Healthcare systems in New York face several challenges in boosting physician loyalty. Physicians' desire for competitive compensation and affiliation with dominant systems influences their decisions. Additionally, physicians' preference for larger, urban settings over smaller, rural areas complicates efforts to distribute medical talent evenly across regions. Addressing these challenges requires tailored strategies to effectively attract and retain physicians.
In this blog post, we’ll look at key physician loyalty trends. We’ll also examine how Sg2’s MarketEdge platform can help identify ways to improve physician loyalty in your organization.
New York healthcare market trends: Research on rural vs. urban physicians
There are fewer physicians per capita in rural counties compared to urban counties.
Rural physicians are slightly older and less diverse than their urban counterparts.
Rural physicians are less likely to have completed graduate medical education in New York.
Rural physicians are more likely to work at a primary care practice, work longer hours and report a full or nearly full practice than urban physicians.
More recent workforce reports solidify these findings. The Bureau of Health Workforce's “State of the Primary Care Workforce, 2023” report highlights significant workforce challenges, including the distribution of primary care physicians. The report states, "In general, rural areas have lower primary care physician ratios than urban areas. In 2021, 7.3% of U.S. counties did not have a primary care physician at all, and the national ratio of primary care physicians was 80.8 per 100,000 population."
This aligns with more recent findings in Primary Care Development Corporation’s “New York State Primary Care Scorecard” (2024). It states, “There is an insufficient supply of primary care providers across New York, with rural communities facing an even greater shortage than urban areas.” The 2024 Center for Health Workforce Studies report, “Trends in Demand for New Physicians, 2018-2023,” also found that the specialties with the weakest relative demand and lowest change in income were general pediatrics and its subspecialties, which fall under primary care.
However, the 2024 Center for Health Workforce Studies report does slightly contrast the studies above with new physicians having positive perceptions of both regional and national job markets and only 10% of physicians needing to change job plans due to limited practice opportunities, across all specialties.
Collectively, these studies provide a snapshot of the New York state and national health workforce and how this relates to rural and urban environments. This will help to inform some of the thoughts shared throughout the blog post.
Key factors influencing physician loyalty
Physician loyalty in New York is shaped by factors including access, compensation and market dominance.
Access to specialists and facilities is a critical component. For instance, primary care groups prefer networks that seamlessly refer patients to specialists, ensuring comprehensive care. Physicians gravitate toward health systems offering greater access, particularly in urban areas with diverse specialties. This is markedly different from rural locales, where limited access to specialists can pose challenges.
Compensation is a pivotal factor in maintaining physician loyalty. Unlike the past, where privileges were more widespread, today’s landscape sees physicians aligning with systems that offer competitive remuneration and opportunities for professional growth. This changing model underscores the importance of aligning compensation structures with physician expectations to enhance loyalty.
Market share and dominance also play a significant role. Physicians prefer affiliations with hospitals that align with their specialties. This tendency highlights the necessity for health systems to establish a robust presence in specific medical fields to attract and retain top talent.
Leveraging Sg2 MarketEdge for physician loyalty
DataGen’s partnership with Sg2 leverages their MarketEdge analytics with our New York state healthcare market knowledge. This provides invaluable insights for healthcare systems looking to enhance physician loyalty.
Its provider connections tool offers a comprehensive view of inferred referral patterns and affiliations, allowing health systems to identify opportunities for strengthening physician relationships. By analyzing trends and inferred referral patterns, users can identify key players in the market, and healthcare systems can strategically align with physicians and cultivate stronger, more productive partnerships.
The claims database within Sg2 MarketEdge empowers health systems to:
identify affiliates and potential recruits using detailed open and closed claims data;
understand patient flow, aiding in strategic planning; and
recognize new physicians entering the market and offer opportunities for alignment and building loyalty.
Advancing physician loyalty through strategic data analytics
Understanding and enhancing physician loyalty in the evolving New York healthcare market is critical for sustaining a competitive advantage. Physician loyalty in healthcare is influenced not just by compensation and specialization, but by strategic factors that foster long-term retention and engagement. Implementing robust physician retention strategies is more essential now than ever.
Sg2's provider connection tool, used in partnership with DataGen, is crucial in this strategic process by offering actionable insights into physician affiliation with health systems. By using these analytics, healthcare leaders can glean detailed physician loyalty insights that guide competitive strategies and improve physician engagement. The tool's capacity to track healthcare data and physician trends offers a comprehensive overview, providing health systems with a clearer pathway to effective physician relationship management.
By aligning their goals with the trends revealed through Sg2 MarketEdge analytics, health systems can position themselves strategically within the market, enhancing their competitiveness and sustaining a robust pipeline of talented, loyal physicians.
Interested in exploring how Sg2 MarketEdge can support your healthcare system's efforts in building physician loyalty? Reach out for a demonstration. Together, we can unlock new opportunities for physician engagement and drive positive outcomes for your healthcare organization's success.
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