Trends in work hours and vacation time among radiologists in the United States

The purpose of this study was to describe recent trends in weekly work hours and annual vacation days among full-time radiologists in the United States with separate data for academic radiologists, radiologists in multispecialty groups, and radiologists in private practice.

We tabulated non-individually identified responses from the American College of Radiology 1995, 2003, and 2007 surveys of radiologists. These stratified random sample surveys had, respectively, 2,025, 1,924, and 487 responses and response rates of 75%, 63%, and 20%. Responses were weighted to make them representative of all U.S. radiologists. Respondents were assured of confidentiality.

Mean weekly hours worked increased from 1995 to 2003 and from 2003 to 2007. The total increase was approximately 5 hours, or 10%. Mean vacation days also increased in both subperiods, from 27 in 1995 to 39 in 2007, yielding an approximately 5% decrease in days worked per year. The overall result was a mean increase of approximately 5% in annual work hours. In 2007, the 25th percentile of weekly hours was 45, and the 75th percentile was 55. The 25th percentile of annual vacation days was 25, and the 75th percentile was 50. Full-time radiologists responding about their own weekly hours reported, at the mean, working 10% more hours than they believed was the average for other full-time radiologists in the practice.

Weekly hours and annual vacation days both have increased. The percentiles give radiologists a basis for comparison with other radiologists. Radiologists apparently often overestimate their work hours relative to the hours of others in their practices. Misperceptions of this kind might give rise to friction in radiology practices.