equal salaries between residents

[milenko]

Hello All,
Quick question. Is there a rule that all residents (of the same year) at a hospital be paid equally. What I mean is, can a pgy1 IM resident make more than an pgy1 Ortho resident? I looked around to see if there was some sort of rule or law, but couldn't find anything. Thanks.

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[smq123]

Hello All,
Quick question. Is there a rule that all residents (of the same year) at a hospital be paid equally. What I mean is, can a pgy1 IM resident make more than an pgy1 Ortho resident? I looked around to see if there was some sort of rule or law, but couldn't find anything. Thanks.

I don't think it is a rule, but most hospitals determine your salary by your residency year, not by which specialty.

 

[primadonna22274]

At my (osteopathic) school's hospital, the PGY1 psych residents are paid several thousands ($40 vs $47k) less than IM and other residents. I find this absolutely ludicrous and shameful and one of many reasons I would never apply to any of their programs.
That said, most of the 12 programs where I have interviewed (only ACGME in the southeast) have pretty equitable pay for their residents regardless of specialty. Variances between hospitals and competing programs definitely exist.

 

[organdonor]

I've seen all residents of same pgy year be paid the same salary. However, I've seen sign on bonuses for FM residencies that essentially make their pay several k more than their colleagues.

 

[gutonc]

I believe (but might be wrong) that this is a rule for ACGME programs but I don't know if there's a similar rule for AOA programs.

 

[Law2Doc]

Hello All,
Quick question. Is there a rule that all residents (of the same year) at a hospital be paid equally. What I mean is, can a pgy1 IM resident make more than an pgy1 Ortho resident? I looked around to see if there was some sort of rule or law, but couldn't find anything. Thanks.

At the hospitals I've been affiliated with it's always the same across PGY year. But that translates to a Very different hourly salary...

 

[milenko]

Thank everyone for the information. My residency pays psychiatrist 40k a year and IM residents 47k a year. Looks like primadonna and I may know eachother. Cool. Ok, well thanks anyway, I was hoping there was some sort of rule I could take to the DME to demand equal pay. Bummer.

 

[organdonor]

I didn't realize there were PGY-1's who were getting paid that little

The Family residency programs I am considering are offering between 49,600 and 60,001 for PGY1 with additional one time sign on bonuses ranging from $6-11,000. I figure we'll be in the same boat making crap compared to our peers in more lucrative specialties once we're out of training eh?

Why does it seem there are so many people factoring in cost of medical school to help them make their decision but nobody ever talks about salary being a factor when it comes time to put together a rank list?

 

[colbgw02]

I didn't realize there were PGY-1's who were getting paid that little

The Family residency programs I am considering are offering between 49,600 and 60,001 for PGY1 with additional one time sign on bonuses ranging from $6-11,000. I figure we'll be in the same boat making crap compared to our peers in more lucrative specialties once we're out of training eh?

Why does it seem there are so many people factoring in cost of medical school to help them make their decision but nobody ever talks about salary being a factor when it comes time to put together a rank list?

Because unlike medical schools, residency funding largely comes from Medicare, which helps to explain why salaries are so homogeneous across the country despite differences in competitiveness, cost of living, and hours worked. If anything, a high salary may be a negative indicator, because it means the program is having to divert a relatively high amount of its per capita Medicare funds to attract candidates.

 

[milenko]

Organdonor, I want to be as honest as possible here. The salary never entered my mind when I was compiling my rank list, and it shouldn't enter yours. Most of the time, we are talking about a very little difference. For example, if one residency is paying 50k, and another is paying 55k, that sounds like a big difference. But if you break it down to paychecks you will see it makes very little difference. 5k is roughly and extra 400 per month, that means and extra 200 per paycheck, after taxes that is about 150 bucks more per paycheck. Do you really want to live somewhere horrible and hate your residency and your life for an extra 150 bucks? I think not. Make your rank list based on where you want to live, and where you will be happy. You will make plenty of money in 3 short years (assuming FM).

ps. are you Canadian? I only ask, because I have dual citizenship, and you spelled "eh" correctly.

 

[BADMD]

I don't believe there is a requirement that residents be paid the same. Lo the many years ago, when I was interviewing for residency, there was a program that used slots funded by different hospitals. The residents got the salary provided by the contract. The result was that some residents in the same class were paid differently than others.

 

[VenusinFurs]

At my (allopathic) med school there was one base salary for all residencies, but some specialties offered bonuses on top of that base salary.

I would argue that you shouldn't worry about salary up to a point, but I really don't think $40,000 is anywhere near an equitable salary for the amount of work you do as a resident. Particularly if you are getting paid $40,000 whilst other residents are getting paid far more. That is a sign that the psychiatry residency really isn't that important to the hospital.

 

[milenko]

It is true. I do not feel as though the other doctors think I am as important as IM residents, there is not much I can do about it. Stage a riot? unless y'all have other ideas.

 

[primadonna22274]

It is true. I do not feel as though the other doctors think I am as important as IM residents, there is not much I can do about it. Stage a riot? unless y'all have other ideas.

This inequality makes for some very miserable residents. I'm surprised so many stay on board. Not to mention PGY1 you're pulling house officer call and working hours like the IM folks. Now what I would really like to know is what the heck the FM folks do--you never see those guys in the hospital (at this particular program).

 

[sindadel]

The base pay per year is the same but call stipends would make a difference, with in house call reimbursed more than home call more than no call. Could come out to maybe $5000 difference in the year for a specialty that was half clinic/no call vs one that was all 1:4 in house call.

 

[Law2Doc]

While I agree it is strange for salaries to vary across specialty within a hospital, when determining if this factor contributes to your overall happiness (which a few thousand dollars a year probably shouldn't), I think looking at raw salary without considering things like hours worked, length of the residency, moonlighting opportunities, and the job you will be walking into afterwards, is flawed. I mean if a field works fewer hours and gets to moonlight more, they may have a phenomenally better overall income than a specialty that is in the hospital many more hours a week for just a few thousand dollars more. So who I really being disrespected or devalued here? Similarly a few thousand a year less for a three year residency might not be as bad a hit as a slightly higher pay but a residency path thats doubled. So while I agree more with the hospitals that pay should really be equal based on PGY year, I think it's hard to jump to the conclusion that variations of a few thousand dollar in different specialties is per se unfair, or that it should be read as the hospital deeming you less valuable, or that you should be miserable. We are talking about small potatoes during your training. Your attending salary will reflect on your worth.