I'll have a post coming up on that subject soon.

That’s really interesting (about psych fellowships outside of child not being very helpful). Sure, maybe I won’t retire at the same time as my peers, but I just can’t say no to all the knowledge that is out there and available! Job Security from the future prevailing evils of a changing world in health care. I went through calculations like this years ago. This is because currently ACGME.

http://jaapl.org/content/early/2019/11/21/JAAPL.003889-20.long. How this translates financially is murky as many of the less desirable jobs in less desirable locations pay better. I did a non-accredited fellowship, too. My research niche is in my fellowship, which was one of the reasons I chose it. Oral surgery is mixed for some of the programs in the country. People who have lots of other things to do and don’t care so much about money can retire early and keep themselves occupied. Factor in taxes if you want to take to the next level. Zero opportunity cost.

Already things are better for geriatric psychiatry. In academia, that timeline is to your next promotion (From Assistant Professor to Associate Professor).

The ROI is only part of the equation… But the decision not to sounds like it worked in your favor. My ROI is yet to be realized but has already been substantial in my first year as I stand to make more money from my section being short this year (hoping to hire!)

Why don’t more people go through this exercise for getting a basic college degree? Finishing an ER residency and getting a Ped’s fellowship is famous for that sorta thing. Obviously, there is a lot of noise and lag in the system regarding payments. Geriatric Psychiatry Fellowship - Program Director.

A better way to do it would be to adjust upward the increased salary to account for the time value of money. But, if you are loving what you do, then that is infinitely more important! And there’s always moonlighting!

Probably not.

So whereas in December 2010, there were 279 fellows in their first year of geriatrics training, in December 2011, there were 251! With more non-physician providers taking jobs, having a fellowship (I’m ultrasound), makes you more attractive to employers.

I can only speak for radiology, and sometimes it depends on the subspecialty and where we are in the job cycle. Calculating opportunity cost is always hard, but you have given us a nice framework. Most figure it out by MS4 and just do one thing. Quiz: What’s the ideal medical specialty for your personality? April 16, 2020: Virtual site visit policy. The first was first going into general surgery residency (for the wrong reasons) and after pgy2 decided it was not for me and switching to radiology. The opportunity cost for me was $290,000 in salary alone + $288,979 ($60,000 at 8% interest for 20 years) + my accumulated interest on student loan debt (180,000 at 6.8%) = $591,644. But only 10% of those in the 50-64 age group have $5M and a lot of doctors retire before at 65.

Also, many Peds EM folks are in the dept of EM vs. the dept of Peds which helps to boost your salary. Great post. I have more job security as there are only few of me doing the work. I’m currently a general surgery resident. I get a lot more respect from other physicians and they value my opinion. Its easier for me to find a good group due to my fellowship.

I know a few folks who have gone from path residency straight into a job, but I feel that path residency lacks a lot of good independence that would enable most people to do this. All rights reserved. In fact, a quick search of the American Geriatrics Society/Association of Directors of Geriatric Academic Programs websites show no information about what geriatricians might stand to gain from the bonus program. This is often easier to calculate than the possible reward of doing a fellowship unless you are in a field with a substantial and obvious increase in salary that will pay dividends in compounded interest over your career. Maybe. Most of this is opportunity cost. It may look something like this in my field, Anesthesiology: (Wrong perception) Basically, the specialist needs to make $48K a year more after-tax in order to come out ahead. The Division of Geriatric Medicine is dedicated to providing exceptional patient-centered care to older adults across the care continuum. You can also subscribe without commenting. Got it. They also do in-home capacity assessments and run the local "memory clinic" for patients with dementia. By using our Services or clicking I agree, you agree to our use of cookies.

I’m planning on working at PSLF-qualified institutions during residency/fellowship, and I’m not much of a lavish spender. Not me. I think if you really want to get involved in SNFs, or if you want to become a medical director, or if you really want to be involved in the academic side of geriatrics, it is worth it.

2) I agree that making an adjustment for cash flow would work. Also available on Audible! You’re welcome, on two counts. My decision to do a pain fellowship was entirely professional interest and lifestyle-driven, but the increased pay ceiling is nice too. A good name is rather to be chosen than great riches and loving favour rather than silver and gold. This program takes you on a journey of cost-effective primary care and innovative specialty clinical services offered in various health care settings. Fellowship pay back then was about $50,000 and I made $200,000 as an inpatient geriatric psychiatrist (with only general psych training) at that time. [Editor's Note: I'd argue that number should be adjusted downward for taxes.]. The real rub is that fellowships in no way uniformly increase salary, nor are they required to do so. He went EM –> peds EM. It is a matter of getting 75% of the HPM fellowship programs to participate. In private practice, this is usually a track to partnership (i.e. Obviously interested in surgical subspecialization but understand your articles must apply to all of medicine and your readers. research or teaching). I use 1% real for my retirement planning for a balanced portfolio.

“The biggest challenge is trying to entice physicians to want to do a fellowship,” said Dr. Knebl, chief of geriatrics at the University of North Texas Health Sciences Center, Fort Worth.

This will ensure that your time and efforts will not be wasted.

Hey anything that keeps you away from the Duning-Kruger effect on thinking you know more than you do is important. I am very proud work/life balance. Not the impression one would get from all the shock and awe about someone planning to work a few years past that age. That’s a great question! How much more, after-tax does that subspecialty have to pay in order to be worth it? “You’ll certainly need a flexible lifestyle when you first start out due to team coverage and unforeseen injuries that come up, but you can define your practice any way you wish,” Dr. Gilsenan says.

Interesting article. The other more obscure fellowships in psych don’t really pay extra. Congratulations to geriatric psychiatry program directors! Thanks for posting this timely article! According to the 2018 Medscape Physician Compensation Report, on average specialists make $106,000 more a year than primary care physicians.