Female docs still earn less than male colleagues

If a recent survey of female physicians is anything to go by, neurologists and family medicine physicians really love their jobs. Seventy-three percent of the former and 71 percent of the latter would choose medicine again, according to a recent physician compensation report published by Medscape.

The female physicians least likely to pursue medicine again were general surgeons, at 47 percent, and ophthalmologists, at 46 percent, according to the survey.

The survey of 4,500 female physicians also revealed the following:

Female physicians still don't earn as much as their male colleagues. On average, female primary care doctors earn an annual salary of $192,000, compared with men who earn $225,000. Similar trends were found among specialists, where women earn $242,000, compared with men who earn $324,000.

Take-home pay varies widely based on specialty. The top-paying specialties for female physicians were radiology at $342,000 and cardiology at $339,000. The lowest-earning specialties among female physicians were family medicine at $183,000 and pediatrics at $182,000.

Geography matters, as does availability of physicians. The highest-earning female physicians practice in the North Central states, where they earn an average of $246,000 annually, and Northwest states, where they earn $242,000. The Mid-Atlantic states are home to the lowest-paid female physicians, who earn $217,000 annually. At an annual salary of $221,000, female physicians in the Northeast are the second lowest-paid.

To learn more:                                                     
- check out the report