Staffing Industry Analysts Staffing Stream: Top Reasons for Growth of Locum Tenens Staffing
August 16, 2017

More than 90% of the U.S. healthcare industry now uses locum tenens physicians in their medical facilities. As we honor those doctors during the first-ever National Locum Tenens Week, here are the top three reasons for the growth of locum tenens staffing.

There are a number of types of medical settings in which to practice locum tenens and each offer a unique and valuable experience to advance your career.

• Private Practices. This setting provides locum tenens doctors a glimpse into what it’s like to practice medicine with the most autonomy. Private practices typically have a limited staff challenged with the responsibilities that come with any small business. Conversely, locum tenens will also see first-hand the greater rewards to taking such risks with running a private practice. This includes more potential for financial rewards, opportunities for partnership, and a long-term career in one location from which to get involved in the community.

• Medical Groups. Doctors in this setting experience some of same benefits of smaller practices, but with less personal risk from a business perspective. Locum tenens will also notice that physicians in medical groups don’t have quite as much opportunity for dynamic income growth as those in a private practice, but there’s more safety and security in being part of a larger medical group. In addition, this setting often lends itself to opportunities to learn from more senior physicians through practicing together in an environment of close proximity.

• Hospitals. Hospitals offer locum tenens the opportunity to be part of a large operation with individual departments, collaborative team atmospheres, and experience with an inpatient environment. They’ll notice it resembles more of a corporate structure, offering their full-time peers a number of benefits and safety, albeit with minimal autonomy and more confined pay structure than those physicians at a private practice for instance. Hospitals can also offer locum tenens invaluable experience in fast-paced environments as well, such as in emergency room settings.

• Urgent Care Clinics. Urgent care facilities are almost always in need of help, and it is quite easy for a qualified physician to pick up shifts in this setting. Working in an urgent care clinic can be quite rewarding. Here physicians get to do what they do best; treat patients in a one-on-one setting and many of them need immediate care.

• Federal Healthcare & Correctional Facilities. Here lies an opportunity for locum tenens to work closely with governmental healthcare administrators and through such networking, potentially open up doors for advancement and additional opportunities down the road. For physicians who previously served in the armed forces, it could be a chance to give back to their fellow veterans. And at correctional facilities, behavioral healthcare professionals are in need at an all-time high.

• Rural Health. Working in an area with an undeserved population is also quite rewarding and the demand for locum tenens in these areas is extremely high due to the physician shortage. It is an excellent setting to achieve great career experience and help people who really need it.

Regardless of your choice in a practice setting, locum tenens is the best option for today’s physicians to grow from experiencing each one listed above. Contact a NALTO member company today to get started. 

NALTO Multiview Briefing #1 — Interstate Licensure Compact
Key Facts About the Interstate Medical Licensure Compact

In early October, a bipartisan group of U.S. senators endorsed the Interstate Medical Licensure Compact. In a letter to the Federation of State Medical Boards (FSMB), the lawmakers stated, “As strong supporters of the state-based system of physician licensure, we believe the Compact represents a significant step forward in the licensure of physicians and we applaud the work of the FSMB and its member boards in this area.”

Locum tenens practitioners are in higher demand than ever. With a nationwide physician shortage, an aging population, and increased access to healthcare through the Affordable Care Act, healthcare organizations across the country are turning to locums staffing solutions. If you find yourself working with a locum tenens recruiter, we’ve got some top tips for helping that relationship to be effective for everyone involved.

1. Be Upfront

Whether you are fresh out of your residency or a seasoned professional, you are likely to have some understanding of what you are looking for in a placement and where your strengths and weaknesses are. Being upfront with your recruiter about your ideal placement, your experiences, and your utilization will help them find the best placements to suit your needs.

A critical part of a physician's career is deciding on what setting they desire to practice in. There are many different factors involved in this decision, such as patient volume, location, specialty, compensation, CME opportunities and countless more, which can differ for every physician depending on what their personal and career goals are.    While this is an important decision for all physicians, it is an especially critical juncture for newly trained physicians, residents or fellows. When it comes to physicians’ lifestyles, between seeing patients and administrative duties it can be difficult to establish long term pursuits to obtain their ideal practice setting.

Additionally, once a setting is identified, finding a proper position can be a very difficult proposition.  Since there are so many factors involved, such as interviewing, travel, or relocation, it can be a burden to search for the ideal position and setting.  When a physician has not decided upon the different aspects of their ideal setting, they may consider Locum Tenens as an option.  Locum Tenens gives physicians an opportunity to not only learn about but personally experience various practice settings, allowing them the best possible chance to identify one that they love.

Physicians of all ages, experience levels, and practice areas can benefit from Locum Tenens work. Now, more doctors and other medical professionals are making the switch and enjoying the numerous advantages of going Locum. Working in the medical field no longer means sacrificing work-life balance to get the career you want.

In fact, 78 percent of residents and fellows, 63 percent of solo practice physicians, 64 percent of salaried physicians, and 68 percent of retired physicians said they would consider Locum Tenens opportunities. Furthermore, up to 90 percent of healthcare organizations used Locum Tenens physicians within the last year, making it a highly demanded occupation. The reason for the interest in Locum Tenens work is due to the many benefits, including:

Many healthcare organizations are now offering rewards and loyalty programs in an effort to retain patients. Though these programs are still in development, they have shown promise.

Approximately 10 percent of patient appointments result in no-shows. This can be a frustrating experience for healthcare organizations that depend upon health insurance reimbursements and private payers. As a result, facilities have created cancellation policies, which allow providers to charge patients who fail to show up for appointments without reasonable notice. While this has certainly deterred a large number of patients from skipping their scheduled visits, healthcare facilities are looking to do more to retain patients.

Ensuring patient satisfaction is a critical aspect of healthcare, but it is also time consuming. Automated solutions are helping physicians effectively communicate with patients.

Patient satisfaction is essential to the success of any healthcare practice. In a world where physicians experience extreme time constraints, ensuring the satisfaction of each patient can seem like an impossible task. Fortunately, healthcare companies are now creating solutions that allow practices to effectively communicate with patients without the stress of a time crunch.

If you have never experienced Locum Tenens work, it may be hard for you to separate fact from fiction. Don’t let the myths about Locum Tenens keep you from enjoying its many advantages.

Locum Tenens work is a rewarding experience that provides many benefits to both medical professionals and healthcare organizations. Sometimes, however, the myths surrounding Locum Tenens dissuades physicians from participating in the work. Below you will find out the truth behind many Locum Tenens-related myths.

The VA has proposed a new rule that would allow NPs to see patients without the oversight of a physician. If the rule is put into effect, it could increase veterans’ access to healthcare.

There is little doubt that the Department of Veterans Affairs is struggling to keep up with the healthcare demands of former military members. In fact, some veterans wait over 100 days to see a physician at a VA facility. Despite some failed attempts at ameliorating the system, the VA has now proposed a new rule that could increase veterans’ access to healthcare across the country.

Telemedicine connects patients with providers regardless of location. Using a variety of devices, healthcare providers can assess, diagnose, and treat patients across the nation.

The use of telemedicine is expected to grow up to 30 percent in less than a decade. Despite its seemingly impersonal nature, the popularity of telemedicine (otherwise known as telehealth) continues to increase. It offers numerous benefits, making it an exciting new approach in the future of medicine.

President Obama signed the Medicare Access and CHIP Reauthorization Act, or MACRA, into law in April, 2015. MACRA replaces the SGR (sustained growth rate) formula that regulates payments to healthcare professionals that treat patients covered by Medicare. The law reforms the reimbursement process for healthcare providers and addresses several other issues as well.

The MACRA reimbursement framework includes technical assistance for providers, data sharing, and a federal advisory group, among other measures. The system ensures quality care by basing payments on the value and effectiveness of care. Healthcare providers that meet the highest standards are rewarded for their efforts on behalf of patients.

If pundits are to be believed, there will be an overwhelming need for qualified healthcare workers in the coming years.  With many doctors and nurses approaching the age of retirement, fewer students entering healthcare professions, and a growing number of insured individuals seeking medical services, there will soon be a shortage of professionals to care for those in need.

What does this mean for current healthcare professionals and those just entering the medical field? For one, it could mean a lot more job openings as well as alternative job types. To fill this growing need, many healthcare providers and facilities are opening up locum jobs to fill any gaps in coverage.

Just like doctors, physician assistants can assess and treat patients. While PAs frequently work in collaboration with physicians, they bring many unique advantages to a practice.

In 2015, there were nearly 110,000 physician assistants employed across the country. This profession is growing in popularity, and it is estimated that the market will increase by 30% in less than a decade. These individuals can work across a range of practice areas, from family medicine and dermatology to surgery and other hospital settings. Just like doctors, PAs can use their broad spectrum of knowledge alongside a general practitioner, or they can choose to specialize in a particular area, such as women’s health, primary care, cardiology or orthopedics.

As a locum tenens worker, you'll find you have new responsibilities when it comes to taxation. Your status as an independent contractor, coupled with the fact that you may work in several different states over the course of a year, adds to the complexities you will face come tax time. You may be required to file in several states, and you will almost certainly face expenses that other medical employees never have to deal with.

Of course, these annual headaches are greatly outweighed by the many benefits to locum tenens work. You are likely to earn more money and gain more control over your schedule.  Additionally, you can also enjoy a variety of write-offs designed to reduce your tax burden since you're virtually acting as your own employer, to an extent.

As a locum tenens worker you can expect to encounter new electronic medical records (EMR) or electronic health records (EHR) systems at every job. The can all be very different, so learning one will not always make it easier to learn the next. How can you cope with having to learn your way around new systems at every job? Is it even worth trying?

All you have to do is speak with your locum tenens network to discover that locum workers are not only making the best of the situation, but many are reaping even greater rewards in the process. Here's what you should know before you turn down the opportunities inherent to locum tenens work.

Locum tenens is an exciting and rewarding experience. Latin for ‘to hold the place of’, locum tenens workers are, in effect, temporary health care providers utilized to supplement a facilities existing medical staff. When a private practice, hospital, or health care facility is in need of temporary workers, they call healthcare staffing agencies or locum tenens companies to place temporary workers. A healthcare facility may find themselves in need of a locum tenens provider if a staff doctor takes an extended vacation, is on maternity leave, is out sick, is terminated or otherwise requires addiontino providers to address growth and demand for services..

Locum tenens refers not only to physicians, but also includes nurse practitioners, physician assistants, or medical specialties. The industry was started in the early 1970’s out of a need to staff rural and medically underserved health care facilities in the Western US. Locum Tenens services has continued to advance as a necessary and accepted tool among physicians and administrators across the country to satisfy their short term and long term staffing needs. The success of the locum tenens industry is due in large part to the flexibility it provides for both physician and healthcare provider.

Across the nation, the limited supply of physicians cannot keep up with the demand. Nowhere is this shortage more apparent than in rural areas. Fortunately, Locum Tenens can help.

The current physician shortage has negatively impacted patients’ access to quality healthcare. By 2025, it is estimated that there will be a need for up to 90,400 new doctors. Despite this growing need, the demand for physicians continues to outweigh the supply. Unfortunately, the impact of this shortage has hit rural areas the hardest.

Engaging in locum tenens practice as a full-time career or on a part-time basis is simpler than you might think. While there are several steps in the process that take you from initial inquiry to being paid for providing services, each one is straightforward. The process will vary somewhat among agencies, but here are nine steps that are consistent from firm to firm.