HealthManagement, Volume 17 - Issue 3, 2017

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The outlook for radiologists seeking jobs is better than in previous years, but which subspecialities will be in most demand in the United States?

 

In the USA , the outlook for those looking for job opportunities in 2017 is very good for both newly trained and experienced radiologists.

 

It is projected that there will be considerable improvement in the job opportunities available for radiologists in the USA in 2017 when compared to previous years. The number of potential available jobs for radiologists is predicted to be increased by 14.1% when compared to 2016. The predictions are the result of analysis of the American College of Radiology’s 2017 Workforce Survey.

 

Since 2013, when only 1,069 individuals were able to secure jobs as radiologists in the USA , there has been a steady rise in job opportunities. The forecast for 2017 is that there will be between 1,826 and 2,370 job opportunities (Bluth et al. in press). Since approximately 1200 trainees finish each year, there will be also more opportunities for those who already have jobs and are wishing to find alternative positions. In 2016, 57% of new jobs were secured by first time hires post training and 43% of new jobs were obtained by those moving from another position. Similar to previous years, it is anticipated that jobs will be most plentiful in the southern and mid-western regions of the USA . Still, the most difficult locations to find a job will be in the New England mid-Atlantic regions. Private practices followed by academic university practices are the most common groups which will be offering jobs.

 

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Ninety per cent of jobs will be obtained by those who have had fellowship training. In descending order, the most needed jobs in 2017 will be in the following radiology subspecialties: neuroradiology, general interventional radiology, after-hours radiology, body imaging, breast imaging, musculoskeletal, paediatric, general radiology, women’s imaging, nuclear medicine, basic research, cardiothoracic, emergency/trauma, neurointerventional MRI , ultrasound, informatics, health services research and quality and safety. This is relatively similar to previous years, with the exception that there is a much greater desire to hire afterhours radiologists than previously reported. Additionally, the number of general radiologists in the workforce continues to decrease significantly since 2012.

 

The current workforce in the USA is divided into the same subspecialties of radiology for which new job candidates are being recruited. Regarding the demographics of practising radiologists, 56% are between the ages of 35-55. Nineteen percent are ages 56 to 65, 6% are over the age of 65 and 10% are under the age of 35. Most radiologists work full time 40-50 hour weeks, although 16% work part-time. Most radiologists are men. Twenty-one percent of practising radiologists are female. More women work part-time compared to men. Radiologists in the USA traditionally work only at a single job. However, although more than 90% of new hires will have completed a fellowship, most radiologists in the USA will work less than 50% in their subspecialty areas and cover other departmental needs during their remaining 50% time. (Bluth et al. 2016). Academic practices are the exception. In that form of practice, subspecialists generally spend between 50-70% of their clinical time exclusively in their areas of special interest. In summary, the outlook for those looking for job opportunities in 2017 is very good for both newly trained and experienced radiologists.

 



References:

Bluth E, Bansali S, Bender C. The 2017 ACR Commission on Human Resources workforce survey. J Am Coll Radiol. In press.

 

Bluth EI, Larson PA, Liebscher LA (2016) Radiologists hiring preferences based on practice needs. J Am Coll Radiol, 13(1): 8-11.