Income differentials required to make fellowship training in female pelvic medicine and reconstructive pelvic surgery financially neutral.

Muffly TM, Weeks WB. Income differentials required to make fellowship training in female pelvic medicine and reconstructive pelvic surgery financially neutral. International urogynecology journal and pelvic floor dysfunction. 2008 Jan 1; 19(1):151-6.

Related HSR&D Project(s)

• IIR 04-236 – Reducing Avoidable Deaths by Directing Veterans' Surgical Care in the Private Sector

Dimensions for VA is a web-based tool available to VA staff that enables detailed searches of published research and research projects.

If you have VA-Intranet access, click here for more information vaww.hsrd.research.va.gov/dimensions/

VA staff not currently on the VA network can access Dimensions by registering for an account using their VA email address.    Search Dimensions for VA for this citation
* Don't have VA-internal network access or a VA email address? Try searching the free-to-the-public version of Dimensions

Search for Abstract from PubMed

---

Abstract:

We used standard financial techniques and a return-on-educational-investment model to calculate the required annual income necessary to render additional fellowship training in female pelvic medicine and reconstructive pelvic surgery financially neutral. To explore a range of potential outcomes, we conducted a sensitivity analysis that used various discount rates and retirement ages. Compared to obstetrics/gynecology residents who go directly into private practice, residents who pursue fellowship training in female pelvic medicine and reconstructive pelvic surgery experience a financial loss of more than $400,000 to $600,000, assuming there is no income differential after fellowship. To render the additional training financially neutral requires an annual income that is 16-31% higher than that of general obstetrician/gynecologists. Required additional annual income was on the lower end of this spectrum when modeling later retirement age estimates and using lower discount rates. Fourth year obstetrician/gynecology residents considering female pelvic medicine/reconstructive surgery require higher incomes over the working lifetime to render fellowship training financially neutral.