quarterly career check-up//October, 2008

Locum Tenens for Medical Residents

As you finish a medical residency, the opportunities you have and choices you must make may seem daunting. Locum tenens offers an excellent opportunity to explore different practice settings, specialties, and locations before pursuing your first permanent job. As one of the country’s premiere locum tenens agencies, Linde Healthcare can help you kick start your career with temporary assignments.

Gaining Experience

As a physician fresh out of residency, gaining the most experience possible is essential to your future career development. Whether you want to explore practicing different types of medicine or you just need time to find the right opportunity, working as a locum tenens physician can offer inestimable value to your future career. By working locum tenens assignments, you will have the opportunity to explore different specialties, new procedures, unique technologies, and benefit from the knowledge of other physicians across the country.

In addition to the medical experience you will gain as a locum tenens practitioner, working locums assignments takes the guess work out of managing your career development by providing dedicated and knowledgeable recruitment consultants, malpractice insurance for working physicians, assistance in obtaining licenses and continuing medical education opportunities, as well as unique opportunities in a wide variety of locations.

Investigating Practice Settings

Many medical residents use locum tenens assignments not only to gain experience, but to determine exactly what type of practice setting suits them. Locum tenens assignments can range in length from a few days to several months and can be found in any practice setting, from a small rural hospital to a large metropolitan medical center. Locum tenens provides the flexibility you need to experience everything the world of medicine has to offer. Linde Healthcare even offers a wide range of government locum tenens contracts in Veterans hospitals and clinics across the country.

Preparing for the Transistion

As your residency draws to a close, transitioning in to your burgeoning medical career can be an overwhelming endeavor. Here are a few tips and resources that can help you make this process as smooth as possible:

• Prepare your curriculum vitae

  Your curriculum vitae (CV) is your most important asset during the job search process. Linde Healthcare can help you refine your CV with these essential tips for developing and protecting this important document.

• Define your personal and professional goals

  Having a clear understanding of your aims and ambitions is not as easy as it sounds. Take the time to make a list of everything you hope to accomplish over the next several years and use it as a basis for your job search process.

• Understand the physician interview process

  Conducting a successful interview will be one of your most essential skills. Read Linde Healthcare’s two part series, Successful Interviewing Tips, to learn the ins and outs of the interview process.

• Be an active member of the medical community

  Networking is an essential part of your medical career throughout your life. Establishing yourself in the medical community early will give you a jump start in your career development.

• Become licensed in multiple states

  Obtaining licenses in multiple states can help your job search prospects considerably. Linde Healthcare offers licensing and credentialing assistance to locum tenens physicians who work with us. Learn more about this process with Linde’s Quick Physician Credentialing and Licensure guide.

Getting Started

Linde Healthcare has dedicated, specialty-specific consultants waiting to discuss your career ambitions with you. To get started with Linde Healthcare, contact us at 1-866-480-3874 or by e-mail at today!