Staff Care Survey: 77 Percent of Hospitals Report Using Physician 'Temps'

Temporary Primary Care Doctors in Greatest Demand

IRVING, Texas, March 31 /PRNewswire/ -- Physician "temps" -- or locum
tenens as they are known in Latin -- are now used by the majority of hospitals
in the U.S., a new survey indicates.
Conducted by Staff Care, the nation's largest temporary physician staffing
company, the survey looks at the use of locum tenens physicians at 730
hospitals and medical groups. Over three-quarters of those surveyed said
their facilities had used locum tenens physicians within the last 12 months,
while 54 percent said their facilities currently are seeking locum tenens
physicians. Hospitals and other healthcare organizations typically use locum
tenens physicians to fill in when there are gaps in the permanent staff, the
survey indicates.
"Locum tenens doctors are the Lone Rangers of medicine," notes Joseph
Caldwell, president of Staff Care. "They ride into town, take care of people
in need, then they ride off to their next assignment."
According to Caldwell, locum tenens physicians work temporary assignments
that can last from a few days up to a year. Some locum tenens physicians may
work just one or two temporary assignments a year, while others may work a
dozen assignments or more, Caldwell says.
Demand grows by over 20%
The survey also tracked which types of doctors are in most demand as temps
based on the kind of temporary physicians Staff Care's clients requested in
2007. Primary care physicians (i.e., family practitioners, general internists
and pediatricians) topped the list of the most requested medical specialties,
followed by anesthesia providers, behavioral health professionals,
radiologists and surgeons. In 2007, the number of requests Staff Care
received to fill temporary "physician days" increased by over 20 percent over
2006. According to Caldwell, demand for temporary physicians is being driven
by a national doctor shortage, which has left gaps in the permanent staffs of
many hospitals and medical groups.
Quality of care
The survey asked hospital and medical group managers to assess the general
skill level of locum tenens physicians. Seventy-six percent of those surveyed
rated the skill level of locum tenens physicians as either "good" or
"excellent," while 22 percent rated their skill level as "adequate." Only two
percent of those surveyed rated the skill level of locum tenens physicians as
"unsatisfactory."
In the same survey, Staff Care asked over 800 physicians who work as temps
about their temporary work experiences. Nineteen percent said they find locum
tenens to be more satisfying than permanent practice, 14 percent find locum
tenens to be less satisfying than permanent practice, while the majority
(67 percent) find locum tenens and permanent practice to be equally
satisfying.
A copy of Staff Care's 2008 Review of Temporary Physician Staffing Trends
can be found at http://www.staffcare.com.
About Staff Care
Staff Care is the largest temporary physician staffing company in the
United States. Staff Care provides temporary, independent contractor
physicians in all specialties, as well as temporary certified registered nurse
anesthetists, to hospitals, medical groups, government facilities, and other
health care organizations. Staff Care is a division of AMN Healthcare, the
largest healthcare staffing company in the United States.
SOURCE Staff Care

Phillip Miller, +1-469-524-1420, pmiller@mhagroup.com, for Staff Care