Paying surveys for doctors

[bwmd]

Since there are a new crop of physicians as of this month, I thought I'd share the results of the digging I did earlier this year to find paying surveys for doctors.

While many (but not all) of these sites will verify that you are a physician (using your NPI number, diploma, instituional email address, etc), none that I know of ever goes further than that to vet your credentials when you attempt to qualify for a survey. (Many surveys are specifically looking for board certified physicians with 5+ years of experience.)

And at least QuantiaMD (which isn't really a survey site [but is paying $10 for new members to join]) let's you earn points as medical student prior to redeeming them after graduation.

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[gutonc]

I still do these as an attending. Although my standards have changed. I now only do the ones that pay at least $2/projected minute.

$150 for a 30 minute survey? Yes please.
$50 for a 1 hour survey? B**** please.

 

[Shikima]

I've yet to come across a 30 min survey for $150. If anyone gets hears about these offers, let me know... I get the chump change ones at $1/min or less.

 

[gutonc]

The Oncology ones pay well.

 

[reedsposer22]

which ones are websites that residents can get paid to do surveys?

 

[Perrotfish]

Anyone know how many surveys I can reasonably expect to participate in a month using a service like Sermo? What is a reasonable expected income to expect from this kind of thing? Also for those who have done this how many different sites will you generally sign up for? Do they all tend to have the same surveys or are they different?

 

[gutonc]

I initially signed up for every one I could find. Sermo's were the worst so I quickly ditched that. I basically only do 3 right now and between them get 10-20 invitations a week, of which I'll do a few depending on how long they are and how much they're paying.

I don't make all that much money, a few hundred a month, but it's my "bike money" (I've bought 3 bikes with it in the last 9 months) so it's not like I'm trying to pay the rent with it.

 

[Perrotfish]

I initially signed up for every one I could find. Sermo's were the worst so I quickly ditched that. I basically only do 3 right now and between them get 10-20 invitations a week, of which I'll do a few depending on how long they are and how much they're paying.

I don't make all that much money, a few hundred a month, but it's my "bike money" (I've bought 3 bikes with it in the last 9 months) so it's not like I'm trying to pay the rent with it.

That sound great, actually. My residency doesn't allow any moonlighting so I'm really just trying to find a way to make a few hundred extra to push myself onto the 10 year loan repayment plan. Also what do you think are the best sites, and why does Sermo suck?

 

[ThoracicGuy]

That sound great, actually. My residency doesn't allow any moonlighting so I'm really just trying to find a way to make a few hundred extra to push myself onto the 10 year loan repayment plan. Also what do you think are the best sites, and why does Sermo suck?

I seem to always be ineligible for most Sermo surveys... Not sure why all the time.

 

[Perrotfish]

Ok I signed up for about half a dozen of them. I'm being honest about my specialty and years in practice. I'll report back if I get anything and if so what they're willing to pay me.

 

[bwmd]

Ok I signed up for about half a dozen of them. I'm being honest about my specialty and years in practice. I'll report back if I get anything and if so what they're willing to pay me.

It's been a while since I signed up, do you remember what vetting process MDLinx and Brand Institute had for confirming your status as a clinician? Brand Ins. is the only one that doesn't do a lot of screening for each individual survey, so while the surveys and payouts are short and small (respectively), there's no BS. MDLinx and Sermo tend to screen out residents, and MDLinx in particular has some longer screening questionnaires that make you *think* you qualify only to leave you hanging.

 

[P Diddy]

I seem to always be ineligible for most Sermo surveys... Not sure why all the time.

You have to lie.

p diddy

 

[bwmd]

Updated the post above with a couple more finds.

Also, I went back and checked on Brand Institute and MDLinx. BI asks for your licensing number in your state (can be a training permit). Not really sure if they vet that data at all (highly doubt it). You can also join as 'consumer' as a student, though I couldn't tell you what the survey frequency and payouts would be at that level. MDLinx asks for your med school and graduation year, but that's it.

 

[Perrotfish]

About a month later: this isn't working. I guess they don't want Peds? So far I've gotten on survey. For 15 dollars. I didn't even bother to open it, it wasn't worth setting up a PayPal account for.

On the other hand I do get about 5 emails a day from QuantiaMD offering me a chance to participate in what is basically the crappiest lottery ever. 'Hey, we're having a discussion about heart disease, if your comment is selected you'll win 10 Qpoints!'

 

[kkinase]

Heme/Onc is where the $$$ surveys come in. You'll have to decide if you can be okay with being an "oncologist" for 30 minutes while filling the survey out.

 

[primadonna22274]

I've been screened out of plenty too, but I have gotten a few bites. Doesn't take that much time and if I can bank $100 here and there and withdraw it when I may need it, I'm ok with that. One pharmaceutical study was ridiculous though and took twice as much time as stated and for a measly $35

 

[styphon]

I've also been screened out for most - but I get lots of spam from the companies.

 

[Trismegistus4]

I get screened out from almost all Sermo surveys too, and while I don't know about others, I think the reason in my case is that one of the first questions is something like "how long have you been practicing independently" or "how long have you been in practice post-residency?" If you somehow indicate you're still a resident, you're screened out.

 

[gutonc]

I get screened out from almost all Sermo surveys too, and while I don't know about others, I think the reason in my case is that one of the first questions is something like "how long have you been practicing independently" or "how long have you been in practice post-residency?" If you somehow indicate you're still a resident, you're screened out.

I've been lying on that one since I was an intern.

 

[primadonna22274]

I have tried responding with years in practice (as a PA, more than a decade). The survey let me in.

 

[bwmd]

About a month later: this isn't working. I guess they don't want Peds? So far I've gotten on survey. For 15 dollars. I didn't even bother to open it, it wasn't worth setting up a PayPal account for.

On the other hand I do get about 5 emails a day from QuantiaMD offering me a chance to participate in what is basically the crappiest lottery ever. 'Hey, we're having a discussion about heart disease, if your comment is selected you'll win 10 Qpoints!'

I didn't get anything from BI for the first few months after I had signed up, but then started getting invitations pretty routinely. At $15 per study, that kind of money is never going to change your monthly income in a consistent way, but I made a couple hundred over the course of a 3-4 months, which paid for a few wedding presents for friends over the summer. I was usually able to squeeze them in at work, during lectures, or at worst in front of the TV. For me it's been worth it. Sermo and MDLinx definitely are more frustrating due to screen outs, and thus might not be worth the wasted time and irritation for some.

And yes, QuantiaMD is definitely not a money maker at the moment. They haven't been doing their easy Q-point activities recently, it's been what you've described, which is much less useful and a bigger disappointment. At this point it's the easy ten bucks for signing up, and that's about it unless you refer your friends etc.

 

[bwmd]

Interestingly, I got a survey invitation from QuantiaMD a couple of weeks ago. It was a short 1 min for 5 buck thing, but I've never had a survey before in the years that I've been a member. Makes me wonder if they plan on expanding their platform to include more surveys in the future to compete more directly with Sermo et al.

 

[link2swim06]

Interestingly, I got a survey invitation from QuantiaMD a couple of weeks ago. It was a short 1 min for 5 buck thing, but I've never had a survey before in the years that I've been a member. Makes me wonder if they plan on expanding their platform to include more surveys in the future to compete more directly with Sermo et al.

I signed up to all the those sites 2 months ago and have got a grand total of one survery invite that I didn't end up qualifying for...

 

[bwmd]

I don't know how the timing works exactly, but I do know it's very irregular. I signed up for every site back in December/January. I didn't get my first Brand Institute study until April (but I know other people who got them within days). The vast majority of BI invitations won't screen you out, which is nice. I didn't get an MDLinx invite until February or a Sermo invite until March. There are definitely hot and cold periods, but I've continued to receive invitations reguarly, so I don't think a long wait after signing up is indicative of all that much (except bad luck?).

The only other advice I can give anyone signing up is to make sure your profiles are complete. For Sermo, getting $100 in honoraria to reach "preferred status" can be difficult in the beginning unless you can refer friends to help get your numbers up, but once you do, more surveys will start coming as well.

 

[Perrotfish]

Second update. I'm getting a lot more invitiations for some reason, but I am still ultimately screened out of all of them. I am still answering all questions honestly.

 

[anbuitachi]

so which one is the best site??

Do you have to be a MD to do sermo? or is med student ok too

 

[Raryn]

so which one is the best site??

Do you have to be a MD to do sermo? or is med student ok too

I don't even think you can join sermo without a valid license. So you'll need to not just be an MD but do 1-3 years of residency (depending on where you went to school and your state of residence).

 

[dozitgetchahi]

I recently posted this on the wrong thread, but as I've stated before I've made ~$700 in about two months on Sermo. All you have to do, as stated above, is be comfortable calling yourself an 'oncologist'.

 

[anbuitachi]

I recently posted this on the wrong thread, but as I've stated before I've made ~$700 in about two months on Sermo. All you have to do, as stated above, is be comfortable calling yourself an 'oncologist'.

You get to do Sermo as a resident? or is your status just old

 

[bwmd]

You get to do Sermo as a resident? or is your status just old

You can sign up for Sermo as a resident. However, most surveys are specifically geared for physicians out in practice. So while joining as a resident is easy, making money consistently is more complicated. Sermo does confirm your clinician status when you first sign up; at the moment, they do not confirm other details, such as your practicing speciality etc. This is why several above posters have mentioned "being" an oncologist.

 

[Chip N Sawbones]

I still do these as an attending. Although my standards have changed. I now only do the ones that pay at least $2/projected minute.

$150 for a 30 minute survey? Yes please.
$50 for a 1 hour survey? B**** please.

You should find a way to get a med student to do all the surveys that don't pay enough for you to bother with and then split the take. Half of $50 to take a 1 hour survey is worthwhile to me, and you would get half of $50 for doing nothing.

 

[Dr. USMLE]

.

 

[Chip N Sawbones]

Have any of you guys tried taking telephone surveys in fields outside your specialty? I just got a high-paying offer for a gastroenterology survey over the phone, but I'm not entirely confident in my ability to bluff my way through it. I don't want to risk getting caught making up data and then have my account get banned.

 

[gutonc]

Have any of you guys tried taking telephone surveys in fields outside your specialty? I just got a high-paying offer for a gastroenterology survey over the phone, but I'm not entirely confident in my ability to bluff my way through it. I don't want to risk getting caught making up data and then have my account get banned.

I've never done the phone surveys just because I never have that kind of time and, previously, for the reason you state.

 

[dozitgetchahi]

Interesting - I hadn't heard about phone surveys. How are you guys getting hooked up with these?

 

[gutonc]

Same as the others. About 5% of the survey invitations I get are for phone surveys.

 

[gutonc]

No. But if they figure it out before the cut the check they just won't pay you.

 

[Welles84]

No. But if they figure it out before the cut the check they just won't pay you.

What do you do then when they email you to ask for you to "Provide information, including what specialty you practice, etc". Do you lie, or has that never come up for you?

 

[Chip N Sawbones]

What do you do then when they email you to ask for you to "Provide information, including what specialty you practice, etc". Do you lie, or has that never come up for you?

If you want to make money taking these surveys you'll need to do quite a bit of lying. Either get used to it, or accept that you won't get as many surveys if you tell the truth about being a resident, or find another way to make money.

 

[gutonc]

What do you do then when they email you to ask for you to "Provide information, including what specialty you practice, etc". Do you lie, or has that never come up for you?

It never came up for me. I didn't do any of them until I was a fellow anyway.

 

[bwmd]

They often ask what city you practice in, how many patients you see, etc. These are so they have enough of certain kinds of respondents, not because they are actively vetting credentials. Nonetheless, it's understandable if that makes you uncomfortable, because at that point you're generating a lot of drivel.

 

[Focused1]

Sermo does confirm your clinician status when you first sign up

Hypothetically if a medical student is ready to lie through his teeth to "become" an attending oncologist with 15 years of experience under his belt..is there a vetting process that could detect this ?

How do they confirm your clinican status ?

 

[Perrotfish]

Hypothetically if a medical student is ready to lie through his teeth to "become" an attending oncologist with 15 years of experience under his belt..is there a vetting process that could detect this ?

How do they confirm your clinican status ?

You need an NPI number, so you can't do this until at least after Intern year. Also if you're willing to compromise your ethics for money, I feel like there are more profitable, safer, and less unethical ways to do it.

They are paying oncologists so much because they're using the information to drive chrmotherapy medication research and manufacturing. Pretending to be an oncologist when you're not is really sick. At least pill mill doctors are only endangering patients who are consenting to be drug addicts. You're talking about endangering Pediatric patients with leukemia. For a couple of hunded dollars a month.

 

[Focused1]

You need an NPI number, so you can't do this until at least after Intern year. Also if you're willing to compromise your ethics for money, I feel like there are more profitable, safer, and most less unethical ways to do it.

They are paying oncologists so much because they're using the information to drive chrmotherapy medication research and manufacturing. Pretending to be an oncologist when you're not is really sick. At least pill mill doctors are only endangering patients who are consenting to be drug addicts. You're talking about endangering Pediatric patients with leukemia. For a couple of hunded dollars a month.

ehh.. 🤔

 

[Crayola227]

You need an NPI number, so you can't do this until at least after Intern year. Also if you're willing to compromise your ethics for money, I feel like there are more profitable, safer, and less unethical ways to do it.

They are paying oncologists so much because they're using the information to drive chrmotherapy medication research and manufacturing. Pretending to be an oncologist when you're not is really sick. At least pill mill doctors are only endangering patients who are consenting to be drug addicts. You're talking about endangering Pediatric patients with leukemia. For a couple of hunded dollars a month.

Perrotfish, you know I love you, and I'm totally with you here in spirit, but I got to pick on you with the "consenting to be drug addicts." The very definition of addiction suggests compulsion, not consent. It depends on how people want to look at addition of course.

I would say at least the pill mill doctors could make some sort of claim for harm reduction model, that their patients' drug use is at least receiving some sort of licensed physician oversight, etc etc makes the s***tty care of a few patients by a few doctors a less disgusting thing than someone faking research which is then going to be generalized to an unsuspecting public and other treating physicians, a potentially enormous ripple effect with basically zero upside at all even if you squint.

Yeah, I'm going to put drug dealer on a higher moral plane than people who falsify research. Look what happened with the fake autism/vaccine link.

 

[mvenus929]

You need an NPI number, so you can't do this until at least after Intern year.

Not sure about you, but I was required to have an NPI number prior to starting intern year...

 

[Raryn]

Not sure about you, but I was required to have an NPI number prior to starting intern year...

He's wrong about the # but right about the timing. Sermo requires a license #, not an NPI.

 

[Chip N Sawbones]

He's wrong about the # but right about the timing. Sermo requires a license #, not an NPI.

It depends on the site. Curizon has low survey volume but is happy with just an NPI number.

 

[Raryn]

It depends on the site. Curizon has low survey volume but is happy with just an NPI number.

That's why I said Sermo.

 

[Kevin Durant]

I'm an intern, signed up for Sermo about 2 weeks ago and got listed as a "general practitioner." Won't let me choose anesthesiology without verifying with my badge.