Healthcare News and Trends
Merritt Hawkins Releases Annual Review of Physician And Advanced Practitioner Recruiting Incentives
July 21, 2021
By Phillip Miller, VP at Merritt Hawkins
Every year for the last 28 years, Merritt Hawkins
has released a report tracking the starting salaries and other incentives that
hospitals, medical groups, and other healthcare facilities offer when
recruiting physicians and advanced practice professionals. This report now is widely referenced by
healthcare executives, physicians and members of the media who follow trends in
physician compensation, supply and demand.
We have just released our 2021 Review of Physician and Advanced Practitioner
Recruiting Incentives which includes
a number of notable findings. The
Review indicates that over the previous 12 months, Merritt Hawkins conducted
more search engagements for nurse practitioners (NPs) than for any other type
of provider. In the 27 prior years the report
was conducted, physicians held the top spot. For the previous 14 years, the number one position was held by family
practitioners. The report clearly
indicates that NPs are coming into their own in a market that puts a premium on
access to care and cost containment.
NPs
are being used to staff a growing number of urgent care centers and outpatient
clinics that offer convenient access to care.
They also are being recruited to provide telemedicine services that feature
direct access to care givers. Younger
patients, in particular, are foregoing visits to traditional, office-based
primary care physicians in favor of more convenient settings, Merritt Hawkins’ Review
indicates, softening demand for primary care physicians.
Though
primary care physicians are still a vital part of team-based care and will be
increasingly responsible for coordinating the care of older patients with
multiple chronic conditions, they are not being recruited at the frenzied pace
of a few years ago.
Older Population Driving Need for Specialists
While
family physicians were second on Merritt Hawkins’ list of most recruited
providers, primary care physicians comprised only 18% of the firm’s search
engagements over the last 12 months, compared to 20% the prior year and 22% two
years ago. By contrast, specialist
physicians comprised 64% of the firm’s search engagements over the previous 12
months, while advanced practitioners, including NPs, physician assistants (PAs)
and certified registered nurse anesthetists (CRNAs) comprised 18%, up from 13%
the previous year. With more than 10,000 baby boomers turning 65 every day, a
growing number of older patients require the services of specialists to treat
aging organ systems, bones and brains.
Starting Salaries Decrease
Covid-19
suppressed utilization of physician services and caused many healthcare
facilities to discontinue or delay physician recruiting. As a result of reduced demand, starting
salaries tracked in the Review decreased for many types of providers. Both NPs and PAs were an exception,
however. The average starting salary for
NPs as tracked in the report was $140,000, a 12% year-over-year increase, while
the average starting salary for PAs was $128,000, a 14% increase. The highest average starting salary for physicians
as tracked in the report was $611,000 for interventional cardiologists, while
the lowest was $236,000 for pediatricians.
To
obtain a copy of Merritt Hawkins’ 2021 Review of Physicians and Advance
Practitioner Recruiting Incentives, you can download it here.
Phillip
Miller is Vice President of Communications for Merritt Hawkins and Staff
Care. He can be contacted at phil.miller@amnhealthcare.com.
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