4. Thoracic surgery
Hours above family practice: 488
Doctors who specialized in the field of thoracic surgery work 488 hours more compared to family physicians. According to Doximity, their salary is $506,607 per year, which is second highest income among specialties included in the site’s survey – only neurosurgeons with the income of $612,000 earn more. Last year the Society of Thoracic Surgeons conducted a survey among lung and heart surgeons which showed that the great majority is satisfied with their career (73% reported being satisfied, very satisfied or extremely satisfied) while half of them would recommend the field to their children. An older survey conducted in 2011 showed that cardiothoracic surgeons face high workload (for instance they reported the highest number of hours in the OR). Despite the high workload, they reported a lower incidence of burnout.
