Medical Staff

Recruiting hospitalists from residency

Hospitalist Leadership Connection, December 8, 2009

As the competition in hospitalist recruitment rises, compensation plans have become more creative. Many programs are willing to extend firm offers to second-year residents, even though the candidates are a year or more away from a start date.

To land commitments from candidates who have not yet finished their residency training, some hospitalist programs offer significant resident stipends. The hospitalist group or hospital pay the physician a monthly stipend until he or she completes training and is ready to begin work. These stipends typically range from $1,000–$1,500 per month and start when the candidate signs an employment agreement. Most residents are very appreciative of the extra income as they complete their training, when their income is low and their debt is mounting. The agreement usually requires a promissory note binding the candidate to repay the stipend with interest, if, for some reason, the resident does not fulfill his or her obligation to work for the employer.

Stipends are an excellent tool to fill a practice’s long-term recruiting needs. In many cases, stipends are less expensive than recruitment agencies’ fees. However, stipends are less effective when the need for hospitalists is more urgent.

The above excerpt is adapted from The Practical Guide to Hospitalist Recruitment and Retention, by Kirk Mathews, MBA, Foreword by John Nelson, MD, FACP, FHM.

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