoes results of a recent BBC investigation that found full-time women consultants earned an average of 12% less than men. Specialists in our survey tend to earn more than generalists, and those who are hospital-based tend to earn less than those based elsewhere. A third of physicians earn additional income from non-patient care activities, on average £8,300.
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UK Doctors' Salary Report
Tim Locke; Véronique Duquéroy | April 4, 2018 | Contributor Information
UK physicians responding to our survey earn nearly two and a half times as much as their counterparts in Spain, and more than a third more than those in France. Incomes were slightly higher than those in Germany. However, UK incomes were around half those in the US. Figures rounded to whole pounds. (Euros converted to UK pounds @0.885 euros to £1. USD converted to pounds at 1 USD to 74.5p.)
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UK Doctors' Salary Report
Tim Locke; Véronique Duquéroy | April 4, 2018 | Contributor Information
Most UK physicians have a net worth of under £400,000. Physicians who are younger, female, or not employed in hospitals, have lower net worths.
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UK Doctors' Salary Report
Tim Locke; Véronique Duquéroy | April 4, 2018 | Contributor Information
About half of UK clinicians saw no change in their 2016 income compared to 2015. Generalists and non-hospital-based physicians saw a change in income more often than their counterparts did — a decrease rather than an increase. Not surprisingly, younger physicians more often increased their income than did older physicians.
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UK Doctors' Salary Report
Tim Locke; Véronique Duquéroy | April 4, 2018 | Contributor Information
Globally, increases in income were more prevalent in the UK, Germany, and the US, than in France and Spain. UK doctors cited pay rises, career progression, and taking on more private work, among the reasons for an increase in income.
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UK Doctors' Salary Report
Tim Locke; Véronique Duquéroy | April 4, 2018 | Contributor Information
As you'd expect under UK employment and pension rules, the majority of physicians in the UK receive paid time off and an employer matched pension plan. However, 1 in 5 received none of the listed benefits, including statutory ones. This probably indicates self-employed work.
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UK Doctors' Salary Report
Tim Locke; Véronique Duquéroy | April 4, 2018 | Contributor Information
About a quarter of physicians have recently begun offering additional services to increase income. GP and non-hospital-based physicians have more often added services. UK physicians were more likely to consider this than counterparts in France and Germany, but less likely than those in the US and Spain.
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UK Doctors' Salary Report
Tim Locke; Véronique Duquéroy | April 4, 2018 | Contributor Information
The majority of physicians in the UK who responded to our survey were employed in the NHS alone. Specialists and older doctors were more likely to do private work outside the NHS.
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UK Doctors' Salary Report
Tim Locke; Véronique Duquéroy | April 4, 2018 | Contributor Information
Tim Locke; Véronique Duquéroy | April 4, 2018 | Contributor Information
As you'd expect with most respondents working in the NHS, only 12% of all physicians surveyed (NHS and private) regularly discuss costs with patients. A majority of those who never discuss costs feel it is inappropriate.
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UK Doctors' Salary Report
Tim Locke; Véronique Duquéroy | April 4, 2018 | Contributor Information
UK physicians largely make ends meet. Women (21%) more often than men (11%) live above their means. However, men (29%) more often than women (19%) live below their means. Older physicians (30%) more often than younger physicians (21%) live below their means. Globally, physicians tend to live at their means, particularly in France and Spain. More German and American physicians live below their means than physicians from the UK, Spain, and France.
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UK Doctors' Salary Report
Tim Locke; Véronique Duquéroy | April 4, 2018 | Contributor Information
When it comes to debts being paid off, home mortgages were the most common for our respondents of all ages, followed by car loans and car leasing combined. Children's private school fees were a big expense for many doctors, and children's university tuition was significant for over-45s. Personal medical school and student loans were cited by 12% of respondents, but this was less of an issue for over-45s whose education in the UK would have pre-dated student loans. Younger physicians were more often paying off student debt, but less often carrying expenses on tuition fees for their children's education.
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UK Doctors' Salary Report
Tim Locke; Véronique Duquéroy | April 4, 2018 | Contributor Information
UK doctors who have joint finances with someone else were more likely to be the primary earner. Older physicians more often than younger physicians have partners who earn a lot less. Male physicians who have joint finances with someone else are much more likely than females in a similar situation to be the primary earner.
Are UK doctors satisfied with their jobs? Of their career choice? What are the rewarding or disappointing aspects of their job? See the results of our new survey.Slideshows, April 2018
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Tim Locke
Managing editor, Medscape
Véronique Duquéroy Editorial Director, Medscape
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