Research Assessment #7

Date: ​November 11, 2019

Subject: ​Pediatrics
MLA Citation:
Layne, Elizabeth. “What Is the Projected Future of a Pediatrician?” ​Chron.com,​ 9 Nov.
2016, https://work.chron.com/projected-future-pediatrician-24603.html.

Analysis:
This article talks about the projected future of the field of pediatric medicine, and it has
proved to be helpful in multiple ways. I am a planner and considering how I always have high
expectations for myself, it is good to know how my future will look like before I create
unreachable goals.
Although I have researched multiple times about the job outlook for aspiring
pediatricians, things are changing and I want to keep up with new information. Thus, for this
research assessment, I wanted to learn more about the projected future for pediatricians and set
my goals accordingly. As I have mentioned in my previous research assessments, I really want to
work in underprivileged areas at the beginning of my career and considering how the demand for
pediatricians is very high in those areas, I wouldn’t have to worry about extreme cases of
unemployment. Because more people are getting interested in this field, working in a
metropolitan area can result in two things: either the salaries will decrease or unemployment
rates will increase in this specific field.
Apart from the geographical area, another factor that plays a role in the demand for
pediatricians is the population increase. An increase in population yields an increase for the
demand of pediatricians. Even though this might be an obvious fact, more population can mean
more people are interested in becoming pediatricians, which will increase the competition for
employment. Thus, I was happy to find that there is a 24% increase in employment this decade
(2010-2020) due to the huge increase in population.
Something that truly intrigued, however, is the broad scope of specialties pediatricians
have. I always assumed pediatricians mostly worked in medical settings, but the article
mentioned how they can also act as educators and researchers. Although research doesn’t interest
me much, educating is something I have always had an interest in; thus, for my future articles, I
will find more information about the other roles pediatricians can play.
This takes me to talk about how this article talks about a low number of pediatric
subspecialists even though there are many specialties pediatricians can perform in. In terms of
the article, it seems as though many people want to be general pediatricians- like me- instead of
focusing on a more specific field, like neurology. Thus, although there is a high demand for
pediatricians, more are needed for subspecialties than general pediatrics. I personally do not want
to subspecialize because I want to place more time and attention on my social life just as much as
my career, and since more years of training and an increase in debt will result from
subspecialization, this idea didn’t ever truly intrigue me.
One of the things that really bothered me, however, is the huge difference between the
salaries of men and women in the pediatric field. According to the article, women do more part
time jobs, which I believe is mainly due to them taking care of children. However, a 20 percent
difference between the salaries is still very unreasonable. Hopefully, with the new age coming up
with more women rights, women will gain more equality and have higher salaries than they did
in the past.
This takes me to talk about how this article will help me to research about future articles.
This article raised many questions and concerns in my head that I want to further increase my
knowledge in; therefore, with the information I have mentioned above, I want to research about
the following topics: difference between women and men in the pediatric field (and how
justifiable it is), the contrast between working in underprivileged areas and metropolitan areas,
and other roles of a pediatrician (like educating and researching). Since I always have trouble
finding articles, I now have 3 topics for my next 3 research assessments. Thus, I am very grateful
to have come across this article.
Overall, this article has given me an improved perspective on the field of pediatric
medicine with the amount of new knowledge I gained about not only the job outlook, but also the
variances between gender and geographical areas. I am very eager to learn more information
about this field for the upcoming research assessments.
 What Is the Projected Future of a Pediatrician?
by Elizabeth Layne

Pediatricians are physicians who address a variety of needs -- physical, emotional and social -- of

children from birth until early adulthood. The field offers a many options for pediatricians to shape

their careers, from taking care of a child's general needs to specializing in a certain area. Becoming

a pediatrician takes a lot of training, time and money, making the job outlook of utmost

consideration. The career outlook is favorable, depending on several factors.

Job Outlook

The iSeek website, Minnesota's career portal, reports that while demand for pediatricians varies

somewhat with national birthrates, it doesn't typically lessen demand dramatically. That's because

some decades have more people being born than other decades who will require pediatric care for

10 to 15 years. If the birthrate drops, pediatricians will still have children older than 10 to take care

of. The iSeek website predicts that demand for pediatricians won't decrease because the U.S.

population is growing, with people continuing to have babies. The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics

also notes that the growing population will increase the need for medical care. For physicians and

surgeons overall, which includes pediatricians, the bureau predicts that employment will grow 24

percent between 2010 and 2020, faster than the average for all occupations. Some states provide

population growth information and prospects for pediatricians on their website. Illinois, for example,
expects faster-than-average employment growth through the year 2018 for pediatricians, with about

40 pediatrician openings expected annually in the state.

Potential Increase

Pediatricians willing to work in rural or low-income areas, which usually lack adequate numbers of

doctors, have the best employment opportunities, according to the BLS. The American Academy of

Pediatricians points to factors potentially increasing the need for pediatricians. Among them are:

health-care reform laws projected to increase insurance coverage and improve access for children to

medical care; an increasing number of children seeing pediatricians who were previously cared for

by family doctors; advances in genetics and other technologies; and increasing prevalence of

chronic diseases in children.

Career Options

The American Academy of Pediatricians notes that pediatricians can practice in one or more

settings. Generalist pediatricians work in hospitals and as educators and researchers. Pediatric

medical subspecialists practice mostly in academic medical centers and specialty hospitals, such as

children's hospitals. With their knowledge of factors affecting children's physical, emotional and

social health, pediatricians also take on roles in public health, international health, health policy and

administrative leadership. A 2010 survey of children's hospitals conducted by the National

Association of Children's Hospitals and Related Institutions found shortages in pediatric

subspecialties, including areas such as neurology, developmental-behavioral medicine, general

surgery and pulmonology. Many pediatricians lack interest in subspecializing due to the need for

years of additional training and the typically longer work hours for subspecialists, according to the

American Association of Medical College's Center for Workforce Studies. But ongoing public policy

pushes, to provide subspecialty loan repayment for example, may draw more pediatricians to

subspecialties.

Education and Salary

Becoming a pediatrician takes at least 11 years of education after high school. After college

graduation, aspiring pediatricians must complete four years of medical school, then three years of

training in pediatrics. Becoming subspecialized requires at least two more years of residency

training. Pediatricians must also become become licensed in the state they'll work. In May 2012,

generalist pediatricians earned mean annual salaries of $167,640, according to the BLS. But,

according to Medscape, in 2012 male pediatricians earned average salaries of $190,000 while

female pediatricians earned $156,000 -- a nearly 20 percent difference. However, more female

pediatricians work part-time, which contributes to a lower income. The overall level of pediatricians

working part-time has increased over the past decade, according to the American Academy of

Pediatricians.

2016 Salary Information for Physicians and Surgeons

Physicians and surgeons earned a median annual salary of $204,950 in 2016, according to the U.S.

Bureau of Labor Statistics. On the low end, physicians and surgeons earned a 25th percentile salary

of $131,980, meaning 75 percent earned more than this amount. The 75th percentile salary is

$261,170, meaning 25 percent earn more. In 2016, 713,800 people were employed in the U.S. as

physicians and surgeons.