Telemedicine, or the remote diagnosis and treatment of patients, has been trending in the news for the past few years, touting benefits such as lowered healthcare costs, increased access to care and more productive doctor visits.
There are a few models used to deliver care via telemedicine, including two-way video conference calls, email, secure text messaging and even the use of FDA-cleared hospital robots!
Although studies have shown patients are adopting telemedicine as a preferred way to be seen by their doctor, we wanted to know if physicians have the same appetite to practice telemedicine.
By analyzing the robust data on the Doximity network, we conducted the first study to analyze physician interest in telemedicine job opportunities. We examined interest by age, employment status, gender, geographic location and specialty.
Our study found that the number of physicians who self-reported telemedicine as a skill between 2015 and 2018 has doubled and continues to increase annually by 20 percent. Other key findings include:
Female Physicians Are More Interested in Telemedicine Job Opportunities
When analyzing physician interest in job opportunities by gender, the data shows that women were 10 percent more interested in telemedicine jobs, relative to men.
Millennial and Boomer Physicians Agree: All Age Groups are Interested in Telemedicine
When examining physician interest by age, the study found nearly equal engagement in telemedicine job postings across different age groups.
● 30-40 years old: 28.4 percent
● 40- 50 years old: 26. 5 percent
● 50-60 years old: 23.5 percent
● 60-70 years old: 17.6 percent
Physicians Who Live in Large Metro Areas are Most Interested in Telemedicine Opportunities
When examining physician interest by location, Doximity ranked the top U.S. metros that had the highest number of physicians expressing interest in telemedicine. The findings show that most of the physicians currently reside in highly-populated metro areas. The top five U.S. metros with the most physicians engaging with telemedicine job posts include:
- San Diego-Carlsbad, Calif.
- Miami-Fort Lauderdale-West Palm Beach, Fla.
- Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Roswell, Ga.
- New York-Newark-Jersey City, N.Y.-N.J.
- Salt Lake City, Utah
To see all the findings from the 2019 Telemedicine and Locum Tenens Opportunities Study, please click HERE.