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|  | Will Spine Surgeons Be the Next Specialists Scooped Up by Hospitals? | August 30, 2011 | Sanjay Jatana is quoted in the Becker's Orthopedic, Spine & Pain Management article
(DENVER) – Sanjay Jatana, MD, Jatana Spine, Denver: In the Denver market, the only spine surgeons who are employed by hospitals are done so through a recruiting agreement. They transition right from a fellowship program and have guaranteed income, and the hospital will market their expertise. Surgeons might also take a position at a hospital because their primary care referral base becomes stagnant and by moving to the hospital environment, there is a new set of primary care physicians for referrals. Older surgeons looking for an exit strategy consider employment as well because they don't want to have the stresses of running a practice.
I've found that hospitals in my area aren't interested in employing physicians who are experienced and at the peak of their careers. From a primary income standpoint, including ancillary services at the practice, their employment agreement won't be able to match the surgeons' current income. When it comes to accountable care organizations, hospitals haven't really sorted out how to organize and implement an agreement mutually beneficial for physicians. They don't understand ACOs enough to take the plunge yet and if you look at what spine surgeons can make on their own, hospitals can't compare to that.
Most spine surgeons are in independent group situations right now — except for surgeons coming out of fellowships and those in academic situations. The other exception to the rule is Kaiser-employed surgeons. Kaiser tends to have its own spine surgeons as a rule. In California, it has a large volume of members in its system. Kaiser is the third largest insurance carrier in Colorado and they have their own spine surgeons.
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