Categories
Tips & Tricks

Radiologist Salary

In the US, radiologists may expect to make $295,337 annually. The annual salary range in Canada is C$198,893 ($155,377). In the United Kingdom, radiologist salaries are £62,267 ($83,994) and in Australia, they are AU$153,236 ($115,080).

The annual salary for radiologists in Switzerland is CHF359,517 ($359,227). Those who reside in Norway are paid NOK2,674,300 ($329,798) annually. Discover below how a radiologist’s compensation is impacted by variables like the industry, geography, experience, and more.

RADIOLOGIST SALARY INFLUENCERS

Salary levels can be influenced by the nature of the healthcare system in various nations, the workplace, and the demand for radiologists. Where there is universal healthcare, government agencies and regulators have control over salaries. Payscale, SalaryExpert, and the BLS served as the sources for the data presented here.

How much does a radiologist earn in Australia?

1. INDUSTRY Salary

The compensation paid by radiologists in private practise or by salaried workers of hospitals, clinics, or other organisations that employ them may vary. The annual wage in the US is determined by the employer company:

  • Valley Radiologists Employees – $66,888
  • Delaney Radiologists Employees – $59,113
  • Clinical Radiologists – $52,000
  • Desert Radiologists – $57,033

In nations with universal health care, such as the United Kingdom, Switzerland, and Norway, the government sets both salary and compensation standards. Providers are typically paid by insurance companies in the US, with the exception of populations that are eligible for Medicare or Medicaid.

2. GEOGRAPHICAL AREA

Radiologist Salary US Canada UK Australia Switzerland Norway
Hourly Wage $95.44 C$75.93 ($59.32) £29.93* ($40.37) AU$94.32 ($70.83) CHF173 ($172.86) NOK1,286 ($158.59)
Annual Wage $295,337 C$198,893 ($155,377) £62,267 ($83,994) AU$153,236 ($115,080) CHF359,517 ($359,227) NOK2,674,300 ($329,798)

*The hourly median rate is estimated based on the yearly median salary.

SALARY OF A RADIOLOGIST IN AUSTRALIA

The typical annual salary for radiologists in Australia is AU$153,236. They are paid AU$94.32 per hour. While the annual salary for radiologists ranges from AU$68,343 to AU$499,199.

How much does a radiologist earn in Australia?

Why are radiologists highly paid?

Five main reasons.

(1) You require four years of college, four years of medical school, four years of residency, and typically a year of fellowship in a subspecialty if you want to be more “marketable” before you can become a radiologist. Even if you make less money during your first few years of practise because of the $100,000 to $200,000 in student loan debt you may be carrying, the lenders require you to start making payments, which you must be able to do.

(2) Your annual malpractice insurance costs are likely in the five figures, and you must have enough money coming in to pay them. Even if you are paid a salary, organisations like university medical facilities will frequently pay for your malpractice on your behalf; however, they do this by deducting the cost from the income you create and paying you a noticeably smaller monthly check. In other words, you are paying for it somehow.

(3) Every piece of imaging technology is highly expensive. There are several ways to divide the costs of purchase, ownership, and maintenance (which is expensive) between the hospital (or clinic, or office) and the radiologists, but if the rads are paying for those expenses, the money must also come from their salary.

By the way, the cost of the equipment, electricity needed to run it, salaries and benefits for the technologists who operate it, support staff (like receptionists), and facility costs are all included in the “technical component” of radiology bills. The “professional component” is the amount paid to the radiologists for interpretation. If the hospital or clinic owns and maintains the equipment, only the “professional fee” portion of the bill goes to the radiologist.

(4) Radiology has always been a “procedural” speciality; in the past, we received payments of X dollars for each chest x-ray, Y dollars for each ankle x-ray, and so on, providing a respectable but not extravagant income. When CT, ultrasound, and subsequently MRI emerged, we were suddenly able to deliver unheard-of amounts of information with each study. As a result, several time-consuming and harmful x-ray treatments are no longer carried out, and some surgeries are either avoided altogether or conducted much less frequently.

Because we could now deliver answers that were considerably more accurate—and provide them faster, safer, and yes, cheaper—a large portion of expenditure migrated to radiology. Few people mention that “unnecessary” surgery has become much less common as a result, and that one operation avoided can pay for quite a few CT scans. Shorter hospital stays, made possible by quicker diagnosis and treatment, also save a lot of money, but the link between those savings & “costly” CT scans is frequently overlooked. The Emergency Department often uses CT for quick diagnosis and treatment, and oncology regularly uses CT to determine whether to continue with the current treatment or try something else.

There is therefore an additional effect. Even if there are many more procedures being performed and the most therapeutically useful ones (like CT) are among the most expensive, we are still compensated for each procedure. We have also sped up “turn-around time”—the amount of time it takes to finish one research and begin the next—which helps patients because it allows us to better meet demand while also generating significantly more income.

Alternative payment models are a huge issue that I won’t cover in this post, but I will say that while the current payment model promotes over-testing, the majority of the “alternatives” promote under-testing. It makes me think of the old Jack Benny joke:

The thief said, “Your money or your life. I meant your money or your life.”

Jack Benny: “I’m deliberating it!”

(5) Last but not least, you are paying for their knowledge and experience. I have an old anecdote to demonstrate this:

The engine makes a strange noise whenever I accelerate, the driver of the car complains to the mechanic as he pulls into the garage. Try it right away, the mechanic offers as he pops open the hood, reaches inside, and turns a knob. When the man hits the gas pedal and starts the engine, nothing happens.

That will cost $55, the mechanic says.

“A fifty-five dollar bill? Simply for turning one knob?”

“No. The cost of turning the knob is $5. For knowing which knob to turn, receive $50.”

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *