Farr Healthcare - Physiatry Job Openings, Physiatry Job Opportunities & Physiatry Practice Opportunities

Usually, I don’t recommend a cover letter.    Most of the individuals who review curricula vitae do not have the time to review more than the curricula vitae.  The only time I would recommend a cover letter is if you have something to feature about yourself which isn’t in your curriculum vitae.

I can’t provide you with a sample cover letter as it has to be specific to you but what follows is a sample of a cover letter minus your specifics.  It might be helpful to include your philosophy of practice and goals, if you know enough about the practice that you’re sure they’re a match with it.

Date

Name and Address to whom you are sending the letter

Dear ____________:

I would very much like to learn more about your practice opportunity, to include your needs and the goals of the opportunity.   I am certain I have the background and commitment to fill this position.

Body of the letter specific to your skills, experience, training, etc.

Thank you for your kind consideration.  I look forward to hearing from you.

Sincerely,

It’s that time of the year when you might be providing references to a practice or hospital that you’re considering starting work. Here’s some pointers from me based on past experience:

* Don’t include references on your CV. This posting enables the hiring entity to contact your references without telling you first. As a matter of professional courtesy, you should always tell your reference who might be calling or writing to them.

* Use the opportunity to pre-inform your references to also advise them of your skills as they relate to what the interests are of the hiring entity.

* Please make sure that your references will speak well of you. Have candid conversations in advance with them and ask if they feel comfortable providing you with a good to excellent reference.

Question from a Physiatrist Today:Is it a new and perhaps now ongoing item in contracts that if monies are due back for Medicare that the doctor employee will be responsible for his/her share?

Answer: No, the physician employee should not be responsible for anything after or during termination for this issue. This is a billing issue, that is unrelated and beyond his/her control. However, there would be one exception – if the physician is audited, and his/her documentation does not support the level of billing, and is then asking for a refund – then it could be on him/her. It depends on how the contract is written.
Answer contributed by Liz Lee, PRS, Inc., 817-284-9850, 1-800-324-4777, 817-907-0370 Mobile, Website: PRSinc.com

Sometimes I’m asked what the future holds in physiatry needs. When one considers that the vast majority of physiatry residents are going into interventional fellowships, one might conclude that the market demands this service and it is being satisfied. On the other hand, we may be at a saturation point of interventional specialists. One might also conclude that the need for inpatient physiatrists is growing even though some rehab units and facilities have or are in the process of closing.
The upcoming election will have a strong impact on the future needs. With Obamacare, one might predict very large health care systems like Kaiser. Either way, the matter of economies of scale predict large physiatry health care systems and large physician groups. Everything seems to be consolidating. Some solo practitioners have called me looking for work as it’s too dificult to maintain referrals and deal with the business side of the practice.
My stance is to provide a variety of services so that you are not affected by the downturn of any particular service. Census’s vary, the ability of private payments vary, and the payment for interventional services changes so, as such, one has to be flexible and responsive to the marketplace.

Recently a physiatrist who is considering making a practice change asked me what I would do with her cv.  As is the norm, she and I talked and I shared information in writing with her about the practice opportunities of potential information with her.  This is my routine procedure.  I find out where  and about what you have an interest.  If I have matching practice opportunities, I present them to you and provide them to you in writing.  I always want you to know as mmuch about the opportunity as I do.  I then follow-up with you in a few days to see what you think about the practice opportunity(s).  It is at this point that I ask for your cv if you respond that you are interested in the opportunity(s). 

I’ve written earlier that you should hesitate to provide a cv to a recruiter unless they have done the same process as I described above.   I do not circulate any doctor’s cv to any practices.  Your cv is your possession so it shouldn’t be released without your knowledge.  Although it’s not my practice, some physician recruiters use a blind cv to canvas for potential practice opportunities.  Or, they present your cv before securing your agreement to do so.  Of course, this is not an ethical practice.   For this reason, I always advise against presenting your cv until you have heard about a specific opportunity and have an interest in it.

It is worthwhile, if not necessary, to document the job contacts you’ve made.  It’s best to start documenting this information when you start your practice search.  This is important too because the practice search process is often an extended one which takes months from start to finish.  Document who you talked with, when you talked with them, their contact information and what you talked about.

You will get alot of information about alot of different practice opportunities so it is important to have a process of retrieving it at a later date.  It can be a paper or an electronic storage system.   You should file it by each practice opportunity.

You may need to contact someone that you haven’t heard from in months.  Or, they may contact you and if you have taken notes and filed information, you will be able to talk from an informed point.  It’s always impressive when you can recall and provide information to the caller about the points of their opportunity.

It’s best to start looking for a new position as soon as you know you want a new position.  For residents, you should begin at the start of your senior year.   The job search process takes awhile – the time it takes to get a new state license, to obtain a contract from the employer, to negotiate a contract, etc.  NJ and CA are some states that take 6+ months to get a license.  Starting early as with everything is advantageous however some employers aren’t actively looking until October/November when the Annual AAPMR meeting occurs.

On the other hand, it’s never too late to start looking when you’re a resident because even if you start looking then, there will be positions available that for one reason or another haven’t been filled.  It’s not that all positions that have been available for awhile aren’t good.  Sometimes, the parties can’t come to a compromise or the practice settles on one doctor who then decides to take another position.

The best way to recruit for difficult geographic regions is to offer a great package deal, with partnership option after the 1^st year.   The offer should include a sign-on bonus, relocation reimbursement,  health insurance/life insurance/long term disability, the ability to keep 70% of what they collect, plus a guarantee of a base salary until they are actually receiving reimbursement for their services (probably 2 months),  4 weeks vacation and 1 week CME, plus a CME allowance.  Keep in mind that a lot of doctors don’t want a partnership – they simply want to share overhead and build the practice.  That is where the LLC comes in handy.  You can all practice under an umbrella wherein you all share expenses, but you eat what you kill.  That is an incentive to really work hard to build your part of the practice, and it will keep physicians there long-term. 

This blog was contributed by Elizabeth Lee, President, PRS, Inc, a physiatry practice management and billing company in TX, lizlee@prsinc.com, 800-324-4777.

Recruiting a physiatrist requires the attention of the hiring entity.  Here are some tips:

Make the candidate feel like they are the only one – Most candidates are considering a number of opportunities.  Beyond the concrete facts of the opportunity, the professionalism and warmth the candidate feels from the hiring entity will help steer the candidate to your opportunity.  A basket of items specific to your area waiting in the hotel room for the doctor is a great idea. 

Keep in touch with the candidate – The recruitment process often spans several months.  It is critical that you stay in contact with the doctor at least once a week during this time.   I will help in this process. 

Be prepared – Just as you expect the doctor interviewing to be prepared, you should be prepared also.  Have all the facts and figures of the opportunity at hand.  Try to be as informed as possible about your competition.  I can help with this aspect. Have a sample contract ready to give the candidate you choose.  Review the terms with the doctor and ask the doctor if he/she will accept it on these terms.   If not, identify the doctor’s concerns and needs.