In Need of More Physicians The Federation of State Medical Boards (FSMB) reported that there was a 4-percent increase in the number of physicians with an active license to practice medicine, from 878,194 during 2012 to 916,264 for 2014. With significant changes to the health care industry and the US population, even more physicians are needed, however, as the 2014 FSMB census found that the number of physicians 30 years of age and younger declined by 42.7% from 2012 to 2014. Studies vary on the future physician shortfall, but a conservative estimate is 50,000 by 2020. Another study predicted very pessimistically that the number would be 159,300 by 2025. Another puts it in the range of 46,100 to 90,400

Conforming to Health Care Reform According to a Kaiser-Commonwealth Fund Survey, 59% of physicians reported treating more patients since January 2014 who are newly insured or currently receiving Medicaid coverage, but the physicians were still able to deliver a high quality of care. The Physicians Foundation’s 2014 Biennial Physician Survey found that 76.0% of the more than 20,000 physicians responding to the survey said they see all Medicare patients, and 61.9% all Medicaid patients. The survey also revealed that 45.8% of all physicians gave the Affordable Care Act (ACA) a D or F grade; however, among physicians 45 years of age and younger, 37% graded the ACA a D or F, compared to 50.8% for those 46 and older.

The Physician in Practice According to The Physicians Foundation 2014 Survey, 17.2% of surveyed physicians had a solo practice, compared to 20.0% of all physicians during 2012. Physicians in a large practice (51 or more physicians) increased 57.8%. Survey physicians said they worked an average of 52.83 hours per week, which was very similar to 2012’s 52.93. The highest percentage, 24.0%, worked 51 to 60 hours per week, followed by 23.7% working 41 to 50 hours per week. There was a large increase in the number of physicians who said they were overextended and overworked, from 22.7% during 2012 to 31.3% for 2014, which resulted in just 18.9% saying they had time to see more patients.

The Physician in Profession The Physicians Foundation 2014 Survey found that 44% of physicians are very positive or somewhat positive about the current state of the medical profession, compared to 31.8% in the 2012 survey. Despite the many predicted changes to health care, there was a much greater increase in the percentage of physicians who were either very positive or somewhat positive about the future of the profession, 48.9%, 2014, and 22.6%, 2012. According to the Medscape Physician Compensation Report 2015, 34% of primary care physicians and 30% of internists spend 13 to 16 minutes with each patient, the highest percentage for each group.

Salary Specifics The Medscape Physician Compensation Report 2015 also revealed that primary care physicians earn an average of $195,000 annually and specialty physicians, $284,000; however, only 47% of primary care physicians felt they were fairly compensated. Self-employed primary care and specialty physicians received more compensation than those employed: Self-employed primary, $212,000, and employed primary, $189,000; self-employed specialty physicians, $329,000, and employed specialty, $258,000. Somewhat surprisingly, physicians in the Northwest region of the US were the highest paid, on average, at $281,000; followed by South Central, $271,000; North Central, $270,000; Southeast, $269,000; and Great Lakes, $268,000.

Behind the Digital Curve The MedData Group reported in its Physician Adoption and Predictions of Mobile for 2015 survey that 42% of physicians adopt mobile health to improve the quality and continuity of care, and 41% for time efficiency. In another MedData Group survey, 60% of physicians were on social media for personal use, 28.5% didn’t use social media and just 21% used it to stay current with health care news, the highest percentage for any professional use. According to a late-2014 survey of US patients, 60.8% said that the digital services physicians offer influence their selection of a physician, but less than 34% said their physician offered such services.

Advertising Strategies With even fewer physicians in solo practice, your best opportunity to sell physicians on the reach, frequency and efficiency of television is to focus on the largest practices that include physicians of various specialties and serving a larger geographic area. Recommend to physicians that are ahead of the “digital curve” to use TV to promote their adoption of online patient interaction, mobile technology and social media, especially to attract Millennials to become long-term patients. Although a small percentage, more physicians are offering concierge services for affluent patients and carefully placed spots in financial news and affluent sports, such as golf, tennis, horse racing, etc., have the potential to attract more of this type of patient.

Social Media Strategies The physician/patient relationship is very personal, so physicians should use the many social media tools – blogs, podcasts, videos, etc. – to help create and strengthen these relationships, revealing both their professional and personal selves.   Referrals are one of the best tools for physicians to gain more patients. Physicians should encourage their long-time patients to upload video testimonials and to tell their medical stories and how the physician has led them back to health. As accepted leaders in their community, physicians should use social media to promote local health care issues and events, provide users with insights and information and invite them to participate and support these issues and events.