Dive Brief:
- More than 40% of doctors think they should capture most of the cost savings if artificial intelligence helps them work faster, according to a new survey from health tech company Doximity.
- The majority of physicians surveyed are using AI on a daily or weekly basis for clinical or administrative work. A fifth of respondents say they are facing higher expectations for productivity because of it, and 42% are concerned that they will in the future.
- Most respondents expect to gain an earnings advantage if they stay current with AI tools compared to colleagues who don’t adopt them. It’s becoming increasingly important for hiring and career growth, the report says.
Dive Insight:
In recent years, AI has been lauded as a potential solution to many of healthcare’s operational challenges, from workforce shortages to burnout and administrative burden. As widespread adoption takes hold, physicians are being forced to grapple with how AI is impacting their roles — and their pay.
The Doximity report drew insights from more than 250,000 compensation survey responses collected over the last seven years, including responses from nearly 23,000 U.S. physicians surveyed last year alone, to see how U.S. doctors are paid and the impacts of AI and workforce shortages on their jobs.
AI adoption is strong among physicians, with higher use among non-surgical specialists. Younger physicians are also more likely to use AI than their older counterparts and more likely to say that the technology is reducing their workload, according to the survey.
Physicians are split on what AI’s effect on their compensation should be. More than a third of respondents said their compensation for a service should change if AI substantially reduces the time or effort they put into that service. However, 43% said compensation should remain unchanged.
Still, nearly half of respondents said that physicians should be the primary beneficiaries if AI enables them to complete more clinical work in the same amount of time. Just 17% said savings attributable to AI should translate to lower costs for patients, while 20% said the cost benefits should be shared.
The vast majority of physicians don’t see AI as a threat to their job security, the results show. However, some do expect AI’s rising prominence to increase their compensation and career growth. Nearly a fourth of doctors surveyed said they expect AI to boost their compensation within the next year and 39% say that AI proficiency is a factor in hiring decisions within their specialty.
Despite the excitement around AI and its potential cost and time savings, some of the technology’s benefits and drawbacks are yet to be fully understood. The industry has not reached a consensus on how to best measure AI’s return on investment, experts say, which is important for justifying the expenses associated with AI adoption and for determining how its benefits should be distributed.
Generally, average physician pay increased by 2% last year, compared to 3.7% in 2024, signifying a sustained period of moderate growth, according to the report.
Physician compensation rose in 41 of the 60 metropolitan areas included in the report, with more than half experiencing growth of at least 3%. Surgical specialties, including neurosurgery and thoracic surgery were the specialties with the highest average annual compensation, while pediatric and primary care specialties saw the lowest pay.
