Compensation bonuses for hospitalists: a look at the data

WHEN IT COMES to compensation bonuses, the Today’s Hospitalist survey found that the average bonus amount for all hospitalists was just under $40,000.

There’s significant variation in that number when the details of hospitalists’ employers, locations and duties are factored in. Bonuses for nonacademic adult hospitalists, for example, came in a little higher, at $40,670. And bonuses for academic hospitalists came in lower, at $35,651.

Program directors reported a significantly bigger bonus amount: $45,518. And pediatric hospitalists reported the lowest bonus amount: $25,313.

Here are the hospitalists who reported getting the biggest bonuses:

Hospitalists who work in the ICU as an attending: $49,975.

Hospitalists working in multi-specialty/primary care groups: $50,103.

Hospitalists in the Midwest: $51,479.

For more on BONUS AMOUNTS for hospitalists, see How are hospitalist bonuses calculated?

When you sort our survey data by employer type, other big differences emerge. Hospitalists working for local hospitalist groups, for example, reported mean bonuses of $47,041. Hospitalists working for universities/medical schools, by comparison, reported mean bonuses of $26,235.

There appears to be a correlation between bonus amounts and career satisfaction. Among hospitalists who said they’re very satisfied with their career, for example, average bonus amounts came in at $48,456. Among hospitalists who said they’re dissatisfied with their careers, bonus amounts averaged $32,389.

Hospitalists’ years of experience also seems to affect bonus amounts. Hospitalists with two years or less of experience, for example, reported average bonus amounts of $28,833. That amount increased with years of experience. Hospitalists with 10-14 years of experience reported an average bonus of $47,756.

Hospitalists with the most experience, at least as measured in our survey, reported slightly lower bonus amounts. Average bonus amounts for hospitalists with 20+ years of experience came to $43,553.

For more on hospitalist compensation, check out our 2023 Compensation & Career guide here.