3 ms·

A lot of people in the medical field (of both genders) I know cut back their hours once they can control their schedule in private practice - if you're still go

by zdw 4y ago

A lot of people in the medical field (of both genders) I know cut back their hours once they can control their schedule in private practice - if you're still going to be making 3-5x of what would be considered a good salary working 50-75% of whatever is considered full time (usually in the 30-35 hours a week range), it just makes sense. Then again, this applies less to technology and other knowledge work where it's harder to turn off the background thought tasks.

clintonb 4y ago
Yep. I have found that some folks get too caught up on the salary number, and wait too late to discover their hourly wage is not as high as it could be since they are working far more than the standard 40 hours each week. It’s definitely a trade off—work more hours to advance more quickly and make more money—but working 60 to 80 hours per week is cutting your effective hourly wage by 25 to 50 percent.
starkd 4y ago
Are there any doctors actually in private practice now? I've found most have already sold their practices to hospitals or some kind of provider network, and they are told the patient load they must provide. It's just not economical to stay independent and reduce your workload.
- zdw 4y ago
  Assuming that this is US-based, but I would wager this is more related to the incredible byzantine health insurance system created to leech profit off the overall system without delivering useful services. Most doctors don't want to engage with a crazy actuarial accounting, hence they outsource it, which can be a reasonable tradeoff. Nuking that system from orbit with universal single payer would solve this, and also have the beneficial side effect of eliminating the coercive practice of employer-linked health care, which would lead to reduced barriers to entrepreneurial activity.
  - starkd 4y ago
    > Nuking that system from orbit with universal single payer would solve this Just when has a government administration led to a less byzantine system? From experience, it can very well make it much worse. For one, there would be no competition for dollars from providers. (Not that there is much of that now.) Plus you would have a cap on doctor's salaries. Early retirements and a severe doctor shortage has become a real problem.

by zdw 4y ago

clintonb 4y ago

Yep. I have found that some folks get too caught up on the salary number, and wait too late to discover their hourly wage is not as high as it could be since they are working far more than the standard 40 hours each week. It’s definitely a trade off—work more hours to advance more quickly and make more money—but working 60 to 80 hours per week is cutting your effective hourly wage by 25 to 50 percent.

starkd 4y ago

Are there any doctors actually in private practice now? I've found most have already sold their practices to hospitals or some kind of provider network, and they are told the patient load they must provide. It's just not economical to stay independent and reduce your workload.

zdw 4y ago
Assuming that this is US-based, but I would wager this is more related to the incredible byzantine health insurance system created to leech profit off the overall system without delivering useful services. Most doctors don't want to engage with a crazy actuarial accounting, hence they outsource it, which can be a reasonable tradeoff. Nuking that system from orbit with universal single payer would solve this, and also have the beneficial side effect of eliminating the coercive practice of employer-linked health care, which would lead to reduced barriers to entrepreneurial activity.
- starkd 4y ago
  > Nuking that system from orbit with universal single payer would solve this Just when has a government administration led to a less byzantine system? From experience, it can very well make it much worse. For one, there would be no competition for dollars from providers. (Not that there is much of that now.) Plus you would have a cap on doctor's salaries. Early retirements and a severe doctor shortage has become a real problem.