Medscape UK Doctors' Side Gigs Report 2022
Podcasting and blogging, medical device development, acting as an expert witness or media consultant, and medical moonlighting…. Side gigs – what are doctors engaged in, why are they involved, and will these activities take them out of the medical profession?
We surveyed 1012 UK doctors during February to May 2022 to find out.
Medscape UK Doctors' Side Gigs Report 2022
In our survey, 7 out of 10 (70%) doctors said that they were engaged in a side gig in addition to their primary medical job. More male than female doctors (34% vs 24%) were likely to have side gigs, with almost twice as many 45 and overs having side gigs than under-45s (35% vs 20%). Around the same number of GPs as speciality doctors had side gigs (29%, 34%, respectively), this being far more than the one-eighth (13%) of junior doctors who had them.
Those doctors with a side gig had been involved in it for an average of 10 years.
Medscape UK Doctors' Side Gigs Report 2022
Our survey discovered that the side gigs doctors are involved in span a wide range of medical and non-medical activities.
The most common medical side gig that just over 1 in 4 (28%) survey respondents are involved in is medical consulting, followed by expert witness work, and professional speaker events (both 19%). Other medical-related side gigs were part-time teaching, tutoring medical students, and medical device development. Approximately 1 in 7 doctors (16%) surveyed said that they engaged in medical moonlighting where they worked additional shifts in hospital, emergency rooms, or care centres.
When it comes to non-medical side gigs, doctors are involved in many interesting activities. The most common non-medical side gig, that over 1 in 4 (28%) of our survey respondents are involved in, is real estate. Almost 1 in 5 (19%) are involved in investing and/or investing advice, with writing, participation in sports (playing, coaching, competing), and teaching or giving advice in person or online being other popular gigs.
But how much time do doctors spend engaged in their side gigs? On average side gigs this was 15 hours per month, with 140 hours per month spent doing their primary job as a clinician.
Medscape UK Doctors' Side Gigs Report 2022
Almost 1 in 2 doctors (46%) said that their main goal from doing side gigs was to earn extra money, with 25% more male doctors (49%) than female doctors (40%) saying this. Regarding age, 50% more under 45s than 45 and overs said this was the case (64% vs 42%), with more specialists than GPs reporting this being the reason (47% vs 40%).
Building a second career for when they retire from medicine was the reason for 16%, with 1 in 10 (10%) saying it was to use and build their skills.
One in four (25%) doctors surveyed said that they had a lot of flexibility to pursue their side gigs, with almost twice as many male doctors reporting having more flexibility than female doctors (28% vs 16%). Almost four times as many 45 and overs as under 45s felt they had a lot of flexibility (30% vs 8%).
When it came to having no flexibility at all, 15% reported this to be the case, with female doctors around twice as likely to report this as male doctors (22% vs 12%).
Medscape UK Doctors' Side Gigs Report 2022
Our survey established that earning more money was the reason for engaging in side gigs for around 1 in 2 doctors. So, how much was being earned? On average, side gigs brought in around £22K per year for a doctor.
However, around 2 out 3 (63%) doctors said that they were 'not as successful/making as much money' from their side gigs as possible at the moment. A number of reasons were given why this was the case. The two most common reasons given for what was holding doctors back from achieving more money from their side gigs were 'Not enough time to devote to it' and 'Want to maintain a reasonable work/life balance', both of these reasons being the explanation for 45% of doctors surveyed. With regards not having enough time, GPs and the under-45s were around 50% more likely to feel this was the case than hospital specialists and the 45 and overs.
However, 1 in 10 (11%) doctors were concerned that devoting more time to their side gig would result in them not enjoying it as much, with this sentiment being similar across male and female doctors, all ages, and for both GPs and specialists.
Medscape UK Doctors' Side Gigs Report 2022
For those involved in side gigs, just how fulfilling are they when compared to working as a doctor? Around 4 out of 10 (38%) respondents said that their side gigs were more fulfilling than their primary clinical job. Female and male doctors were similar in this, however, more GPs than specialist doctors felt this way (55% vs 34%), with around 50% more 45 and overs getting more fulfilment from side gigs than their primary jobs than under-45s (41% vs 27%).
Almost the same percentage (40%) said they got the same amount of fulfilment from side gigs as they did from their primary medical job, with 1 in 5 (22%) saying their side gig gave them less fulfilment, this being reported by female doctors more than male ones (29% vs 20%).
Just over half (55%) of doctors said that they felt 'satisfied' or 'very satisfied' with their main job as a doctor, with hospital specialists twice as likely as GPs to report this (62% vs 30%), and male doctors around a third more likely than female doctors to report this degree of satisfaction (58% vs 45%).
One in five (20%) doctors said they were 'not very satisfied' or 'not at all satisfied' with their main job as a doctor, with GPs almost twice as likely to express this than specialty doctors (31% vs 17%).
On the flip side of the coin, we asked doctors how much their side gig has helped their work as a doctor? Almost 3 out of 10 (30%) said it had helped 'a lot', 4 out of 10 (41%) said it had helped 'some', and around 3 out of 10 (12%) said 'not that much/ none at all'.
Medscape UK Doctors' Side Gigs Report 2022
Building a second career for when they retire from medicine was the reason for pursuing side gigs for 16% of doctors surveyed, with 1 in 10 (10%) saying it was to use and build their skills.
More than 50% (57%) of doctors said that they had needed to learn new skills in order to pursue or succeed in their chosen side gig, with this being the case for more GPs than specialist doctors (71% vs 54%).
These new skills had been learned through courses or tutorials in person or online for the majority (75%) of doctors, with the number of male and female doctors in general and hospital practice of all ages saying this was the case.
Reading (51%) and discussions with others (46%) were other popular methods of research for how doctors had learned the necessary skills for their side gig.
In order to achieve success in their side gig, we asked whether respondents had read or consulted with business/financial coaches or experts to learn some of the business strategy, skills, and tactics. About 1 in 4 (24%) had consulted in person or online, and 1 in 5 (22%) had read books on the subject. However, the majority (60%) had not done either.
Two out of three (65%) thought that they would benefit, or had benefited, 'a lot' or 'some' from learning about how to run a business. However, 1 in 4 (25%) responded ‘not that much’, with male doctors being twice as likely as female doctors to feel this.
Medscape UK Doctors' Side Gigs Report 2022
We asked whether respondents were considering leaving medicine to pursue a non-clinical career, to which almost 3 out of 10 (29%) answered: yes, they were. Female doctors were more likely than male doctors (36% vs 25%) to be considering this change in career pathway, with under-45s considering this option more than 45 and overs (34% vs 27%). Of concern was that around 1 in 2 junior doctors (45%), 1 in 3 GPs (36%), and 1 in 4 (25%) specialists were considering leaving medicine to pursue a non-clinical career.
When asked why, the most common reason, cited by 1 in 3 (37%), was due to burnout that was not from the COVID-19 pandemic. GPs were more than three times more likely to give this reason than specialty doctors (16% vs 5%), as were around twice as many female doctors and those under-45 than male doctors and those 45 and over.
Another reason was the belief that they could earn more money in a non-clinical career (12%). The under-45s were over six times more likely to believe this than the 45 and overs, and male doctors almost three times more likely than female doctors. Wanting to work fewer hours was the reason for 13% of respondents, a reason that around twice as many 45 and overs and specialists gave compared with under-45s and GPs, respectively.
Of the doctors surveyed, 28% hoped to make the switch to a non-clinical career within a year, with male doctors and 45 and overs twice as likely to have this plan than female doctors and the under-45s. A further 30% anticipated making the switch within 2 to 3 years.
Amongst those who felt that they may never make the switch (8%), under-45s were four times more likely to feel this way compared to 45 and overs (16% vs 4%).
Medscape UK Doctors' Side Gigs Report 2022
It appears that many doctors have already begun researching the options of a non-clinical career with almost 1 in 2 (48%) responding that they have looked into things that seem interesting. Some had looked online (42%) – with the under-45s more likely than the 45 and overs to have done this (56% vs 33%) – and some had spoken with someone who works in the area of interest (24%).
When asked what types of non-clinical career doctors were considering, 1 in 3 (33%) said healthcare business companies, with a similar number saying education/teaching (32%). Other areas included pharmaceutical company work (22%), writing (20%), technology (17%), and law (9%).
For GPs and specialty doctors, the most popular non-clinical careers being considered were education/teaching (35% and 29%, respectively) and healthcare business companies (35% and 31%, respectively). Specialists were twice as likely to be considering hospital leadership than GPs (13% vs 6%).
Male doctors were approximately twice as likely as female doctors to be considering non-clinical careers in hospital leadership (17% vs 8%), pharmaceutical companies (27% vs 15%), technology (23% vs 10%), and healthcare business companies (41% vs 20%).
Female doctors were more likely than male doctors to be considering writing (24% vs 16%) or to be unsure about which non-clinical career to pursue (29% vs 13%).
In preparation for their non-clinical career, 1 in 10 (11%) doctors surveyed had already sought coaching or consultation. A further 31% stated that they planned to do so, this being the response for almost twice as many under-45s as 45 and overs (40% vs 25%).
Medscape UK Doctors' Side Gigs Report 2022
Pursuing a change in career is a huge step for most people and can be associated with a myriad of feelings.
We asked doctors how confident they felt that their non-clinical career would be something they like. Around 4 out of 10 (39%) said they felt confident/very confident, with specialists reporting this more than GPs (41% vs 34%). However, around 1 in 4 (27%) didn’t feel so confident, responding slightly confident/not at all confident.
Does moving into a non-clinical career trigger feelings of regret, or guilt, about the investment in time and money spent on their medical education? 'None at all' was how 1 in 3 doctors (34%) felt, with this being the sentiment more for 45 and overs (43%) than under-45s (20%). One in five (21%) felt a lot of guilt or regret, with female doctors and the under-45s expressing this around twice as much as male doctors and 45 and overs.
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