A discussion about physician salaries on Sermo

On Sermo, you'll find physicians (and only physicians) discussing all types of things. A recent discussion has focused on the validity of national physician salary surveys.

Here's what one physician posted on Sermo:

I've researched average physician compensation for a number of specialties, including my specialty using stats from AGMA, MGMA, and other sources. I am consistently struck by how low these figures are compared with individuals I know and others I know about.

I know the limitation of these statistics is that they usually only represent employed physicians. I thought it might be interested to see whether you believe the average income (and upper and lower ranges) for your specialty is correct, and what you think the implications are.

The reality is that most physicians voted that these numbers are inflated. In some cases, they're up by 25-30%. In other cases, over 50%. As a result of these published figures, new graduates are feeling entitled to very high salaries.

50 Most Powerful Physician Executives for 2010

Modern Healthcare / Modern Physician has published its annual list of "50 Most Powerful Physician Executives." You won't be surprised to see that Dr. David Blumenthal, the national coordinator for health information technology at HHS, holds the No. 1 spot on this year's ranking.

You can view the photo gallery of the "50 Most Powerful Physician Executives - 2010" by clicking here. How many of these physicians do you know? I've had the opportunity to personally connect with some of these individuals.

If you're interested in becoming a leading physician executive, then I'd encourage you to get involved with the ACPE (American College of Physician Executives). You'll notice that the CEO of the ACPE, Dr. Barry Silbaugh, is on that list of 50 Most Powerful Physician Executives. Speaking of ACPE, I look forward to seeing some of you at the annual ACPE meeting at the end of this month in Washington D.C. I'll be providing some blogging coverage of that meeting.

Physician Executive MBA

I don't have an MBA (yet), but I'd like to pursue one someday. Like many of you, I've been thinking about the pros/cons of an MBA. When's the right timing? Given the current economic conditions, I feel like I should be saving instead of spending towards further education. After all, I don't "need" an MBA to work right now. Therefore, when would it make sense to make the time and financial investment? What type of ROI (return on investment) will I see if I invest an an MBA? Why do tuition costs vary so much from one school to the next?

If you're thinking about getting an MBA in healthcare management, there's a long list of programs that focus on healthcare or medical management. One program that comes to mind is the University of Tennessee College of Business Administration. This program is offered exclusively for physicians seeking high-quality leadership, management, and business operation skills. This program is conveniently available nationwide, requiring only four, one-week, on-site residence periods during the 12-month program. All other course hours are available at your computer desktop through the Internet. Classes start in early January; graduation is in December of each year.

Want to see some of the profiles of recent graduates? Click on this link to see graduates from 2009. You'll see a mixture of U.S. and foreign/international medical graduates (IMGs/FMGs) in various hospital positions throughout the country. Modern Physician has consistently ranked the University of Tennesse program as the "#1 Preferred MBA Program Exclusively for Physicians."