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This is happening on my home town. The hospital has been scaling back more and more. What was once a thriving hospital now only has 3 doctors. Not due to deman

This is happening on my home town. The hospital has been scaling back more and more. What was once a thriving hospital now only has 3 doctors. Not due to demand, but because there are not enough doctors. Doctors do not want to live in a podunk town, no matter how much the hospitals are willing to pay.

SolaceQuantum 7y ago
Theoretically if the podunk town is willing to pay 5x, 10x, 100x, etc. A doctor would definitely take up that. Hell, I would do software development in a podunk town for a million dollar salary. Maybe even a 750k salary.
- rohit2412 7y ago
  Yeah that's a dynamic I can't understand. Most software professionals talk about relocating away from the cities the first chance they get, but everybody else is rushing to the same cities that only software developers seem to be able to afford. This dynamic extends beyond usa. Even in India, doctors command high salaries in rural areas, often 2-3x what they can in metropolitan cities.
  - novok 7y ago
    I think people are more talking about working towns and cities that aren't SF levels of prices, which can be non rural towns of +100k people.
  - aflag 7y ago
    The software engineers talk about it, but they never do it. Romanticising about moving to a simpler place is very different from actually doing it. A developer is even more relocatable than the doctor. You can still work for a major company and you still have the big city market open to you, even if you live in a small town. Whereas for a doctor it's a major career change.
  - RandallBrown 7y ago
    "Most" is probably not the case at all. I have several friends who talk about moving somewhere cheaper, but way more of them are perfectly happy to live in an awesome city with lots of stuff to do.
- thrower123 7y ago
  I'd happily do my software job remotely in a podunk town for just my current salary. The dollars would go almost twice as far.
  - honkycat 7y ago
    My friend, live in a podunk town for a while before you take that bargin xD Though, to be fair, there are a ton of awesome NON-podunk little towns that are a delight to live in.
    - thrower123 7y ago
      I grew up in one, it'd be going home to the way life should be.
  - driverdan 7y ago
    Good news for you, there are tons of remote software jobs that allow you to live wherever you want.
    - novok 7y ago
      And pay two thirds less. The qualifier is equal pay.
      - driverdan 7y ago
        I've never seen a remote job that paid two thirds less. Some do pay less based on location but many don't.
        novok 7y ago
        I can choose 400k-500k compensation working at fang or I can choose 100-200k compensation working remotely.
  - HarryHirsch 7y ago
    Serious question: do you have children? The quality of schooling in large swathes of the country is abysmal.
- CabSauce 7y ago
  They do literally pay almost 2x. And that's in towns where your dollar goes much, much further. It's effectively 5x. Doctors still don't want to go.
  - delinka 7y ago
    Guess it's time to offer 3x. It's how supply and demand work, right?
    - cpitman 7y ago
      Keep in mind, people have to pay for these services. Pay doesn't go up in a vacuum.
      - lotsofpulp 7y ago
        Hence why all the talk about "cheap" cost of living is lacking. It's missing many quality of life components that many people value, resulting in its low nominal prices.
    - disjhshava 7y ago
      Ultimately, there are not enough doctors to meet demand. Raising wages will just move them around. The supply of doctors is inelastic due to limited residency slots.
    - refurb 7y ago
      You’re ignoring the back end where hospitals have to convince insurers to pay them that much.
- oneepic 7y ago
  If they're willing to pay. Doctors are very sensitive to the pay issue these days. I'd imagine there are a ton of poor folks out there that would happily get treatment, but won't pay when they get that bill in the mail.
  - deleted 7y ago
    [deleted]
- beerandt 7y ago
  The best paying doctor jobs are in rural areas that can afford it. I believe the top paying EM (emergency medicine) positions last year were in the Dakotas. Think drilling boom-towns. And it can easily be a 5x multiplier, sometimes more.
- scrumbledober 7y ago
  I would do software development from a podunk town if I could make the same amount as I do in the bay area.
rb808 7y ago
its disappointing that medical education is reserved for the best and brightest that unsurprisingly want to live in nice places. I have a friend that would love to be a rural doctor but didn't have the grades. They would have probably been smart enough to pass and be a great doctor, but the profession would rather have the highest academic scores.

SolaceQuantum 7y ago

Theoretically if the podunk town is willing to pay 5x, 10x, 100x, etc. A doctor would definitely take up that. Hell, I would do software development in a podunk town for a million dollar salary. Maybe even a 750k salary.

rohit2412 7y ago
Yeah that's a dynamic I can't understand. Most software professionals talk about relocating away from the cities the first chance they get, but everybody else is rushing to the same cities that only software developers seem to be able to afford. This dynamic extends beyond usa. Even in India, doctors command high salaries in rural areas, often 2-3x what they can in metropolitan cities.
- novok 7y ago
  I think people are more talking about working towns and cities that aren't SF levels of prices, which can be non rural towns of +100k people.
- aflag 7y ago
  The software engineers talk about it, but they never do it. Romanticising about moving to a simpler place is very different from actually doing it. A developer is even more relocatable than the doctor. You can still work for a major company and you still have the big city market open to you, even if you live in a small town. Whereas for a doctor it's a major career change.
- RandallBrown 7y ago
  "Most" is probably not the case at all. I have several friends who talk about moving somewhere cheaper, but way more of them are perfectly happy to live in an awesome city with lots of stuff to do.
thrower123 7y ago
I'd happily do my software job remotely in a podunk town for just my current salary. The dollars would go almost twice as far.
- honkycat 7y ago
  My friend, live in a podunk town for a while before you take that bargin xD Though, to be fair, there are a ton of awesome NON-podunk little towns that are a delight to live in.
  - thrower123 7y ago
    I grew up in one, it'd be going home to the way life should be.
- driverdan 7y ago
  Good news for you, there are tons of remote software jobs that allow you to live wherever you want.
  - novok 7y ago
    And pay two thirds less. The qualifier is equal pay.
    - driverdan 7y ago
      I've never seen a remote job that paid two thirds less. Some do pay less based on location but many don't.
      - novok 7y ago
        I can choose 400k-500k compensation working at fang or I can choose 100-200k compensation working remotely.
- HarryHirsch 7y ago
  Serious question: do you have children? The quality of schooling in large swathes of the country is abysmal.
CabSauce 7y ago
They do literally pay almost 2x. And that's in towns where your dollar goes much, much further. It's effectively 5x. Doctors still don't want to go.
- delinka 7y ago
  Guess it's time to offer 3x. It's how supply and demand work, right?
  - cpitman 7y ago
    Keep in mind, people have to pay for these services. Pay doesn't go up in a vacuum.
    - lotsofpulp 7y ago
      Hence why all the talk about "cheap" cost of living is lacking. It's missing many quality of life components that many people value, resulting in its low nominal prices.
  - disjhshava 7y ago
    Ultimately, there are not enough doctors to meet demand. Raising wages will just move them around. The supply of doctors is inelastic due to limited residency slots.
  - refurb 7y ago
    You’re ignoring the back end where hospitals have to convince insurers to pay them that much.
oneepic 7y ago
If they're willing to pay. Doctors are very sensitive to the pay issue these days. I'd imagine there are a ton of poor folks out there that would happily get treatment, but won't pay when they get that bill in the mail.
- deleted 7y ago
  [deleted]
beerandt 7y ago
The best paying doctor jobs are in rural areas that can afford it. I believe the top paying EM (emergency medicine) positions last year were in the Dakotas. Think drilling boom-towns. And it can easily be a 5x multiplier, sometimes more.
scrumbledober 7y ago
I would do software development from a podunk town if I could make the same amount as I do in the bay area.

rb808 7y ago

its disappointing that medical education is reserved for the best and brightest that unsurprisingly want to live in nice places. I have a friend that would love to be a rural doctor but didn't have the grades. They would have probably been smart enough to pass and be a great doctor, but the profession would rather have the highest academic scores.