Survey: Hospital hiring-spree of docs to see upswing

A report this month sponsored by health IT services company MedSynergies found 70 percent of responding U.S. hospitals and health systems plan to employ more physicians in the next 12 to 36 months.

The survey also saw full employment trump the long-dominant “volunteer medical staff” as the top medical staff model, evidencing momentum in the move towards hospital-physician alignment, the Irving, Texas-based MedSynergies stated.

Additionally, the report highlighted the need for physician alignment/engagement beyond employment to achieve the quality outcomes expected from employing more doctors. Respondents reported a meager 11 percent of employed physicians are completely engaged, according to MedSynergies.

The survey also found that more than two-thirds of the hospitals and health systems had seen an increase in requests from independent physician groups for employment over the past 12 to 36 months. Once employed, the majority of respondents reported linking quality outcomes to physician bonus compensation, with three in four also providing non-monetary compensation in the form of IT and EHR.

More than three-quarters of the hospitals and health systems surveyed claim the physician has a moderate to major influence on the decision to participate in a collaborative care model, though 53 percent expect these collaborative care models will strain hospital-physician relations, the report concluded.

Physician Alignment: The Collaborative Care Disconnect featuring the HealthLeaders media survey, supported by MedSynergies, is available here.

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