Integrated Healthcare Strategies Survey Shows Latest Trends in Medical Director Compensation

(PRWEB) December 13, 2011

Integrated Healthcare Strategies, a national compensation and human resource consulting firm dedicated exclusively to healthcare, today made public highlights and trends revealed from its 2011 Medical Director Survey. The survey, which has grown year-over-year since its launch, provides the most comprehensive source of medical compensation data in the country.

The Medical Director Survey is conducted by the Physician Services practice of Integrated Healthcare Strategies – a group recognized for its industry-leading expertise and effective solutions in physician compensation and physician/hospital alignment strategies. The survey provides supportive data that assists organizations in making compensation decisions for medical directors within fair market value, and uncovers trends in the marketplace. Compensation, employment status, performance bonuses, and specialty-specific hourly rates are all analyzed in detail.

In the area of contracts and documentation for physicians in administrative positions, data reported showed:

   •      82.3% of organizations reported that all of their medical directors have contracts
   •      72.9% of contracts are for a term of only 1 year, a percentage that has increased for the fourth consecutive year
   •      78.0% of contracts require a physician to log their time, the highest percentage since the first Medical Director Survey published in 2003 In addition, the use of time logs were proven to be widely considered a best practice due to their ability to justify payment for administrative services.

Highlights on compensation showed the following findings:

   •      Independently contracted medical directors are paid 3.9% higher on average than employed medical directors, most likely accounting for foregone taxes, benefits, and insurance payments
   •      26.9% of organizations offer their medical directors performance bonuses, an increase from 22.6% in 2010
   •      On average, median hourly rates increased by 3.0% from 2010 to 2011

“Medical directors have become an invaluable asset in healthcare organizations today,” said Chad Stutelberg, Executive Vice President and Physician Services Practice Leader. “Their management duties have steadily increased, requiring this position to work longer hours. Healthcare organizations will need to compensate physicians in this role competitively, but it’s a careful balance to make sure pay for their services remains compliant with regulatory guidelines.”

The 2012 Medical Director Survey is expected to open for participation in March; results are free to participating healthcare organizations. For more information about the survey, email medicaldirectorsurvey(at)ihstrategies(dot)com.
Integrated Healthcare Strategies conducts surveys on all the ‘People of Healthcare’ – executives, employees, physicians, advanced practice clinicians, medical directors and nurses. To see details on all the firm’s compensation and engagement surveys, please visit http://www.ihstrategies.com.

About Integrated Healthcare Strategies
Integrated Healthcare Strategies provides healthcare organizations with direct access to a comprehensive array of healthcare-specific services, delivered by professionals from the industry who understand the rigors of running a healthcare organization – from the lunchroom to the Board Room. Its client list is a “who’s who” of healthcare organizations including over 1,200 major healthcare providers, 1,800 hospitals and 700 independent and affiliated medical groups. Integrated Healthcare Strategies specializes in the areas of physician strategy and compensation, employee compensation, executive compensation, human resource solutions, labor relations, leadership transition planning, executive search, compensation and employee engagement surveys, performance management, board governance solutions, and M&A transition issues. Visit http://www.ihstrategies.com.

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