Doctors are still earning roughly what they earned in 2012 and 2013 – 13% below the expected income levels for their profession, due to inflation, a panel discussion hosted by the SA Medical Association (SAMA) analysing doctors’ salaries over the past decade found.
Covid-19 pandemic, the decline of the rand against the US dollar, and supply chain constraints, had contributed to the stagnation, reports News24.
Doctors are now essentially earning what they did in 2012 and 2013 in real terms, while interns, medical officers and registrars are in the same boat, earning thousands less than they should.
“Interns are earning R40 000 below what they should earn per year today,” said health economist and managing partner at Curis Health Solutions Dr Sandile Mhlongo.
Medical officers are suffering a similar fate, earning R60 000 less than they should earn annually, he added. The findings also revealed that registrars are making R75 000 less than they should be making per annum.
Reliance on overtime pay
One of the key findings was the remarkable reliance on overtime pay to boost medical professionals’ salaries.
Dr Sizeka Maweya, a SAMA board member, highlighted that overtime payments constituted a significant portion of doctors’ total earnings, making it a necessary part of their compensation.
“Overtime is actually your main salary … If you want to threaten the livelihood of a doctor, take away the overtime.”
SAMA board member Dr Zanele Bikitsha said overtime pay constituted about 45% to 50% of a doctor’s salary, but pushed them into a higher tax bracket, so they don’t benefit from this in the long run.
“Overtime … over-inflates our salaries. When you look at how much you actually end up earning… you are looking at it actually being 45% to 50% of your basic salary. It is also a lot of money to live without once it’s taken away.”
Leaving public for private
The research highlighted an alarming trend of healthcare professionals leaving clinical medicine for the private sector and international markets, due to feeling undervalued within the local healthcare system.
The implications of these low salaries had also led to several concerning issues in the medical field, including dual employment, absenteeism, predatory behaviour, and even medical negligence due to overworking.
Bikitsha said overworked doctors could compromise patient care.
“We’ve had bad practices where people now desert government patients and (instead) go to see private patients during the time they should be attending to the patients at government institutions.”
“What we see is a difference in that the private sector tends to reward more in a financial sense (and) conditions of service are much better than in the public sector,” Mhlongo told News24.
See more from MedicalBrief archives:
SA’s doctor shortage has worsened substantially in past 3 years
Gauteng Health pays junior doctors’ salary arrears
Mkhize releases details of salary payments to Cuban doctors
Call for an end to Remunerative Work Outside Public Service by specialists