See Instate’s post - not a huge difference on average. Generally when you first start in practice you DO work harder to build patient base, rep, etc but this tends to plateau and or even out later become less. Also the actual work is variable. Clinic visits are typically more streamlined, there’s echo reading, procedures/cath, and inpatient consults - all to varying degrees depending on the practice model.
Either way my post still stands. I would much rather work a few more hours a week as a cardiologist than hate my life taking care of social admits, PNA, AMS, UTI, ambulatory dysfunction, neuro and surgical dumps, and COPD with half of my weekends taken up by work (whereas most calls for cards are usually 1 in 4-5 weekends). The one week on/off model does not appeal to me especially as I’ll be less interested in perpetually vacationing on my off weeks as I grow older and have kids etc. Most of my hospitalist friends with families usually pick up extra shifts on weeks off because, surprise, they need the cash.
Everyone has their own preference for how they want to practice medicine and live their life. And that’s okay. I simply do not think it’s a waste to do fellowship just because there’s some hospitalist gigs that will make more money, and was trying to address that point being made by some of the other posters.
