M.D. with R.D.?

[Van Chowder]

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Has anyone heard of this? I ask because I am currently a nutrition major and will graduate with a B.S. and an R.D. so Im wondering if a M.D. has an accompanying R.D. degree, are they likely to be compensated more as an attending? ( I'm assuming if this is the case it would probably apply only to primary care docs.)

thanks! Please let me know!

(R.D. = Registered Dietitian)

 

[LizzyM]

Yes, I've even met such a person. However, as an attending, you won't be paid more than an MD without an RD.

RDs make half to one-third the salary of a primary care provider. The time you, as a physician, spend doing work that could be done by someone earning a far lower salary is time you are not spending maximizing your productivity.

 

[tremulousNeedle]

Agreed. As an MD, your services as a RD are typically not billable. MD's are paid with productivity in mind whereas RD's are usually hourly or salary. I suppose you could charge 15 min as MD and then 15 min as RD, but you would obviously make more money if you saw 2 patients for 15 min each as an MD.

-senior medical student

 

[Bernoull]

Not to hijack the thread, but I'll like to ask a followup question.

As a physician, is there any pay differential for having another advanced degree (MS or PhD)? In other words, physician X (MD) and physician Y (MD/ MSorPhD) do the same work, same hospital etc so the only variable is the additional degree of physician Y, would there be a pay differential (maybe analogous to >$ for experience)?

thanks

 

[Morsetlis]

In my experience, the PhD title decreases your salary ;p

 

[JJMrK]

Not to hijack the thread, but I'll like to ask a followup question.

As a physician, is there any pay differential for having another advanced degree (MS or PhD)? In other words, physician X (MD) and physician Y (MD/ MSorPhD) do the same work, same hospital etc so the only variable is the additional degree of physician Y, would there be a pay differential (maybe analogous to >$ for experience)?

thanks

I may not know what I'm talking about but, this is my general impression of things:

After residency, you're going to be offered some jobs. The salaries for said jobs are going to fall within a given range, and the variability will have a lot to do with hours/time spent on call and location. Accept a job with more hours and in a worse location, and you'll probably be paid more.

It's not like there is a big list of standard pay rates for a new physician, and then you get extra money tacked on for some other degree.

 

[tremulousNeedle]

I DO know what I am talking about, so here's the answer:

MD's get paid based on some combination of salary and productivity, the percentage of each of these is individual to each practice, and definitely from academics to private practice.

If you are an MD/PhD or MD/MS is this setting your salary may be higher, but your productivity will usually be compensated at the same rate, i.e. you won't be compensated more as a MD/PhD to see a patient than if you were only a MD. The reason is that insurance companies and Medicare only care if you are a MD and will only compensate you for those services (A physical exam, surgery, etc is compensated all the same regardless of degrees).

Consider an academic center that wants to attract or retain highly trained physicians, such as those with other advanced degrees. To do this they may offer a higher base salary or better bonuses. Having an advanced degree may also add to your credentials as a researcher, which may increase the number of grants you are able to obtain, which may increase your pay. An advanced degree may also make you better qualified to take on administrative responsibilities, which may translate into increased pay. I suppose the same could be true for a MD with a RD, they could be compensated more if they found a way to market it as an advantage worthy of extra pay.

I cannot think of a situation, everything else being equal, where you would make LESS money with another advanced degree in addition to your MD (as proposed by a previous responder).

-senior medical student / admissions committee interviewer

 

[LizzyM]

I DO know what I am talking about, so here's the answer:
Consider an academic center that wants to attract or retain highly trained physicians, such as those with other advanced degrees. To do this they may offer a higher base salary or better bonuses. Having an advanced degree may also add to your credentials as a researcher, which may increase the number of grants you are able to obtain, which may increase your pay. An advanced degree may also make you better qualified to take on administrative responsibilities, which may translate into increased pain. I suppose the same could be true for a MD with a RD, they could be compensated more if they found a way to market it as an advantage worthy of extra pay.

I cannot think of a situation, everything else being equal, where you would make LESS money with another advanced degree in addition to your MD (as proposed by a previous responder).

increased pain That's a Freudian slip. but so true.

A full time subspecialist in a procedure driven subspecialty is going to have a very high income when devoting 100% of work time doing procedures.

Administrative assignments don't pay as handsomely as clinical procedures. Federally funded reserach is subject to a federal maximum salary. That maximum is far below the salary of a very productive clinician in a highly compensated subspecialty. So, doing research doesn't pay as well as doing only procedures.

 

[tremulousNeedle]

increased pain That's a Freudian slip. but so true.

A full time subspecialist in a procedure driven subspecialty is going to have a very high income when devoting 100% of work time doing procedures.

Administrative assignments don't pay as handsomely as clinical procedures. Federally funded reserach is subject to a federal maximum salary. That maximum is far below the salary of a very productive clinician in a highly compensated subspecialty. So, doing research doesn't pay as well as doing only procedures.

Correct and correct.
Pain or pay, they both work. 🙂

However, I know several MD researchers (>85% of time spent on research), who make more money from their research than their colleagues who work 100% clinical time. Also, subspecialty surgery chairmen (administrative role) at my college spend about 80% of their time still in the OR and clinic, and 20% of their time in the administrative role, and make much more money than their counterparts who are in the OR or clinic 100% of the time. I do agree that this probably only pays off if you are a department chairperson or nationally renowned researcher. Otherwise, the huge pay-off isn't there.

 

[Morsetlis]

I cannot think of a situation, everything else being equal, where you would make LESS money with another advanced degree in addition to your MD (as proposed by a previous responder).

-senior medical student / admissions committee interviewer

Postdoctoral research fellowship with no clinical practice, ala Medical Scientist.

Not all people with MD's do clinical work.

http://www.bls.gov/oes/current/oes191042.htm

Mean annual wage of medical scientists: $81k/yr.

This is the only kind of MD/PhD people I've had experience with.

Yes, I do understand the kind of MD/PhD positions you're talking about, practicing while also being on faculty. That's different from being a research-only medical scientist, which is what most MD/PhD are doing.

 

[tremulousNeedle]

Very interesting. That is a prospect I failed to consider. I would say that 95% of the MD/PhD's affiliated with my medical school also practice clinical medicine. Multiple posters are good for identifying regional variation.