Work on top of work: 1 in 3 doctors have a second job, says surveys

Despite their packed calendars, many doctors in Canada have a second job outside of their regular practice—sometimes with little or nothing to do with medicine. According to Medscape, one-third of the 1,054 Canadian doctors who participated in a survey conducted between March and May 2022 said they had a part-time job that adds another 20 hours of labour each month to their work calendar. Of the 312 physicians who said they take on extra work, 194 were men and 117 were women. More than 80% of those who work part-time are over the age of 45, and most have been doing this for quite some time—13 years on average. Read: The gig is up: Why more doctors are moonlighting today Money is the main reason many of these doctors work part-time, with close to 40% citing extra income as their primary motivator. Just over 15% said they do it to have fun and that the money is secondary, while 14% said their second job offers a way to build a second career for when they retire. So how much are these doctors pulling from extra work? The survey found the average income from part-time work was $45,000 a year. Men earned more, taking in close to $52,500 a year on average from a second job compared to $32,600 for female physicians. Many of part-time jobs pursued by doctors were related to medicine. Common ones included speaking at conferences, medical consulting, acting as an expert witness or teaching. But many doctors also liked working outside the medical sphere. Close to 30% of those with second jobs said they put in these extra hours in roles related to real estate while 25% said they worked part-time in investing or investing advice. Read: From cottage owner to landlord: 10 things to know before renting out your summer place There were a number of interesting and unusual pursuits. For example, 4% of doctors engaged in part-time work were involved in cooking or food preparation, while 2% were in software and electronics, and a similar percentage were in animal breeding or training. While money was a primary motivator for many, personal fulfillment was a reward for a large majority, with close to 80% saying they found their part-time more or as rewarding as their regular work. One physician, whose extra work is providing medically assisted death, wrote in his response that he is the only provider of this service in a small community of 75,000. "The work is emotionally difficult but humbling and professionally satisfying," he wrote. "I will likely carry on with this when I leave my full-time anesthesia practice." Read: My journey to passive real estate investing

Work on top of work: 1 in 3 doctors have a second job, says surveys

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