Actual and Future Employment for Radiologists in Belgium: A Survey by the Young Radiologist Section

564 females. This is an average of 16.2 radiologists per 100,000 people [1]. This number is in contrast with France and the Netherlands, where there is an average of respectively 10.9 and 7.8 radiologists per 100,000 people [2, 3]. This high number of radiologists relative to the population size could mean a high requirement of newly graduated radiologists to replace the retiring ones. However, there appears to be an imbalance between the number of vacancies and the number of graduating radiologists. This is a trend that has been going on for several years. In addition, the vacancies have become much more demanding, asking for radiologists not only with a very good general training, but also an extensive training in one or more radiological subspecialties [4]. These evolutions in the job market have made it increasingly difficult for recently graduated radiologists to find a job as a staff member in a radiological department. A survey performed by the Young Radiologist Section three years ago evidenced the concerns of radiologists-in-training to obtain a permanent job given the declining number of vacancies [4]. We have performed an anonymous survey that investigated job opportunities for Belgian radiologists. This survey was sent to the heads of all radiology departments in Belgium (university and non-university) and to all radiologists who graduated in the past five years. The survey focused on different aspects of past, current and future job opportunities and requirements for radiologists, including the most requested radiologist profiles and factors that might influence an association’s decision to hire a new radiologist. An overview of the results will be published later in the BSR Radiology Now digital newsletter and the JBSR. We aim at presenting objective numbers and facts with regards to the current radiology job situation, and providing a perspective for the future.