Locums Digest is Locumpedia’s roundup of hot topics, top stories, and social media posts of interest to the locum tenens and medical communities. Subscribe to our newsletter to receive Locums Digest before it’s published here.
Physicians Thrive Identifies Specialties Poised for Growth
(Edited from story by Eric Oliver, Becker’s ASC Review, 2/19/2021)
In its Physician Compensation Report 2020, Physicians Thrive projected demand increases for physicians in three medical specialties of at least twice as much over the next seven years as the remaining four on its high-demand list.
The financial advisory group said it expects demand for psychiatrists, family physicians and surgeons to increase by 16%, 10% and 8%, respectively, by 2028. Meanwhile, anesthesiologists and internists should see demand increases of 4%, while demand for “OB-GYNs” and pediatricians should grow by 2%.
Data sources included the Bureau of Labor Statistics Occupational Outlook Handbook; Salary.com; and physician compensation studies by Doximity, Medscape, and Merritt Hawkins.
Again, here are the seven medical specialists projected to see the greatest demand increases through 2028:
- Psychiatrists: +16 percent
- Family practitioners: +10 percent
- Surgeons: +8 percent
- Anesthesiologists: +4 percent
- Internists: +4 percent
- OB-GYNs: +2 percent
- Pediatricians: +2 percent
All News Is Locums
MPLT Healthcare Promotes Liz Hale to President
(Edited from PR Newswire, 2/17/2021)
MPLT Healthcare has promoted Senior Vice President Liz Hale to president of the company, reporting to Founder and CEO Jay Mays.
“Liz has become an unparalleled asset to the organization — the heart and soul of the company — and I’m grateful for her unyielding drive and passionate leadership, which have helped us get to where we are today,” Mays said. “I congratulate Liz on this well-deserved promotion.”
Hale will now oversee all company operations, spearheading the company’s aggressive growth plan. With more than 27 years of healthcare staffing experience, she previously served as vice president for three nationally recognized staffing firms. A NALTO® (National Association of Locum Tenens Organizations®) board member, she currently chairs the Credentialing Committee.
All Star Promotes Kennedy, Celebrates Elka Wiley-Mills, MD
(Edited from PR Newswire, 2/11/2021 and 2/22/2021)
All Star Healthcare Solutions℠ has promoted Lee Kennedy to vice president, Operations & Technology. Having joined All Star in 2017, Kennedy brings what All Star CEO Keith Shattuck termed “unparalleled energy and passion for the work we do.”
Shattuck also highlighted the company’s recently presenting its “All Star Cares” award (virtually) to Elka Wiley-Mills, MD., a neurologist with whom the company has partnered for more than eight years.
“With remarkable resilience throughout the COVID-19 pandemic, Dr. Wiley-Mills has worked diligently to deliver urgently needed care to patients who might otherwise go without it,” Shattuck said. “We are humbled to call her an honored member of our All Star family.”
Determined by All Star’s executive committee based on nominations from clients, clinicians and employees, the “All Star Cares” award symbolizes the company’s philosophy in connecting quality providers with patients, while supporting clients and communities.
The Healthcare Staffing Story
Health Carousel Acquires Physician Staffing Firm Medpath
(Edited from SIA Daily News, 2/11/2021)
Health Carousel has announced its acquisition of Medpath, a provider of in-house physician recruitment and HR services based in Trumbull, Conn. Founded in 2010 by Timothy Kouble, the company will continue operating under its own brand name, joining NextLocums, Onyx MD, Lucidity, and Vitruvian Medical as part of Health Carousel’s locum tenens portfolio.
“We are pleased to welcome Medpath to our Health Carousel family and are confident the Medpath team and their Physician Recruitment Optimization Systems (PROS) will enhance our offerings to clients,” Health Carousel CEO Bill DeVille said.
Medpath represents Health Carousel’s sixth acquisition in the locum tenens space since 2015.
Cross Country Appoints Nurse/Allied Ops President
(Edited from SIA Daily News, 1/26/2021)
Cross Country Healthcare Inc. (NASDAQ: CCRN) announced that John Martins has joined the company as group president, nurse and allied.
With more than 15 years of healthcare staffing experience, Martins served as senior VP of operations strategy at Aya Healthcare Inc. from November 2017 to January 2020, where he focused on Aya’s per diem and locums businesses. An executive with Onward Healthcare for seven years, Martins held several positions with the company including president, reporting to Cross Country CEO Kevin Clark, who also co-founded Onward.
“John has been an industry-leading executive for many years, is well known throughout the industry and has a proven track record for driving growth and profitable results,” Clark said. “I am excited to work with him again — along with our entire team — to enter our next phase of growth and market leadership.”
Onward Healthcare was acquired by AMN Healthcare Services Inc. (NYSE: AMN) in January 2015. Martins served as senior VP and general manager at AMN where he was responsible for its per diem and international staffing businesses through October 2017.
Boca Raton, Florida-based Cross Country ranks as the fifth-largest healthcare staffing firm in the US.
News to Use
The Locum Tenens Guy Offers Coaching
“Physicians seriously considering locum tenens after residency are running out of time to search for assignments and get their documents, licensing, DEA registration and insurance ready,” according to “The Locum Tenens Guy,” Vlad Dzhashi, MD. That’s why in March he’s offering small-group coaching to help get them prepared.
Limited to three or fewer participants, each virtual coaching session (via Zoom or GoogleMeet) will last two to three hours with a couple of breaks included. Dzhashi is keeping the groups small to allow time to answer participants’ questions thoroughly.
His coaching will include:
- How To Prepare For A Successful Locum Tenens Career: getting licenses, DEA registration; establishing a “safety net;” tips and tricks for purchasing health, life and disability insurance; tax considerations and, most importantly, a timeline to ensure participants will be ready to start on time.
- How to Make the Most of the Locum Tenens Experience: where and how to find the best jobs, how to stay busy with locum tenens gigs, and how to negotiate top pay.
- Followup Resources Available Only Through the Coaching Program:
- Referral to an experienced locum tenens CPA at a 10% discount for tax advice.
- Referral to a trusted legal adviser for contract review.
- Access to a database of recommended locum tenens agencies with contact information.
- Lifetime access to malpractice liability data for all 50 states to guide participants toward “physician-friendly” locations.
- Personalized support: after the coaching session participants have a month to follow up with Dzhashi by phone or email.
Check out what physicians he’s coached had to say here. Click here to reserve a spot.
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How ‘Bout This?
A mindfulness program reduced healthcare professionals’ burnout by 27 percent, according to a recent study published in Global Advances in Health and Medicine. Researchers at Columbus-based Ohio State University Wexner Medical Center and OSU College of Medicine compared burnout, resilience, stress and work engagement levels for 267 participants before and after participation in a mindfulness program. After completion of the eight-week Mindfulness in Motion program, there was a significant reduction in burnout and increases in personal accomplishment, resilience and work engagement. Perceived stress levels also decreased.
Following the results, the lead researcher developed a series of short mindfulness videos for OSU healthcare workers which now have more than 19,500 collective views. Researchers plan to collaborate with the state’s hospital association to train other hospitals to use the program.
