More experience, more pay?

[F0nzie]

So I have heard that other medical specialties get some pretty massive pay increases from employers the longer they have been in their field.

Does this happen in psych? Sometimes I look around and wonder if some of the old timers are making a lot more money than I am or maybe just a tad more.

Just wondering how much room there is for growth in the employment arena...

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[heyjack70]

My guess is this might happen in places where there is decent psychiatrist supply. They can get away with paying new psychiatrists less because there are plenty of applicants and someone will take it. The converse is if a place has been trying to hire someone for a year, the pay better be pretty good or it'll be another year. I've heard Kaiser has a progression with salary increases based on years of experience (though it may be years at Kaiser), which is more consistent with a typical job. My experience with my first job was more in line with "You're a psychiatrist, we need a psychiatrist, this is what everyone gets paid." And the pay is pretty good.

 

[Doctor Bagel]

I was wondering this, too, and had the thought that maybe our salaries stay pretty darn similar except for inflation as the years go by, which is depressing. Insurance pays the same regardless of experience, and it does seem like lots of jobs are just looking for a body to fill a spot. But yeah, I've heard that Kaiser has a partnership type of track (not sure if partnership is the right word) where your pay goes up and your work requirements decrease. Salaries do continue to increase at the VA and in the state systems, but they're not that great to begin with. I'm not sure how much benefit there is in private practice -- it seems like the private practice doctors here still charge close to the same rates (and generally accept insurance) regardless of years of experience. I guess you might get more cash only folks with more years of experience.

 

[milesed]

If you are an employee, most give a % raise each year or a bump up if taking on more responsibility (med director, etc.) or RVU's are high.

 

[sunlioness]

I'm taking a salary hit to move back to the Northeast. A pretty significant one actually. And it's a much higher cost of living area. I'm thinking it's probably because it's not as hard to recruit psychiatrists to a major east coast metropolitan area. But the cornfield has to pay. Bummer.


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[Frazier]

A lot of times with other specialties, it isn't so much as "you have more years under your belt, you are paid more accordingly" as "you made partner, enjoy sharing the profits". As noted in an earlier post, insurance pays about the same for the psych f/u whether the practicioner is 1 or 10 years out...same for the surgeon doing that hemicolectomy. Outside of standard raise structures and snowflakes with special leverage, they just get more integrated into the profit sharing.