Thirty-eight percent of healthcare providers do not receive additional compensation for on-call coverage, according to the Medical Group Management Association’s inaugural Medical Directorship/On-Call Compensation Survey Report.
Almost 30 percent of providers in hospital-owned group practices reported that they do not receive additional compensation for on-call duties, compared with 42 percent of providers in non hospital-owned practices.
“Historically, on-call duties have been sporadically compensated by hospitals," said Jeffrey Milburn, a consultant in the MGMA Health Care Consulting Group. "However, we’re seeing more hospitals compensating physicians and we’re seeing hospitals paying more. Hospitals are realizing they must compensate group-practice physicians for on-call duties.”
Neurological surgeons reported the highest daily compensation for on-call duties ($2,000), compared with pediatricians ($895) and urologists ($500). Physicians in multi-specialty groups reported higher compensation for on-call coverage than their peers in single-specialty groups. This trend also occurs in cardiology, obstetrics and gynecology, orthopedics and family practice. Only neurological specialists reported a higher daily rate for on-call compensation in a single-specialty group ($2,850) than in a multi-specialty group ($1,450).
Variations emerged regionally in on-call compensation. Neurosurgeons in the eastern region of the United States received almost 71 percent higher compensation for on call duties ($2,850) than peers in the western region ($1,667). General surgeons in the eastern region received $500 daily for on-call services, while their peers in the Midwest earned $1,000 daily.
The surveys were created to respond to the changing healthcare environment. MGMA identified one such trend as the increased use and need for medical directorships in hospitals, and hospitals paying physicians to provide emergency department call coverage.
“A number of factors drive these trends. As a result, we believe there will be a growing demand from physician groups, hospitals and health systems for the data in this survey report,” said David Taylor, a member of the MGMA Survey Advisory Committee.