If you are a licensed medical professional, including a doctor, nurse practitioner, hospitalist, emergency medicine specialist, or a family practice doctor, working locum tenens is a great option at any stage in your career.
Physicians working for top locum tenens can take full advantage of all the perks of providing medical care in a wide variety of different locations and facilities. However, physicians can also be very specific about the locations, duration and the scope of the work they are willing to consider.
How it Works
Medical staffing companies have contracts or working agreements to provide physicians and related medical health professionals to different hospitals, treatment facilities, clinics and other healthcare services across the country.
With a large company offering locum tenens services, this can be across a state, several states, or more of a national presence. When a medical facility is short staffed for any reason, either for the short or long term, they contact the physician staffing firm with all the details. While most placements are weeks or months in length, there may also be longer-term positions based on the specifics of the situation.
The physicians staffing firm then reviews the doctors on their roster, and also posts the jobs, and then matches the best candidate to the position. The company then handles everything for the physician from arranging travel and housing to making sure the correct credentials and malpractice insurance is in place.
Why Consider this Option?
Often doctors and related medical professionals choose locum tenens work for fairly obvious reasons. A lot of physicians like the idea of being able to work for a few weeks or months and then take time off. This is often a great match for a physician with a family or a physician transitioning from full practice to retirement.
Another popular reason to work locum tenens is to have the ability to travel without any expenses. The physician staffing service handles everything for you and they typically also provide weekly pay, allowing you to enjoy your time in a new location and get a chance to see and do what you want.
Working locum tenens also gives a physician the opportunity to work in a range of different healthcare settings, and even in some of the most well-known hospitals and treatment centers around the country. For those that want to gain knowledge and a range of experiences in their specialization, this is seen as a terrific professional growth and development opportunity.
