New Locum Life article: “The Many Faces of ‘Me’ Time”

I’M PLEASED TO SHARE my first new article for Locum Life magazine, Advanstar’s publication for locum tenens physicians: “The Many Faces of ‘Me’ Time: How Locum Tenens Doctors Balance Work and Life.” An excerpt:

Fishing, hiking, tourism and, of course, golf—the activities often cited as the benefits of a locum tenens lifestyle might seem like the stuff of a dream retirement. Locum tenens work definitely allows mobile providers to schedule these and other interests while developing their careers, pursuing their passion for caregiving, and even touring the country to try out prospective retirement locales.

Whether you’re new to locum tenens and need ideas for your days off, or a veteran traveler whose assignments are crowding your spare time, there are many unique ways to complement your medical practice above and beyond the aforementioned stereotypes: becoming an entrepreneur, pursuing an artistic dream, or even volunteering. And workaholics take note: Your recruiter actually wants you to take some time for yourself. It engenders safer medical practice, helps you avoid burnout, and can increase your long-term job satisfaction.

This one also appears in LL‘s March 2010 print edition, which you can see in digital form here. I’d written two articles for Locum Life‘s companion publication on the travel nursing industry, Healthcare Traveler, so this breaks some new ground for me in the temporary medical-staffing field. I interviewed working locum tenens physicians and recruiters from the locum placement industry to get a sense of how doctors found time to breathe—and what their recruiters did to ensure their docs actually did so from time to time. One of the most surprising findings was that locum work’s flexible scheduling actually granted one physician who took contracts out of state more contact with his family than he had enjoyed while working in a local hospital!

I actually just submitted an article for LL‘s April 2010 issue, and I was fortunate enough to be assigned a story for May’s LL as well. Watch this space for links. And if you’re looking for a writer with some recent research and contacts in the healthcare staffing and recruiting industry, drop me an email!

Did you enjoy this post? Why not leave a comment below and continue the conversation, or subscribe to my feed and get articles like this delivered automatically to your feed reader.

Comments

No comments yet.

Leave a comment

(required)

(required)