The highest paying medical specialties and subspecialties

2023-09-23 02:00:35

In addition to the gratitude of patients, it is also important for doctors to receive a decent salary for providing their service.
Among the best-paid medical specialties are Orthopedic Surgery, Plastic Surgery, Cardiology and Urology.
In the case of Mexico, it is estimated that eight out of every 10 doctors had their income affected by economic inflation during 2022.

The health field is fundamental for any nation although it cannot be overlooked that it is a professional activity. Therefore, beyond the vocation of service there must also be decent economic remuneration. With this in mind, there are some medical specialties and subspecialties that stand out from the rest because they are the best paid in the world.

To begin with, the path to being a medical professional is too long and full of adversity. Basic training requires seven years and includes 12 months of internship and another 12 months of social service. There is no other that requires so much study time.

In addition to the above, it is also possible to prolong preparation through a medical specialty. In the case of Mexico, it is mandatory to present and approve the National Examination of Aspirants to Medical Residencies (ENARM). It is not easy because currently only four out of every 10 applicants get a place.

Given all of the above, the least a doctor expects when entering the professional field is to receive fair pay. The downside is that there are times when it doesn’t happen. In some nations, medicine is devalued and not only do inhumane conditions prevail, but salaries are too low.

Now, it cannot be generalized because there are some latitudes in which the work of health professionals is recognized. In fact there are some medical specialties and subspecialties classified as the best paid in the world.

What are the best paying medical specialties?

To find out the areas that receive the most attractive salaries, the portal Physicians Thrive published the ranking 2023 Physician Compensation Report. The results are based on data collected from one million doctors in the United States.

What stands out is that in first position is Orthopedic surgery with an average pay of $546,000 annually. At the current exchange rate it is equivalent to 9.6 million pesos, that is, a monthly salary of 800,000 pesos.

While in second place there is a tie between Plastic Surgery and Cardiology with $527,000. When doing the conversion it is equivalent to 9.2 million pesos per year, that is, 766,000 pesos per month.

For its part, slightly lower among the best-paid medical specialties is Urology with 497,000 dollars. For Mexico it is equivalent to 8.7 million pesos annually or 725,000 pesos monthly.

Difference with the current panorama in Mexico

Now, the figures obtained are quite different from what happens in Mexico. Just a few weeks ago the portal Medscape published the results of Medical salary report: Mexico 2023. It consisted of a survey administered to 1,147 doctors, of which 909 reported working full time.

The report indicates that during 2022 the Mexican doctors had an average annual income equivalent to $370,000 pesos exclusively for patient care and excluding other eventual fees, such as consultancies, conferences and teaching.

Similarly, statistically significant differences in patient care income were observed for all groups presented. The largest income gap was observed for specialist doctors who had an average of 45% more income. For their part, men earned on average 20% more than their female colleagues, a similar percentage for those under and over 45 years of age.

Also read:

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This is the correct way to calculate your own medical salary

Mexican doctors in the world: This is the salary of a foreign doctor in Germany