Physicians employed in hospital-owned practices are nearly three times more likely to report dissatisfaction than their peers in physician-owned practices, according to Bain & Company’s Frontline of Healthcare Survey, featured in an October blog post.
Here are 10 key insights on why physicians are unhappy with their employment from recent studies and surveys:
1. Bain’s survey highlighted several professional factors with a "disproportionately high potential to delight or disappoint." For hospital-led practices, critical concerns included compensation, staffing levels, workload, and autonomy.
2. Among physicians in physician-led practices, 78% said their organizations have effective processes and workflows, compared to just 59% of those in hospital-led organizations.
3. Satisfaction with leadership alignment was notably lower in hospital-employed settings, with only about 60% of physicians expressing approval.
4. In physician-led organizations, 81% of physicians reported satisfaction with their involvement in strategic decision-making, compared to just 50% in hospital-led practices.
5. Physicians in physician-led practices were also more likely to report having access to necessary supplies and equipment — 87% compared to 68% in health system-led organizations.
6. More than one-third of academic physicians plan to leave their current institution within the next two years, according to a cross-sectional survey of 18,719 in the role at 15 academic-affiliated health systems. Those planning to exit cited burnout and lack of fulfillment as their primary reasons.
7. Medicus’ 2023 Physician Practice Preference and Relocation Survey found that 29% of surveyed physicians cited compensation as their primary reason for seeking new job opportunities.
8. Practice ownership and governance models are increasingly influencing early-career physicians to leave their first job, according to Jackson Physician Search’s Early-Career Physician Recruiting and Retention Playbook.
9. A study published in JAMA Network Open explored burnout, professional fulfillment and physicians' intentions to leave their institutions. The study found that a one-point increase in burnout scores raised the risk of leaving by 52%, while a one-point increase in professional fulfillment scores reduced this risk by 36%.
10. Burnout is also driving physicians to retire. According to Medscape's "Physicians Eye Retirement 2023 Report," 28% of physicians considering retirement plan to retire in their mid to late 60s. Burnout remains a key factor, with 74% of surveyed physicians citing it as a reason for sticking to their targeted retirement age.