Everything You Should Know About Part-Time Locum Tenens Healthcare Jobs

Since the COVID-19 pandemic, there are many part-time locum tenens healthcare job opportunities coming up to address the physician shortage issue. This article aims to discuss everything one should know about these temporary locum tenens jobs so that you can make the right career selection.


A brief about temporary locum tenens jobs


Part-time locum tenens provide medical services to short-staffed medical facilities (e.g., clinics and hospitals) temporarily, maybe a few days to several months or even years. In the United States of America (USA), locum tenens physicians are not considered employees since they are independent contractors. Still, they can work directly with the hospital through their locum agency like ProLocums.


The nature of these types of careers makes them different from traditional careers, in which one must have a flexible schedule for searching for new opportunities, completing paperwork, or traveling to an assigned location. While performing their duties, they must be ready to search for new assignments immediately after accomplishing the ongoing activity assigned by the current service provider.


Benefits of part-time locum tenens healthcare job


Coming to their annual income, In the U.S., a hospitalist who works 15 shifts a month makes approximately $280K per year or can even extend up to $400K. This amount is almost the same as a permanent doctor's income. Along with good economic support, they can invest their remaining time in themselves for a better lifestyle and healthy schedule. This role creates a more vibrant environment for those who love traveling, exploring new areas and learning across various cultures.


Even your family can accompany you while exploring new areas. Working experience in multispecialty hospitals will help to improve an individual's knowledge and skills. These are the positive points of this job role.


Is there any drawback?


The drawback is certainly personalized. Physicians might have to stay away from their families and travel without considering their physical and physiological condition. They need to sign several agreements to stop them from breaking the contract. Additionally, starting a new locum job in a new facility or hospital means learning a new system which might take a couple of weeks to get adjusted. Hence, that might be stressful for some people and workflow might be slow. Sometimes working in shifts might impact their health.


Before starting this role, one must take care of safety, e.g., life, disability, cash balance, and health insurance. Deciding a state for doing this occupation and applying for a license for a new state while working is one of the crucial tasks.


Is temporary locum tenens job really in trend?


Here’s the statistic revelation regarding the trend of locum tenens physician jobs. 88 percent of healthcare companies reported using locum tenens physicians or other service providers in the previous year, demonstrating the popularity of temporary physicians in 2021 and 2022.


Summing Up


The advantages and disadvantages should presumably be known. Since there is a high learning curve every time you start at a new job, it is unquestionably simpler to work at the same clinic or hospital for an extended time.


The possibilities of working as locum professionals are pretty endless. Increasingly, locum tenens has become a career for many doctors. Most of the assignments last from a few weeks to several months. Hence, being a locum tenens will be a lot more enjoyable.


So, are you also ready to opt for full-time or part-time locum tenens? Connect with ProLocums, where you get access to many locum job opportunities so that you can choose the best job that you deserve.

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