Part-time surgeons may help address workforce shortage

A study published in the Journal of the American College of Surgeons has found that more part-time employment for surgeons — particularly retiring older male or young female surgeons taking time off for their families — could reduce"the surgeon shortage in the United States by 2030.

Having the option of a part-time schedule, the study authors found, could encourage surgeons near retirement to practice for a few more years.

"Health care workforce paradigms are changing rapidly," lead study author Bhagwan Satiani, MD, stated in a Weber Shandwick Worldwide press release. "The trifecta of surgeons working fewer hours, subspecializing even more and retiring earlier will make it difficult to address the shortages we currently face. This study demonstrates that efficient part-time employment models can begin reducing shortages almost immediately."

In a previous, unrelated survey of almost 12,000 physicians, only 51% said they would maintain their current schedules, according to the release. Eleven percent said they planned to retire, and 30% said they planned to cut back or work part-time. The release also reported that recent assessments by the Association of Medical Colleges also found that among physicians over the age of 50 years, 42.6% said they would remain active past retirement if part-time employment were available.

For the study, researchers estimated the surgical workforce in orthopedic surgery, general surgery and other specialties to be 99,000 in 2005. They further assumed 3,635 board certificates would be grated each year, with surgeons practicing for 30 years and around 3,300 retiring annually. The authors then constructed scenarios wherein one-quarter (scenario 1), one-half (scenario 2) or three-quarters (scenario 3) of potential retirees worked half-time schedules for another decade.

By 2030, the authors wrote, with other variables unchanged the United States would have 4,125, 8,250 and 12,375 additional surgeons under scenarios 1 (4% increase), 2 (8% increase) and 3 (12% increase), respectively - with a corresponding reduction in the shortage of surgeons.

"An opportunity exists to reduce the shortage of surgeons by offering models for [part-time] employment particularly to mid-career women and retiring surgeons," the authors wrote. "Employment models should address flexible work schedules, malpractice premium adjustments, academic promotion, maintenance of certification and licensure, and employment benefits."

Reference:

Satiani B, Williams TE, Ellison EC. The impact of employment of part-time surgeons on the expected surgeon shortage. J Am Coll Surg. 2011. doi:10.1016/j.jamcollsurg.2011.05.011

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