The Salary of a Pediatric Orthopedic Surgeon
Salary and Compensation
By Danielle Smyth Updated December 04, 2020
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Orthopedics is a branch of medicine that deals with diseases and conditions of the musculoskeletal system, or the parts of the human body that allow us to move by using our muscles and bones. Orthopedic doctors deal with issues like spine diseases, sports injuries, certain kinds of fractures and various joint surgeries. Pediatric orthopedic doctors (or orthopedic pediatricians), as the name suggests, address these same issues in children.
Pediatric Orthopedic Surgeon Job Description
While surgeons in some other specialties deal with life-threatening injuries and diseases, orthopedic pediatric surgeons – and orthopedic surgeons more generally – are often more focused on medical issues that restrict mobility or cause ongoing pain. Pediatric orthopedists are therefore responsible for improving quality of life in their patients, allowing them to get back to a normal range of activities. Musculoskeletal problems are among the more common issues that account for doctor visits among children. According to the Bone and Joint Initiative, nearly a third of all medical visits for children are related to pain or other issues in the muscles and bones.
Orthopedists who specialize in pediatric issues must have specific expertise in how to address muscle, bone and ligament injuries in bodies that still have growing to do. Children's bones are much more plastic than those of adults, so they heal and repair in different ways. For instance, abnormalities like clubfoot or hip dysplasia can be treated non-surgically in infants if caught in time. Children also have what's called a "growth plate" at the end of long bones like those in the arms and legs, and injuries to this area, which is more easily fractured or broken than other parts of the bone, can affect healthy growth in those bones.
Another challenge for pediatric orthopedic doctors is helping children to communicate their symptoms and understand their treatment. As with any medical specialty involving children, pediatric orthopedic surgeons receive special training to help young patients express what they're feeling and answer questions during a medical exam.
Pediatric Orthopedic Surgeon Education Requirements
Like all doctors, pediatric orthopedists must complete four years of medical school. They then move on to a five-year residency specializing in orthopedics, during which rotations include specialties like joint replacements, bone and soft tissue tumors, and sports medicine. The residency will often include a fellowship with a specialization in pediatric orthopedics so you can get a sense of the day to day practice of doctors in that field.
Following residency, pediatric orthopedic surgeons typically receive a year of specialty training in pediatric orthopedics or pediatric spinal deformity. The musculoskeletal system is very large and interacts with numerous systems throughout the body, so the curriculum to become a pediatric orthopedist is very rigorous. It is a very competitive field, and medical students who hope to pursue this area should focus on medical schools that have specialized in placing graduates in orthopedic residencies.
Pediatric Orthopedic Surgeon Industry
Orthopedic surgeons, including pediatric orthopedists, are among the best-paid professionals in the medical field. A 2020 report from Medscape on physician salaries put the average salary of orthopedic surgeons at ​$511,000​. For contrast, the standard salary for a pediatrician was ​$232,000​. Another 2020 study of 44,000 United States physicians from Doximity placed the average salary for orthopedists at ​$605,000​.
In addition to the pediatric orthopedic salary, doctors in this field can receive bonuses based on metrics like collections (the dollar amount they bring in from patients in a year) or relative value units, or RVUs (the number of specific services or procedures provided).
While quality-of-life surgeries, including most orthopedic surgeries, decreased in number during the COVID-19 crisis, the job outlook is decent for orthopedic surgeons in all areas. The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics expects the job market for physicians and surgeons to grow an additional 4 percent over the next decade, which is about the average growth rate for all occupations.
Bone and Joint Initiative: Children and Adolescents
Medscape: Medscape Orthopedist Compensation Report 2020
Doximity: 2020 Physician Compensation Report
U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics: Physicians and Surgeons
Danielle Smyth is a writer and content marketer from upstate New York. She has been writing on business-related topics for nearly 10 years. She owns her own content marketing agency, Wordsmyth Creative Content Marketing (www.wordsmythcontent.com) and she works with a number of small businesses to develop B2B content for their websites, social media accounts, and marketing materials. In addition to this content, she has written business-related articles for sites like Sweet Frivolity, Alliance Worldwide Investigative Group, Bloom Co and Spent.
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