What's the difference in salary

[sunshine008]

between a neuropsychologist and a primary care/health psychologist in a hospital setting?

Thank you.

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[deleted343839]

Salaries are too variable to answer that question with any kind of confidence. In a setting like the VA they're going to be about the same as they will be within the same pay grade range. In other settings it might depend on things like faculty status and whether the institution thinks that a social worker or counselor could do the same job (this would apply to primary care, not neuropsychology).

 

[smalltownpsych]

between a neuropsychologist and a primary care/health psychologist in a hospital setting?

Thank you.

At our small town hospital it would be at least 6 figures because we wouldn't hire a neuropsychologist. We just don't have enough need in the community for the specialty. Most salary surveys do show neuro making a little more than a clinical psychologist in general but there are a few confounding variables that I could think of with this. The question that administrators make when negotiating salaries is how much revenue is generated. That is related to demand, productivity, and insurance reimbursement schedules. Supply and competition factor in, as well. Neuro has the edge always with no real competitors whereas other psychologists do have to compete and demonstrate added value. I personally am not as impressed with the need for a specialty of health psychology the way it is conceived of currently and think it can be a tough sell and easier for midlevels to encroach upon. As I am thinking about it this Saturday am, if I were going to be a health psychologist, I think I would oversee the development and function of the programs and train mostly non-licensed people to carry out much of the education and intervention. I don't know if that would work unless you can bill something for those trainers. Tbh most of the people that I have known who professed an interest in health psychology reminded me of people on the shark tank with good ideas that could be helpful to people but weren't profitable. In interest of full disclosure, that's what I was just watching this morning.

 

[deleted343839]

I personally am not as impressed with the need for a specialty of health psychology the way it is conceived of currently and think it can be a tough sell and easier for midlevels to encroach upon. As I am thinking about it this Saturday am, if I were going to be a health psychologist, I think I would oversee the development and function of the programs and train mostly non-licensed people to carry out much of the education and intervention. I don't know if that would work unless you can bill something for those trainers. Tbh most of the people that I have known who professed an interest in health psychology reminded me of people on the shark tank with good ideas that could be helpful to people but weren't profitable.

Almost everything you've said here could also be said for general mental health. Anyway, as a health psychologist, I can say that most of us are valued in our integrated settings. We do a lot more than health coaching and patient education.

 

[smalltownpsych]

Almost everything you've said here could also be said for general mental health. Anyway, as a health psychologist, I can say that most of us are valued in our integrated settings. We do a lot more than health coaching and patient education.

Yes, for the financial stuff I was referring to anyone in the field. As far my comments on health psychology, that was just based on the few practitioners that seemed to focus most of their energy on quitting smoking and losing weight. I had a good discussion with an IM doc yesterday who said that if it weren't for smoking, alcoholism, and obesity, he wouldn't have half of his patients so there is clearly a need for behavioral changes in this area. I just wouldn't see us as essential in the delivery of the interventions as much as the design, but maybe that is just my own bias as I prefer working with a more "traditional clinical" population.

Interestingly, I have been working with a low functioning married couple for a couple of years and helping them with depression, anxiety, interpersonal difficulties and both of them have lost a significant amount of weight over the past year. We talked about it a little bit in sessions but it has never been a primary focus of treatment. One of them is trying to quit smoking - again and I am hopeful she can make it this time. So I guess I do help with these issues and I am not sure if a specialist would be needed in such a case. The question would be if a targeted approach would have been better than my targeting increasing mood and functioning.

 

[deleted343839]

That's an interesting example. I see what you're saying. I think a health psychologist is useful because of the broad skill set, knowledge of medical disorders, and the ability to conceptualize cases that don't necessarily look "textbook." For instance, in the same day a health psychologist in hospital-based practice might help a patient manage anxiety to successfully wean off a ventilator, work with a family to accept a chance in treatment goal from curative to palliative, evaluate a patient who is noncompliant with OT/rehab, and help manage body image concerns in a patient after a trauma. However, health psychology is also a big tent so it does include practitioners who focus on more specific areas such as tobacco cessation, bariatrics/obesity, etc. Sometimes health psychologists do become more niche-focused - easy to do if they are part of a subspecialty medical practice, for instance. If they are billing while saving a meaningful amount of physician time then they probably are helping the bottom line.

 

[smalltownpsych]

That's an interesting example. I see what you're saying. I think a health psychologist is useful because of the broad skill set, knowledge of medical disorders, and the ability to conceptualize cases that don't necessarily look "textbook." For instance, in the same day a health psychologist in hospital-based practice might help a patient manage anxiety to successfully wean off a ventilator, work with a family to accept a chance in treatment goal from curative to palliative, evaluate a patient who is noncompliant with OT/rehab, and help manage body image concerns in a patient after a trauma. However, health psychology is also a big tent so it does include practitioners who focus on more specific areas such as tobacco cessation, bariatrics/obesity, etc. Sometimes health psychologists do become more niche-focused - easy to do if they are part of a subspecialty medical practice, for instance. If they are billing while saving a meaningful amount of physician time then they probably are helping the bottom line.

When I first heard of health psychology, I liked the idea and thought of it much the way you describe it. Then when I met a couple of practitioners who called themselves health psychologists and seemed to have an agenda to foist their own personal obsessive perspective on health, I got soured on the concept. It is funny how biased and quick to judge I can be with other psychologists when contrasted with how accepting and open I can be with patients.

 

[WisNeuro]

All I'll add is that I have been a huge fan of the health psychologists that I have personally worked with in the VA. Most have been doing work in pain, or when I worked in SCI units.

 

[deleted343839]

It is funny how biased and quick to judge I can be with other psychologists when contrasted with how accepting and open I can be with patients.

Ain't it the truth! We're socialized so differently from our medical colleagues in that regard.