How Physicians Stay Active in Their Profession Tips
Read these 7 How Physicians Stay Active in Their Profession Tips tips to make your life smarter, better, faster and wiser. Each tip is approved by our Editors and created by expert writers so great we call them Gurus. LifeTips is the place to go when you need to know about Physician Jobs tips and hundreds of other topics.
Pair Up Your Physician Job With Your Personality
One of the keys to staying active and satisfied in your physician job is finding the best physician jobs that suit your personality.
Consider these points when assessing your next move in your medical career:
- Do I like a bustling, fast-paced environment, or do I want a more personal relationship with patients?
- Do I want to live in an urban, suburban or rural area?
- Do I prefer caring for particular age groups?
- Do I want to become an expert in a specific medical niche, or would I like to work as a generalist and see all types of illnesses and injuries?
These points may sound simple, but sorting through endless lists of physician jobs can be tedious. Talk to a physician staffing consultant about what factors are important to you in the job of a physician, and he or she can identify opportunities targeted to your personal and professional goals. Whether you are seeking something as general as a family practice job or an ER physician job, or as specific as pediatric endocrinology, you will be happiest in a job that suits your nature and your lifestyle preferences.
Network Know-How Helps You Stay Active In Medicine
Regardless of your medical specialty, networking is important to the development of your medical career. But networking is especially helpful if you are interested in physician executive positions.
Many healthcare executives don't have medical degrees, and you may face more competition for jobs than you did when seeking a job in your medical specialty. But keep these networking tips in mind to enhance your chances of landing the best physician jobs:
- Go online. Online networking sites such as LinkedIn and even Facebook are becoming acceptable ways to contact people about career opportunities.
- Join the club. Join an organization of healthcare executives and express your interest in finding physician executive positions. It's also a good way to stay current on the issues facing hospital executives today, which will come in handy in an interview.
- Streamline your search. A specialized physician staffing agency can save you time and hassle by identifying physician executive positions that meet your criteria for location, hours and salary.
On The Move With Emergency Medicine
Emergency medicine jobs, or EM physician jobs, are always in demand in any location. This is a bonus if you like to stay active in your job by working in a variety of emergency medicine settings. There are EM physician jobs in urban areas, rural areas and towns of every size in between.
Do you want to spend some time in a small town, or do you crave the patient mix that might come with an urban emergency department? Also consider factors outside of staying active in your career that can impact your choices if you decide to change locations, such as the cost of living and how well the opportunities for leisure in a certain area match your personal interests.
Love to golf? Check out EM physician opportunities for short-term work in North Carolina.
Want a big house? Look for mid-sized cities with opportunities for career enhancement but without the big-ticket home prices of areas such as Boston or New York.
A specialized medical staffing agency can help you pinpoint the emergency physician job in the location of your choice.
Take Your Medical Career To The Executive Level
Some physicians want to stay active in the medical profession, but they want to take a short-term or long-term break from clinical practice. Some may be burned out and frustrated with managed care and insurance issues, while others may want more flexibility or the opportunity to work from home.
Physician executive positions are among the many non-clinical options for doctors, especially those who want to stay connected to a hospital setting. But keep in mind that the job of a physician in a hospital executive role will likely pay less than what you make in clinical practice, depending on your specialty. Most healthcare executive salaries are in the low six figures, which is about equal to a family physician job.
Physician executive positions require strong interpersonal skills—you'll need to deal not only with other doctors, but with lawyers, the public, the news media and, in some cases, the corporate ownership of a hospital. It can be challenging work, but also somewhat recession-proof. There are hospitals of all sizes throughout the country, and they all need leadership.
Perk Up Your Physician Career With A Locum
The best physician jobs are those that keep doctors interested and engaged, but sometimes a short-term change of scenery can provide a fresh perspective on the job of a physician, which can help you stay active in your career.
Every so often, even physicians who love their jobs get the urge to expand their professional boundaries for career development, especially when the economy is uncertain. A locum tenens position is a chance to keep your career fresh by treating a different mix of patients and by observing other colleagues. You may get inspired to make a change in your full-term employment, or you may simply return with a fresh perspective to your current position.
A specialized physician staffing agency can help you find a locum tenens medical position. And physician staffing consultants who know your specialty can identify opportunities at the type of facility you'd like to experience and for the type of work you'd like to pursue to perk up your physician job.
Locum Tenens Buffs Season-Specific Emergency Medicine Skills
Emergency medicine jobs, or EM physician jobs, are by nature diverse—you never know what emergency is going to come in the door. But if you live in certain areas, there are some emergencies that you aren't likely to see. For example, if your EM physician job is in Florida, you aren't likely to see patients with frostbite or hypothermia. But a seasonal EM locum tenens position offers a chance to stay active in your specialty by treating different types of emergencies. And of course you can plan a seasonal EM locum in Colorado to correspond with a ski vacation.
Treating different types of emergency conditions helps keep you actively engaged in your profession. Not only will you learn new skills or refresh underused ones, but you can share your clinical pearls with colleagues. Talk to a specialized physician staffing agency about how to find a seasonal emergency position that will enhance your career.
Go Global With Locum Tenens Jobs
If you want a challenging, yet rewarding way to re-energize your medical career, consider an internal medicine locum tenens overseas in an underserved area, such as Uganda or Haiti. Explore opportunities for overseas practice through programs sponsored by American medical schools, or through religious or private charities. The options are endless.
But how can you maintain your professional foothold in the U.S.? Try alternating a U.S. internal medicine locum tenens with periodic overseas travel. A U.S.-based internal medicine locum helps you keep current with the latest clinical techniques in the U.S. that you can use overseas. And when you return from an overseas locum, you can share your insights with your U.S. colleagues.
A specialized physician staffing agency can help you find the best physician jobs if you are only in the U.S. for short periods of time between overseas practice jaunts. Or, physician staffing consultants can help if you will be in the U.S. for a longer period but don't want to commit to a full-time position, so you will be able to travel overseas again on short notice.
| Guru Spotlight |
| William Pirraglia |
