by
Ways to Practice
There are multiple ways to approach locums work. I decided to go the nomad route. I signed up with one company and made myself available to go anywhere. My only preference initially, was short-term assignments, typically 2-3 months in length. That means I was covering gaps in time when hospitals were in the hiring process or maternity leaves, etc… How you approach the type of assignment you want depends on your short term goals. Questions to ask yourself:
- 1. Are you supplementing your full time job? Is this a short term option to bridge your time between jobs or training? Do you plan to continue locums for more than 2 years?
- 2. Do you want to travel around the country or stay close to a home or family?
- 3. Do you want full-time/full-scope practice opportunities? Would you like to work 2 weeks out of a month? Would you like shift work as a laborist/hospitalist?
- 4. Do you want to work continuously or do you need to take breaks in between assignments?
- 5. If you plan to continue a full-time job and work locums on the side, you can find weekend work in many practices. Practices in small communities use locum physicians to round out their call schedules. A “weekend” in the locums world usually means Friday 8 am to Monday 8 am.
If you need to stay close to home or family, I would recommend signing up with at least 2-3 companies to give you more options. Try to find locums physicians in the area and find out what companies they use. Another option would be to approach facilities that may be short staffed and offer your services in a locums capacity.
Things to consider when taking a position as a laborist: 1) Are you first call or second call? 2) Who is first call if you’re not? I have now worked as 2nd call for midwives or for family medicine physicians. I have also been the laborist in academic programs that required residency teaching. Taking positions as a laborist or hosptalist gives you the flexibility of shift work. However, you will be only be doing inpatient work. If you’re not ready to give up your generalist skills, I would suggest only taking laborist work to supplement a full-scope assignment.
If you don’t plan to take continuous, full-time assignments, I would suggest making your calendar at least 6 months in advance. That way you can let your company(ies) know your true availability and plan accordingly.
When I first started, I was nervous that I wouldn’t be able to find enough work to keep me busy. And it is true, that I have had a few assignments fall through. However, with proper planning, staying flexible and forging a good relationship with your locums representative(s) will usually prevent any unwanted gaps in work.