Salary guide for Medical PAs in private practice

Deciding what salary to offer to a medical PA is a complex decision and the market has changed a great deal since the Covid pandemic. Most Medical Secretaries have now had the opportunity to work from home and they have loved it, so returning to an office-based role is less appealing to them.

For those who will consider an office-based role there is demand for a higher salary to compensate for the additional time, cost and stress associated with commuting.

Indeed, is a recruitment system that is widely used by all industries including the healthcare sector. Numerous Medical PA roles are advertised on the system, both in the private sector and in the NHS, but of course, the number of NHS roles is far greater.

Indeed, reports the average salary for a medical secretary in the UK is £ 27,000. This average includes roles across the whole of the UK and both NHS and private roles. Whilst this gives a good guide, you can expect to add an extra percentage to this figure for roles in the private sector and again for roles based in London.

Looking specifically at job adverts for medical secretaries working in private practice in London here are a few recent examples to provide more guidance.

Firstly, a Medical PA role in the private sector, based in London, is advertised on LinkedIn offering £ 30,000 to £ 35,000 per annum and the role is office based. The Job Description asks for an individual with a minimum of two years’ experience working in private practice.

In another example, a surgeon is advertising for a medical secretary to support their practice at a well-known hospital in Central London. This role is again office based and the salary offered is £ 26, 000 to £ 32, 000.

It is very common nowadays to see adverts for a “hybrid” role with a mix of office-based and home working.

One current advert offers £ 35,000 per annum stating that initial training will be office based, but once trained there is an option to work from home for part of the week.

Another practice is offering a Medical PA role with 3 days in the office and 2 days working remotely for £ 30,000 to £ 35,000 per annum.

In summary, to attract the best candidates, with more experience in private practice, a higher salary is important. A role that is home based will be incredibly popular and likely to attract many more candidates than an office-based role.
Certainly, the hardest roles to fill will be those that are full time office based and the salary will need to “compensate” for this. The option for working 2 or 3 days a week at home could be a good compromise.

There are many people who would find a part time role attractive too, so if it is possible to introduce some flexibility around working hours as well as location then this could be a bonus to attract really good candidates.