When Should You Go for Locum Tenens Physician Staffing?: Guide for Practitioners & Employers
As per a survey, approximately 52,000 number of physicians worked as locum tenens in 2019. The widespread usage of locum tenens physician staffing is also an indicator of staff shortage and opportunities.
For a physician, the locum tenens role is usually related to income expansion and for a healthcare provider, it might be due to an overload of work and a lack of sufficient professionals. Regardless of your job role and purpose, this blog will act as your guide to help you. Here’s when you should look for locum tenens physician staffing:
AS A PHYSICIAN
- Explore Different Work Culture And Settings
Locum tenens opportunity is a great way to explore different work cultures and practice settings. It gives you exposure you might not otherwise find any other way. From a metropolitan hospital to a small rural healthcare clinic, you gain insights into different ways medicine practice exists. Additionally, if you are someone who likes to explore different parts of cities or regions, locums can be a great tour guide. - Expand Income
If you are already in a full-time job but looking for additional income, locums are a great way to go. It can be an effective way to pay off student loans or create extra savings. - Gain Prior Experience
If you are yet to begin a full-time career as a physician, locum tenens offers you a good chance to explore and put different positions and fields of practice to the test. You can give a potential job a test drive and see how it works out for you before making a long-term commitment. - Enjoy Flexibility
Locums provides you with the flexibility of choice for location and timings. Whether you are planning to take a week off for a family vacation in the exotic plains of Europe or looking for an adventurous weekend getaway, locums make it possible. - Take On On-job Challenges
If you are amidst a career shift or are looking for filling gaps, locums offers a great opportunity. From picking up a few shifts for a few days to weeks, locums also acts as a support when you are shifting cities or when life throws a curveball where a full-time job can be emotionally hampering.
AS A RECRUITER
- Overload Of Work
Work overload in healthcare happens all of a sudden. In such scenarios, where the influx of work isn’t on a regular basis, hiring full-time physicians is nothing but an expensive cost for a healthcare facility. Locums even out the work load while taking care of the temporary stress. - Unhappy Practice Setting
Too much work can cause chaos within a medical setting pretty easily. Considering the importance of work and the involvement of different departments, it can be easy for a healthcare facility to lose track of things and lead to an overall unhappy attitude. - Employees Are Burning Out
As per a report, the stress, burnout and depression in the physician profession has increased to 45 percent. The pandemic era put an ungovernable amount of stress on healthcare workers whose repercussions are still being experienced across different spheres of healthcare. Symptoms of work stress will reflect across your team in the form of increased absenteeism, unhappy employees, increased rudeness, and an overall reduction in productivity. - Deteriorating Patient Care Standards
As a result of the above points, lack of staffing will also degrade patient care. Tired employees become frustrated and that frustration sooner or later spills to patients. This will not only impact your healthcare standards but also tarnish your reputation.
Seeking assistance from reliable locum tenens staffing companies serves manifold benefits. Connect with us to learn more about the process and find your ideal locums fit.
