Locum Tenens Jobs
If you are in the medical profession, you are well aware of what are locum tenens jobs. Primarily this term refers to temporary doctors, but it can include others in the field of medicine also, like nurses, dentists, anesthesiologists, and others.
The idea behind locum tenens jobs is to provide qualified temporary replacements for very skilled medical professionals. There are staffing companies who specialize in the area of temporary medical help, and who have ongoing relationships with local health and medical care businesses.
According to numbers published in 2007*, almost half of the locum tenens jobs fall into the category of primary care, with another 20 percent for anesthesiologists and CRNAs, followed by behavioral health specialists, radiologists, surgeons and dentists.
Some doctors are turning to staffing companies for work as a locum tenens physician because the staffing company picks up the tab for malpractice insurance and licensing fees. The doctors get paid less than if they were on staff permanently but they do not have to deal with the insurance issue, or hospital politics. They do not have to worry about financial affairs of running their own practice, or administration of that practice. All they have to do is show up and do their doctor job well.
The locum tenens jobs require the same qualifications and experience as if the temporary workers were hired by the healthcare facility, and in some cases the locum tenens are more qualified than permanent staff.
Some physicians want to cut back on their hours, or get out of a stressful private practice, or they are entering retirement but want to continue working in their profession with fewer hours. They usually get paid by the day or the surgery, and have the option of working as much or as little as they want, and that can vary throughout the year. If they want to take a summer off, it is no problem. If they want to travel and still work, that becomes an option by using locum tenens jobs around the country.
This is another avenue for the recent physician graduate to locate work, although with today’s shortage of qualified medical caregivers, finding work is more plentiful than ever before. Many current medical workers are reaching retirement age, and either stop working or cut back their office time. Working on the temporary jobs can be an ideal situation for many of these older doctors and nurses.
Contact your local staffing company to see if they have an area of locum tenens jobs for which you qualify if you would enjoy working the temporary job arena. The staffing company will have the job listings you won’t find in the newspaper, and they will be glad to add you to their list of people qualified to fill these temporary positions.
