What does a locum tenens doctor look for in a staffing agency? Knowing the answer could mean the difference between placing providers in the right assignments or losing business, damaging relationships, and potentially deterring providers from the locum tenens career path altogether.
It’s obvious why a locum tenens recruiter would want to know these insights, and that’s why the topic was included as a panel discussion at the 2024 Annual NALTO/NAPR Convention in the “Queen City,” Charlotte, North Carolina. Among other things, the two-day event featured three locum tenens providers, each of whom shared their perspectives on the locum tenens industry, recruitment, and their personal journey from full-time medicine to locum gigs.
Dr. Andrew Wilner and Dr. Paul Hoehner were each billed as speakers on the panel long before the event started, while the third panelist, Dr. Joshuae Gallardo, who happened to be attending the conference, was asked to step in when the panel’s original third speaker was called away to a nearby hospital.
Find an Agent Who Understands What You Want
The session began with a detailed, albeit similar, spiel they’d given many times before, listing why they had chosen to become doctors. All three recalled a turning point where they no longer wanted to continue down the traditional path in a full-time role.
Dr. Wilner, who authored the book “The Locum Life” and now hosts a weekly podcast where he regularly speaks with locum tenens doctors and agency experts, told the room that he took his first locum tenens role in 1982. He offered his own advice for selecting the best agency partnership for new locum tenens providers.
“Well, first, there’s a whole chapter about it in my book,” he said with a smile. “If you’re a potential locum tenens physician, you’ll always ask, ‘Do I need to work with an agency, and if so, how do I find one?’ The easy answer to that is to start with members of NALTO. If [the agency isn’t] a member, you have to consider why they’re not a member.”
“If you’re a potential locum tenens physician, you’ll always ask, ‘Do I need to work with an agency, and if so, how do I find one?’ The easy answer to that is to start with members of NALTO. If [the agency isn’t] a member, you have to consider why they’re not a member.”
He continued, “There are about 111 agencies, almost double what there were when I wrote my book four years ago. Start there, and then, what’s more important than the company is your agent. Know your ‘why’—why you got into locums, and then find an agent who understands what you want.”
NALTO was established in 2001 as the only professional association for locum tenens agencies. It sets the industry standard and promotes honesty, objectivity, and integrity among its members. By partnering with a NALTO agency, a locum doc already knows the agency’s values and where they stand ethically. Dr. Hoehner believes this makes the doctor more granular when narrowing down the specifics to help weed out the right agency or recruiter.
“The right recruiter and agency will always ask what you are looking for so they can create an experience that’s tailor-made for you,” Dr. Hoehner stated. “Look for that agent that will help if and when you get in trouble.” He joked that if he’s driving to an assignment and his car breaks down, his first call will be to his agent before anyone else. “They become one of your best friends over the course of a couple of years.”
Dr. Gallardo light-heartedly said he would choose the agency based on “whoever doesn’t spam my email.”
“All jokes aside, I love when I get a phone call that says, ‘Hey, I saw this job opening, and I thought about you,’” he stated. “This is a symbiotic relationship. Having someone pick up the phone and call because they thought of me is always reassuring.”
The discussion shifted to each doctor’s personal journey, and each shared insights into some of the more challenging moments they’ve encountered. These stories shed light on the reality of working locum tenens assignments as they recounted past gigs marked by traumatic experiences.
Dr. Hoehner talked about an experience where he went to an assignment, worked for several days, and then was summoned to speak to the medical director. He was informed that his credentialing packet hadn’t been approved, and another doc would have to go back and sign off on all of his work.
Dr. Gallardo spoke of another occasion under a different assignment thinking he’d cover a single hospital only to learn when he arrived that he was actually covering three hospitals and more than 20 urgent care centers. Oops.
“I’ve been lucky enough that all my assignments have been great. That being said, I approached them all with a very low bar,” Dr. Wilner joked. “One of the things we have to come to terms with is that the fact [hospitals] need you there in the first place means it’s not the best job, or they wouldn’t be so desperate to find you.”
Dr. Wilner said the nature of the job means that all physicians learn to embrace flexibility. Having the support of a strong agency helps eliminate any big surprises once they arrive at the job on day one.
How Agencies Can Improve the Experience
Doctors are drawn to locum tenens for global travel and unique experiences beyond what the average doctor experiences. However, flight delays, rental car hassles, hotel stays, and extended time away from family can overshadow these advantages. Each doctor on the panel discussed ways agencies can improve the travel experience and gave insight into what doctors should expect on assignment.
“Pay attention to high-traffic cities and whether or not they’ll have to drive everywhere,” Dr. Gallardo said. “The travel part does wear on you, but ultimately, it’s another part of the process. I’ve enjoyed it, as long as there’s good organization with it. I really think you could also help take the burden off of it if you can accommodate families and spouses. That’s the biggest stressor is having to be away.”
Throughout the panel discussion, consensus emerged that there was little they would change to improve their current experiences. It’s taken years of assignments and much trial and error to find what works best for them. Still, each has found the flexibility and autonomy in locum tenens that a permanent position didn’t.
Dr. Hoehner said he was thankful he had decided to take a chance and have faith to pursue a locums career opportunity.
“When I started my career, I didn’t know anything about locums,” Dr. Hoehner recalled. “All I knew at the time was that we had this guy who came into the hospital, lived out of a hotel in town, took long vacations, and then we worked like crazy each day to get him out the door at 3 p.m. so we wouldn’t have to pay him overtime.
“I remember saying then, ‘Why did he do that? Why wouldn’t he just join the group?’ Well, now, I understand.”
“When I started my career, I didn’t know anything about locums. All I knew at the time was that we had this guy who came into the hospital, lived out of a hotel in town, took long vacations, and then we worked like crazy each day to get him out the door at 3 p.m. so we wouldn’t have to pay him overtime. I remember saying then, ‘Why did he do that? Why wouldn’t he just join the group?’ Well, now, I understand.”
