According to the Deloitte Center for Health Solutions, 62% of physicians polled believe that more of their colleagues will be retiring from medicine earlier than they had originally planned in the upcoming 1 to 3 years. This information is based off a survey originally sent out to more than 20,000 physicians; 613 responded to the questionnaire. This sentiment seems to be a common belief among those polled regardless of physician age, specialty, or gender. Another 55% stated they plan on cutting back their work hours because of the ways in which medicine is changing, though the survey was not specific about identifying their assumed reasons for the change.

Additional Survey Details

Physicians were asked a variety of questions pertaining to practicing medicine and the overall state of healthcare in this country. Some key statistics include:

• Only 31% of respondents would rate the quality of the American healthcare system as an “A” or a “B”
• More than half of all polled physicians believe that admitting privileges being placed at risk, due to compliance with meaningful use hospital standards, will put strain on hospital-doctor relationship
• 25% will put additional restrictions on accepting Medicare patients if there are additional payment changes put into place
• 10% believe Congress will pass medical liability reform in the next 1 to 3 years
• More than a quarter of respondents feel that the sustainable growth rate formula for Medicare will be repealed soon

Lowered Pay: Why?

The polled physicians were also asked about their level of income and any changes that have been occurring from year to year. Four in 10 doctors reported that from 2011-2012, their take-home pay decreased, though the change was 10% or less for more than half of them.

Why is pay decreasing? Four in 10 fault Obama and the Affordable Care Act, though fewer believe the ACA is a step in the wrong direction as when compared with a similar study done the previous year. 48% of doctors believe that their pay will continue to decrease in the coming years as a direct result of the new health reform laws going into effect.

Impact on Patients

As more and more doctors throughout the country retire earlier than expected for one reason or another, patients are going to be placed in the stressful position of having to find a new physician. It is important that patients remember to have a complete medical record transfer completed prior to the physician retiring. Some companies now specialize in helping both patients and retiring doctors through the records transfer process. If you are a patient coping with a retiring doctor, or you are a doctor preparing for retirement, it is to your benefit to seek out a company who specializes in facilitating this process.