Poland Doctor Pay Data Shows Million-Zloty Earnings

Polsat News said it sent requests to 590 medical facilities, including hospitals, clinics and emergency units, seeking data on the best-paid doctor at each institution and the five highest earners. Only 19 hospitals provided full answers with names; 182 facilities supplied anonymous data, while more than half failed to respond and nearly 70% did not disclose remuneration details.

From the material received, 213 doctors earned more than 1 million zlotys in a year. In 20 hospitals, all five of the top-paid doctors each exceeded that threshold, while 13 individual cases showed annual pay above 2 million zlotys, with some doctors earning as much as 3 million zlotys.

The reporting also exposed how some hospital managers tried to avoid disclosure, invoking privacy rules or claiming the information would require a costly “processed” response. In one case, a hospital initially reported a doctor working 7,161 hours a year — later revised to 5,345 hours — underscoring how the line between high pay and excessive workload can become blurred in a system that relies heavily on contract work and multiple shifts.

The timing is politically important. Poland’s parliament has already passed reforms that would cap annual doctor pay at 900,000 zlotys and limit physicians to work across no more than two jobs, part of an effort to rein in what lawmakers see as distortions in the health system. Medical employers and the doctors’ chamber argue that rigid limits could make staffing even harder, especially in specialties and regions already short of clinicians.

For hospitals, the issue is not just reputational. Labor costs are one of the biggest pressures in health care budgets, and salaries at the top end can ripple through staffing plans, overtime, and recruitment. For patients and taxpayers, the core question is whether paying a small group of doctors exceptionally well improves access and retention enough to justify the cost.

The story also arrives amid broader scrutiny of public spending in Poland, where officials are trying to balance rising wage expectations with a strained health system. What comes next is whether the pay cap survives implementation, and whether hospitals are forced to disclose more data on doctor compensation as the government tries to bring local practices under tighter control.