Migration of Physicians From One Specialty to Another

Abstract

To demonstrate the extent to which physicians change their specialty, randomized samples of the graduating classes of 1960, 1964, and 1968 were studied with respect to their self-designated specialties in 1971 and 1976. Of the 2,046 physicians in the three samples, 333 (16%) changed their specialty between 1971 and 1976. It was 8% for the 1960 cohort, 11% for 1964, and 29% for 1968. Of all the changes, 78% were from one specialty practice to another or back to a formal residency in a different specialty; 22% changed from one specialty residency to either practice or another residency in a different specialty. Between 1971 and 1976, a total of 127 (16%) of 783 primary care physicians changed their specialty. The magnitude of this change must be considered in planning for distribution of physicians by specialty.

STarDom study - Applying systems theory framework for Internal Medicine senior residency career development in a Singapore ACGMEI Residency Programme

“…Contrary to other studies where burn-out appears to be a prime motivational factor for the choice of certain subspecialties (Chibnall, Enoch, & Schindler, 2013), our study shows that the presence of burnout did not affect the readiness for the residents to commit to a choice of senior residency. In contrast to earlier studies from the West (Chibnall, Enoch, & Schindler, 2013;Dorsey, Jarjourna, & Rutecki, 2003;Holden, & Levit, 1978;Jackson, Nuthalapaty & Owen, 2004;Redman, Saltman, & Straton, 1994), there is a trend towards older residents being more ready to commit to their SR choice, suggesting that age may be a salient factor in our system where trainees are younger compared to their America's counterparts.…”

“…Previous literature reported that 20% of physicians in residency training switched to unrelated specialties and 16% of physicians already in practice changed their specialty identification (Chase, Levine & Weisman, 1980;Holden & Levit, 1978). In recent years, controllable lifestyle factors like personal time for leisure, family and avocational pursuits, control of total weekly hours spent on professional responsibilities, and the presence of burnout have been cited as some of the main reasons for the ultimate choice of subspecialty (Chibnall, Enoch, & Schindler, 2013;Dorsey, Jarjoura, & Rutecki, 2003;Jackson, Nuthalapathy, & Owen, 2004).…”

What should medical students do to choose their medical specialty?

“…This usually leads to inappropriate career selection and even a career change a few years into training. Studies have shown that 20 percent of residents [ 4 ] and 16 percent of physicians change their specialties to completely unrelated fields [ 5 ]. Concerning practice, medical specialties can be classified into two categories: 1) person-oriented specialties, such as family medicine, internal medicine and pediatrics; and 2) technique-oriented specialties, such as surgery, pathology and anesthesiology [ 6 ].…”

A Comprehensive Medical Student Career Development Program Improves Medical Student Satisfaction With Career Planning

“…Recent data on whether U.S. medical students make sound career decisions is limited, but studies dating back to 1978 have found that 10% to 25 % of physicians change residencies or make major career specialty changes. [9][10][11][12] This suggests that at least some medical students are not making the best initial career choices.A national career resource organization reported that in the general workforce, effective career counseling can result in higher levels of worker satisfaction, a lower incidence of work-related stress and depression, higher incomes, lower unemployment rates, lower 55 …”