Starting Salary??? for oculoplastics

[wentworth]

I know that there is large variation depending on location and practice. However, can anyone give me an 'estimate' for what a first year oculoplastic surgeon will make?

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[orbitsurgMD]

I know that there is large variation depending on location and practice. However, can anyone give me an 'estimate' for what a first year oculoplastic surgeon will make?

$150K+, sometimes 30-50% above that in the right place with the right group.

 

[shredhog65]

depends on location

desirable - 150-200
not desriable - 200-300
i know some "very highly desirable" jobs offered less than 150

I know what is desirable to some may not be for others, but in this context, it means major metro area that most people want to live in (think NYC/ LA/ DC/ SF/ Chicago/ Miami/ Dallas)

The nice thing is that you can increase fairly quickly - espcially if you can build cash services into your practice

 

[scrubswannabe]

wow...that seems really low to me

does it increase much past the 150k?
do they make less than people coming fresh out of only an opthalmology residency?

 

[echinoderm]

is there potential with oculoplastics? especially with the economy the way it is, and overlap with specialties like ENT and general plastics?

 

[Visionary]

wow...that seems really low to me

does it increase much past the 150k?
do they make less than people coming fresh out of only an opthalmology residency?

Starting salary is discussed a lot on this board. What everyone needs to realize is that you don't come out of residency/fellowship and immediately start seeing 40-60 pts/day, doing a ton of cases, etc.

Even if you are coming into a practice to replace a retiring doc, some of his/her patients won't transfer to you, you will have to establish your "flow" (i.e., schedule template, rhythm with techs and other staff, etc.), and there will be delays in credentialing with some insurance carriers (not all of which will back-date claims). I don't care how well-prepared you feel, there's a definite adjustment period.

If you are joining a practice as an addition, you may get some bones thrown to you from the other doc(s), but you are essentially starting from scratch. You may only be seeing a handful of patients a day in the beginning. A lot of your salary will actually come out of the collections of the other doc(s). Very rarely will money be made off a 1st year associate.

If you are starting your own practice, you are again starting from scratch, but you also have to cover all of the expenses. Because of this, you typically make substantially less in the 1st year than someone in either of the above scenarios.

The money does build, but it takes at least 2-3 years to become established.

 

[orbitsurgMD]

wow...that seems really low to me

does it increase much past the 150k?

If you do the right things and you are working in a location that has undeveloped referral potential and a patient base that is interested in your services and who also have the means to pay you for them, yes. But there are a lot of conditions here. In some places, expanding general ophthalmology practices may want to hire a plastics-trained subspecialist, thinking they will tap into an undeveloped market. Sometimes that works OK, but sometimes it doesn't. Those hiring might think sending out three or four oculoplastic surgical referrals a month is a sign they should hire, but the truth is that it still may not be enough. No subspecialist will be able to survive on that low a volume, let alone be satisfied with the growth potential of that location if he can't attract a substantially greater volume than that. Many ambitious general ophthalmologists misread their home market and assume that the absence of a subspecialist is a sign of an unmet "need." Sometimes it plainly isn't.

do they make less than people coming fresh out of only an opthalmology residency?

Sometimes not much more. A general ophthalmologist can do many things to generate revenue; a subspecialist has usually a narrower range of services. They do many things generalists cannot or choose not to do, but that does not mean that they necessarily earn more in the process.

Historically, only retina specialists made significantly more income than general ophthalmologists; other non-retina subspecialists made about the same income as a generalist and some commonly made less, neuro and peds particularly.

 

[orbitsurgMD]

is there potential with oculoplastics? especially with the economy the way it is, and overlap with specialties like ENT and general plastics?

Most plastics specialists have both medical/functional areas of their practices and cosmetic surgical practices. In down economies, cosmetic surgery usually suffers, just as does LASIK and other elective, "medically-unnecessary" services.

ENT-plastics usually differentiates itself from non-plastics ENT, and concentrates on facial plastic surgery. They do blephs, of course, but many are doing rhinoplasties and face and necklifts and even breast and lower body surgeries. Not many oculoplastic surgeons do surgery outside the face (except for autograft harvests.) Not even that many do full facial procedures, although there are more fellowships that are extending their training into these procedures. General plastics in many areas do as much as they can in the office environment to contain costs. Most do not want to do anything around the eyes except for blepharoplasty, which is usually part of a larger series of facial procedures for a particular patient.

The other group that is involved in the same area is the Oral-Maxillofacial subspecialists who frequently have dual dental and medical degrees as a result of their residencies (evidently their residencies are also considered graduate degree programs, go figure.)

 

[Meibomian SxN]

...a subspecialist has usually a narrower range of services. They do many things generalists cannot or choose not to do, but that does not mean that they necessarily earn more in the process......

This is a key important but often forgotten point that was made. A specialist (let alone subspecialist) is someone who should essentially be 'rare'.