Want the freedom to practice surgery on your terms while making a meaningful impact? Locum tenens offers surgeons the unique opportunity to choose when and where they work, while earning a great income. Whether you’re looking to supplement your current schedule with extra work, transition to a new phase of your career, or simply explore different clinical settings—locums could be your next move.
To help you navigate this opportunity, we spoke with Michael DeJesus, Senior Consultant at Hayes Locums. As someone who partners with surgeons nationwide to find their ideal locum tenens opportunities, Michael shares insights on everything from choosing the right practice settings to preparing for your first assignment.
Ready to take the locums leap?
If you’re considering locums, now is the right time to reach out. Even if you’re not sure you’re ready to start working, starting the conversation can be a good way to help you think through what you’re looking for. Connect with a consultant today.
“As locums reps, our time is free,” Michael says. “I’m here to be a resource of knowledge and information. There are tons of surgeons that I’ve talked to about what locums looks like, answered all their questions, and it turns out it’s not the right time for them to find a new job. But I’m more than happy to do that, so we can hit the ground running when you are ready.”
What makes a good locum tenens surgeon?
It varies based on the assignment and the facility! Each hospital has unique requirements, so your consultant’s role is to match you with opportunities that align best with your desired schedule and skill set.
“Someone who’s looking to work two weeks a month is not going to be a great fit for a hospital that just needs weekend coverage, and a surgeon who has a full-time job and wants to pick up work on their free weekends is not going to be a good fit for the hospital that just lost their only surgeon and needs a lot of help. So It very much depends on the job,” Michael says.
There are, however, personality traits that can be beneficial when it comes to practicing as a locum tenens surgeon. “Flexibility is huge. Locums is constantly changing, and every hospital is different. So surgeons that are a bit more flexible are typically better suited for locums.”
What kind of hospital will I practice in?
Practice setting is one of the most important aspects your consultant considers when it comes to finding jobs that are the right fit.
That’s especially true of surgery, where a surgeon’s experience can vary depending on what types of hospitals they’ve practiced in. In larger hospitals, for instance, a surgeon might have more experience in trauma, but less experience in procedures like endoscopy, which is generally handled by a gastroenterologist in larger hospital systems. These are the types of details your consultant should be thinking about when it comes to what jobs will be the right fit for you.
“We try to keep you in similar practice settings as much as possible, because that’s where people are going to be comfortable,” Michael says. “If you’re a general surgeon that has been working in a community hospital for most of your career, we’re going to be looking at similar places––smaller community hospitals of 100 beds or less, where the surgeon wears many hats and does a lot bigger breadth of surgery. If you’re a surgeon who’s worked at bigger hospitals, we’re going to find other similar hospitals.”
How do you find the right locums tenens surgery job?
With the volume of locum jobs out there, it can be hard to know which one is right for you. But that’s where your locum consultant comes in––they take the time to get to know you, and have a deep understanding of the hospital and what candidates are best suited for the opening, all to make the best possible match between surgeons and hospitals.
Here’s how Hayes Locums consultants work to find the best fit:
- Taking the time to get to know your background and priorities. “When a new locums job comes out, I start with physicians who are licensed in that state––or are willing to work in that state––and by clinical skill set. Then I look at their preferences in terms of schedule and availability, to make sure they’re a good match for what the hospital needs,” Michael says.
- Being transparent about what the job involves. “When I approach a surgeon about a potential job, I make sure to tell them exactly what the hospital is looking for: clinical skills, salary, hospital setting, and how much time they need to commit to the role. Knowing those details helps, so you can see who will be a good fit for that specific job.”
- Prioritizing quality over quantity. “At Hayes Locums, we try not to drown a hospital in CVs. Sometimes we only send the hospital one CV, because we know that person is the right fit. But there’s other jobs where we might have five people that are equally qualified and could be a great fit for the hospital. We always want to do the work of finding the right fit, for both the physician and the hospital.”
No one wants to feel like a number to their recruiter. A good consultant will take the time to get to know you, and only send you the jobs that will be the best fit for you.
What should I look for in a locums consultant?
The best locums consultants take a relationship-driven approach rather than viewing it as a one-time transaction.
“A good locums relationship is a partnership between the provider and the consultant,” says Michael. “I know the names of the wives or husbands of most of my surgeons, and where they’re going on vacation. That relationship-building is important, because I know when locums is right for them, and when it’s not right for them.”
At Hayes Locums, our priority is always on relationships over the bottom line––and that relationship extends beyond the assignment.
“Even when I’m not actively working with a surgeon, that relationship persists. I’ll still call them every once in a while just to see how things are going. That’s one of the best things about locums—the relationships you build with both the hospitals and with the providers that you’re working with.”
How do I prepare for a locum tenens surgery assignment?
The best way to prepare is to start the process early! Credentialing can take time, so it’s best to start the conversation well in advance of when you want to start working. Your consultant can help you figure out what is needed for each job, so you can be prepared.
Here are some things to keep in mind:
- Give yourself plenty of lead time to look for jobs. “If you know you’re looking for a job in January, the time to reach out is not January 1st, or even December 1st,” Michael says. “For surgery, it’s probably best to start the conversation in September or earlier. Most hospitals are trying to plan 2-3 months out, and sometimes as much as 6 months. Even if you’re not sure you’re ready, if you start the conversation early, your consultant knows what you’re looking for, and when a job comes out that might be a good fit, we can talk about it well in advance, and then plan accordingly.”
- Make sure all of your necessary documents are easily accessible. “We have a checklist within our application, and I have a list of items that are commonly needed once we get close to confirming an assignment. This helps give my providers a head start, so instead of waiting until the last minute, they can prepare the documents that the hospital is most likely to ask for. Then we’re ready to go once the hospital is ready to move forward.”
- Leave time in your schedule for prep work. “It’s important to communicate what the schedule will look like so we can plan accordingly. I tell my doctors how long credentialing should take and specific paperwork deadlines that we’ll need to hit, and I ask about any time constraints on their end––for example, if they have a vacation planned during that time. That way, we can plan around those things, set realistic expectations, and make adjustments if needed.”
How much paperwork is involved in locum tenens?
Locum tenens assignments can come with a lot of paperwork, especially since each hospital and licensing boards have their own unique processes. But that’s where Hayes Locums can help. Your consultant, along with our credentialing and licensing teams, will guide you through every step of the process.
“It can be daunting if you’re a general surgeon who’s worked at the same hospital for 25 years, and now you’re entering semi-retirement to do locums,” Michael says. “You’ve had to renew your license, but you haven’t had to get a new medical license, and each state board is different and has their own requirements. So it’s a lot easier when you have someone who can tell you what’s needed versus having to figure it out on your own.”
At Hayes Locums, we start by credentialing each of our providers internally. Then, once it comes time to secure medical licenses and privileges for the hospital, we can use the information you provided upfront to prefill that paperwork.
“We try to avoid someone needing to do something more than once, because we know how tedious paperwork can be. Whatever we can fill out for you, we’ll fill out for you. For anything else, our licensing and credentialing departments will send step-by-step, easy instructions, because that’s what they do all day, every day. They’re very adept at knowing these processes.”
What are some of the biggest challenges of locum tenens surgery?
For most people, the biggest challenge of locum tenens is the uncertainty that comes with practicing somewhere new. But that can also be a benefit, because you get to do what you love, but in a new setting where you can expand your horizons.
“Most of the time, surgeons feel some anxiety about starting locums, because it’s unknown,” Michael says. “But I don’t think I’ve ever had a surgeon who tried out locums and came out of it saying, Oh, that was awful, I never want to do that again. Most of the time, when they try it, people find the work extremely enjoyable, because you get to meet new people and see how different hospitals do things.”
Although there may be initial anxiety about starting locum tenens work, most surgeons adapt quickly. This is because it aligns with their fundamental motivation for entering medicine: to help patients.
“Everything is going to be new because you’re working in a hospital you haven’t worked in before, and everyone does things differently. But at the end of the day, you’re still a surgeon, wherever you practice. Your job is to use your expertise to best serve the patients that need it.”
