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The six specialties we’ve highlighted are expected to continue growing in the coming years, making it worthwhile for medical students and general practitioners to pursue specialized studies if they want to meet market demand and find competitive opportunities.
Factors Contributing to Rising Demand
Sustained demand in medical specialties often depends on a number of factors. The following factors are contributing to the projected growth for the six medical specializations we’ve identified as having the highest projected demand.
Aging Population
Demographics are changing, and with that comes a higher demand for certain specialties. An aging population is more likely to have chronic health problems that require ongoing care. They’re also more likely to have multiple health issues, necessitating specialized care.
Increase of Comorbidities & Chronic Diagnoses
The number of people with multiple chronic health conditions is on the rise. This development is partly due to our aging population, but it’s also due to the increase in obesity and sedentary lifestyles.
Combined, these factors tend to contribute to an increase of chronic conditions and comorbidities, resulting in a higher demand for numerous specialities but especially those focused on chronic care.
COVID-19 Pandemic
The COVID-19 pandemic has had a major impact on the healthcare system and the demand for certain medical specialties, such as:
- Primary and preventative care
- Mental health care
- Respiratory care
Physician Shortage
The ongoing physician shortage in the United States reflects a demand for medical services that is higher than the number of doctors able to provide them. As the population continues to age and more Baby Boomers retire, the shortage is expected to continue, putting more strain on the healthcare system at large and exacerbating the rising demand for certain medical specializations.
Medical Specialities to Watch
While the physician shortage affects the healthcare industry at large, there are a number of specialties in particular that we expect will experience continued growth and higher demand.
Infectious Disease
At the start of the pandemic, this up-and-coming area of medical expertise had a stark shortage of talent. This doctor deficit is exacerbated by the amount of time it takes for individuals to acquire the necessary skills and experience, get board certified, and enter the field. While the pandemic initially sparked interest in this specialty, actually becoming an infectious disease specialist requires a three-year internal medicine residency as well as a two- or three-year fellowship.
As vaccines have become more accessible and the severity of cases decreases, there is still a growing need for infectious disease specialists, which will contribute to a higher, continuous demand in years to come.
From the emergence of different COVID-19 variants to the development of avian influenza (and the risk of it jumping from animals to humans), specialists in the infectious disease field will be invaluable moving forward. Infectious disease experts will also play a big role in fighting superbugs, which result from the overuse of antibiotics without treatment, especially in our livestock.
Geriatrics
In the near future, the average age of the U.S. population is expected to rise, with an estimation that, by 2050, we will have 90 million people above the age of 65 living in the country. Within the next decade alone, that population is expected to grow by nearly 18 million.
With this anticipated growth, the need for compassionate, informed geriatric care will also increase, resulting in higher demand for physicians in this specialty. Aging individuals are more likely to have comorbidities and chronic conditions, which requires specialized care.
The need for geriatricians is going to be especially high in rural areas, which often have a higher average age compared to urban areas. Recruiting specialists to these areas can be challenging, but rural areas need geriatric care providers the most. Meeting the needs of physicians is crucial in the wake of the ongoing physician shortage, so rural medical facilities in need of geriatricians should anticipate the challenge and identify ways they can make their location more attractive to prospective hires.
Endocrinology
Diabetes is among the leading causes of death in the United States, and the need for specialized care is becoming more common as the average age of the population increases. With more individuals living sedentary lifestyles and the rise of obesity, endocrinologists will play a critical role in helping aging Americans get the care they need.
While conditions like diabetes and hypertension can often be treated by primary care providers, a number of patients require specialized care. Currently, more than 130 million adults live with diabetes or pre-diabetes in the US, and in 2019, it’s estimated that there were around 1.4 million new diagnoses. With this growth, it is expected that endocrinology will only grow as a field, requiring more physicians to provide timely, specialized care.
As with geriatric care, endocrinology is more in demand in rural areas, especially in regions that are less wealthy. Recruiters should be aware that hiring endocrinologists where they are most needed can be challenging because of this.
The growth in demand for urologists can also be attributed largely to the aging population. Medical diseases and other issues relating to the urinary-tract system become more common as people get older, and the changing demographics of the U.S. population will result in a higher demand for these specialists. Additionally, there is a low number of physicians trained in this specialization each year, keeping the demand for urologists high.
Critical Care
Critical care specialists proved to be an essential part of addressing the COVID-19 pandemic. With a high number of cases resulting in hospitalization, the need for more critical care beds and specialists alike became apparent. The uncertain pulmonary critical care post-effects on COVID-19 patients, as well as unknown severity and duration of patients’ long-term effects, contributes to a steady demand for critical care providers.
Psychiatry
The COVID-19 pandemic has taken a toll on people’s mental health. Even before the pandemic, the demand for skilled psychiatrists was high, but the demand has skyrocketed since with higher rates of reported anxiety and depression among the population. The ongoing opioid crisis and rising cases of substance abuse also contribute to a higher demand for psychiatrists,
In regions with high rates of substance abuse, the demand for psychiatrists is also rising. Addressing the opioid crisis and comorbid mental health diagnoses will only become more important in the years to come.
Gastroenterology
The gastroenterology field is also expected to grow as the number of gastrointestinal disorder cases rises. In the wake of COVID-19, gastroenterologists will be valuable in determining the source of symptoms in COVID patients; in many cases, GI and psychiatric issues are connected, making it difficult to identify the cause without the consultation of a specialist.
Family Practice
While there are a large number of physicians in this field, the demand for family practitioners is always high, especially in facilities that are building out their primary care networks. While certain specialized physicians are also in high demand, it is important to have a sufficient primary care network to support those specialists, resulting in a consistently high demand for family practice and internal medicine physicians.
Hiring for the Most in Demand Medical Specialties
Whether you are debating what to specialize in or you’re looking for trends that will influence your hiring decisions, considering the medical specialties with the highest projected demand will give you insight and direction.
Are you searching for prospective candidates? We can help. At Pinnacle Health Group, we’re committed to connecting you with the best candidates for your specific needs.