$500K job offer. What's the catch?

[spartak]

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I was very serious. It was a real offer for $500.000 a year, it was not a typo. Somebody asked about location. It's in Texas. Somebody assumed that it's a prison. No it is not. So, this is not the catch. But what????

Would you recommend me to go for the interview or just forget about it because it's too good to be true?

 

[Apollyon]

Dude - at no point did I "assume" that it was a prison job. If you use the same level of scrutiny to examine the job offer as you did looking at my post, then maybe you might want someone else to look at the offer to make sure you're not missing any salient points. Good luck.

 

[TexasPhysician]

I was very serious. It was a real offer for $500.000 a year, it was not a typo. Somebody asked about location. It's in Texas. Somebody assumed that it's a prison. No it is not. So, this is not the catch. But what????

Would you recommend me to go for the interview or just forget about it because it's too good to be true?

$500.000 a year? You are getting ripped off. I can make more than that in a day. Or did you mean $500,000? Commas and periods make a big difference. 🙂

 

[SnowyRox]

$500.000 a year? You are getting ripped off. I can make more than that in a day. Or did you mean $500,000? Commas and periods make a big difference. 🙂

Never go to France.

 

[digitlnoize]

I was very serious. It was a real offer for $500.000 a year, it was not a typo. Somebody asked about location. It's in Texas. Somebody assumed that it's a prison. No it is not. So, this is not the catch. But what????

Would you recommend me to go for the interview or just forget about it because it's too good to be true?

Where in Texas? Can we get more details? So far, we've got:

Geriatrics.
Texas.
Not a prison.
30h/week
20 pt/day
Inpatient + Outpatient
500k/yr

Texas is a very big state, and there's a huge difference between "Near Dallas Texas" and "Middle of Nowhere Texas".

If I had to guess, there's something fishy. The salary could be a typo. If the salary is correct, it's either >30h/week, or >20pt/day, or both. There's no way you're generating enough profit to pay your salary at that pace.

 

[nitemagi]

I would investigate whether it's a guaranteed salary or "potential earnings up to."

 

[whopper]

Twenty patients a day at 30 hours a week, that's too many IMHO if this is an inpatient facility. Now if that 20 includes outpatient too then it's understandable.


Only way I can see this not being a scam, typo error, or something deceptive (as mentioned above maybe it really means you can earn UP TO 500K, provided you work 100 hrs a week!) is if this is a private facility where they are charging uber-bucks, but trust me on this, I work in one as part of my gig with the university hospital I'm at, and I'm not getting paid any more money because of it. The extra money goes into maintaining some pretty high end facilities and being able to give patients extensive one-on-one care.

I would take up the interview if only to satisfy my curiosity on just WTF is going on with this job offer, and how could a place pay this much money. From a business perspective, if the offer was real, I'd try to figure out how they do it, and the job interview could reveal that. Hey, if it's in an interesting part of TX, you could use the trip as a tax-deductible vacation by staying in town a day or two.

I recall speaking at a lecture at the American Academy of Forensic Sciences and going to one of the most expensive restaurants in the country knowing the dinner was tax-deductible.

 

[spartak]

OK, guys, that's the deal. The money is real, no typo. The catch is that they offer nothing more, just money. No medical insurance, no life, no disability, no pension plan. NOTHING!

Considering all that and the fact that now I have a fantastic package and make enough money to put me in top 20% in our specialty, I said "Thanks, but no thanks".

 

[whopper]

Considering all that and the fact that now I have a fantastic package and make enough money to put me in top 20% in our specialty, I said "Thanks, but no thanks".

It still sounds like a good deal to me even without the benefits. A thought crossed my mind. The state hospital I worked at (that I enjoyed working at) has a deal where you put in 25 years, you get half the average of your last 2 years salary for the rest of your life plus lifetime benefits.

I could do my own money making plan (state job + private practice) do the minimum needed with the state to get full-time benefits, rake in money from PP, then pull out of PP after 23 years, work over-time at the state hospital for 2 years (e.g. get the future equivalent of 225K a year) and then have a pension of 114.5 K a year for the rest of my life, work free.

Hmm, mulling the idea but I'd have to leave the job I have where I get to teach and work beside some of the best doctors in the field....

 

[spartak]

It still sounds like a good deal to me even without the benefits.

Why? If I put off money for medical insurance for my family, life insurance ( now I get 1 million, now questions asked for like $30 dollars a month), pension plan, etc, I would get approximately (give or take) the same amount of money that I have now. Besides, here I get pretty significant raise every year and I earn some extra money in a hospital nearby. I don't see this offer to be very attractive in a long run.

 

[Bartelby]

I have to wonder if this is a troll. 30 hours a week, salaried, half a million dollars a year? And even if you are making a quarter million right now with benefits, you think that other quarter million can't buy you insurance and a retirement plan?

Unless that offer is coming from a drug cartel looking to pay for their own private doc in cash, I just don't understand how you could get so much for so little.

 

[whopper]

Same thoughts here. Private pension plans exist, for that amount of money paying into insurance wouldn't be a big deal, Obamacare may come into play, and if benefits were the big issue, I'd try to find a place like my old state job where one did not have to work full time for benefits to supplement that job if benefits were what was at stake.

 

[michaelrack]

. The state hospital I worked at (that I enjoyed working at) has a deal where you put in 25 years, you get half the average of your last 2 years salary for the rest of your life plus lifetime benefits.

I could do my own money making plan (state job + private practice) do the minimum needed with the state to get full-time benefits, rake in money from PP, then pull out of PP after 23 years, work over-time at the state hospital for 2 years (e.g. get the future equivalent of 225K a year) and then have a pension of 114.5 K a year for the rest of my life, work free.
....

The pension sounds nice, assuming that the state doesn't go bankrupt, cut pensions, etc.

 

[dl2dp2]

This thread really benefits from the sensationalistic tagline. 😀

 

[upright]

If my professional competition consists of people thinking 500k/yr for a 30hr work week is a poor choice because of lack of benefits, I think I chose the right specialty.

 

[whopper]

Okay, trying to be fair here, and because I have been falsely accused on the forum before of citing an untrue story (after I mentioned a few problematic cases---hmm, who hasn't had any of those but I guess in the accuser's mind everything goes perfect in this field)....

Perhaps Spartak is telling the truth, but the problem on my end is that means his current job is about 450K+ with benefits (unless some of those benefits are way above the norm such as a company sports car). That's the only way I can see his 500K job being not on par with his current one, earning potential alone.

Yes, moving, being in a new place, leaving friends and valued colleagues at work, this and that could make a job that makes more money not worth it, but that's not what was communicated.

Spartak no offense. If this job is real and you decided not to take it why not mention it here on the board since I'm sure there are people here who'd be interested. Heck, I'd be if only to figure out how they can pay a person that much.

 

[TexasPhysician]

If this job is real and you decided not to take it why not mention it here on the board since I'm sure there are people here who'd be interested. Heck, I'd be if only to figure out how they can pay a person that much.

Exactly. If the job were real, it would be posted. For 500k, there should be a real need, and why not help the company out?

 

[whopper]

....
The pension sounds nice, assuming that the state doesn't go bankrupt, cut pensions, etc.

Very true...
But, the odds the state would go bankrupt, while seemingly higher in the last few years with all this government debt talk, IMHO is still worth betting that it won't happen. From my understanding in California, they haven't cut doctor's pay despite their fiscal problems, they cut several services instead. If the state were bankrupt to the degree where it'd affect my pay, I'd speculate it'd be on the order of Greece, and if it got that bad, I don't know if pensions would even be what I was worrying about. I think I'd be more on the order of loading up my home with weapons, a supply of food, and military survival guides.

But, you're definitely right on the cutting the pensions issue. Once you're locked in, you're locked in, that is once the pension starts, but the the problem with this plan is up until the retirement the state could get rid of this pension plan. I could for for the state for 23 years and then they get rid of their 25 year pension plan.

 

[cleareyedguy]

Anybody who's getting offered a job for that money should be able to figure out the problems with it. Further, I have serious doubts about any job that would be paying so much over our going rate and then not paying for retirement or benefits. I'm fairly sure, therefore, that the posting was untrue. If it's not, I apologize, but in the meantime, I/ll think it was typed up just to be provocative.

 

[michaelrack]

. If the state were bankrupt to the degree where it'd affect my pay, I'd speculate it'd be on the order of Greece, and if it got that bad, I don't know if pensions would even be what I was worrying about. I think I'd be more on the order of loading up my home with weapons, a supply of food, and military survival guides.

.

It may get that bad, and when this country goes off a financial cliff in a few years, I agree that pensions ( and retirement accts/other paper assests) will be the least of our worries. I recommend adding physical gold/silver to the list you provided, though ultimately weapons and food will be more valuable.

 

[billypilgrim37]

It may get that bad, and when this country goes off a financial cliff in a few years, I agree that pensions ( and retirement accts/other paper assests) will be the least of our worries. I recommend adding physical gold/silver to the list you provided, though ultimately weapons and food will be more valuable.

And some haldol to go along with all that paranoia... 😉

 

[digitlnoize]

And some haldol to go along with all that paranoia... 😉

He is not alone. I don't think it's out of the question, although the exact reason for the collapse is up for debate. Myself? I've been playing lots of Fallout 3 to prep my combat and tactical skills.

Things of Value: Guns, Water, Food, Shelter, Medicine, Transportation.

I think things would have to collapse pretty far to get to this point, and I'm not going so far as the people in the link below, but it's not so far out of the realm of possibility that I'd write it off as paranoia. Which brings up an interesting question about our patients who have these beliefs. Are they paranoia, or not?

http://www.youtube.com/results?sear...0.781l2029l0l3155l7l7l0l2l2l0l104l396l3j2l5l0

 

[whopper]

Well the problem IMHO with gold now is gold is the way to go when things go down the tubes. It's possible the country might have a turn-around. I was very gung-ho on gold 10 years ago until about 8 years ago and from there on my opinion went from "outperform" to "hold."

I figure the country the way it is will cause enough people to demand real improvements, but then again, so far I'm not seeing it.

Maybe I ought to buy a gun, get top-of-the-line security doors, and have a month's supply of food and fuel in the basement just in case. No I'm not going that route but unless things like spending is cut I can see Greece-like situation be a possibility. As Bill Maher said, everything that happens in the US happens in California five years first and they couldn't balance their budget and had to dump a bunch of services.

in the meantime, I/ll think it was typed up just to be provocative.

The forum in the last few months has had a few members (perhaps all the same person) request methods to make money with occasional comments to the effect of --why do you people care too much about providing good care, why not cut corners to make some more money?- Each person was on the forum for a short period of time with hardly any previous posts.

While Spartak may not be that same person, it's circumstantial (though nothing more) evidence that something may be going on. Circumstantial is enough to raise suspicion but at this point it's nothing more than that.

 

[Ibid]

The forum in the last few months has had a few members (perhaps all the same person) request methods to make money with occasional comments to the effect of --why do you people care too much about providing good care, why not cut corners to make some more money?- Each person was on the forum for a short period of time with hardly any previous posts.

While Spartak may not be that same person, it's circumstantial (though nothing more) evidence that something may be going on. Circumstantial is enough to raise suspicion but at this point it's nothing more than that.

My sad suspicion is that they are genuine and that is what is going on is people formulating plans for an easy life.

You have posted before that a lot of psychiatrists are poor at what they do. Probably for the very reason that they saw a chance to cut corners and make some easy money or got lazy at some point which is the same thing.

If psychiatry is attracting intelligent but lazy people (as well as the best) from the get go then those posts explain themselves. imo

 

[Ibid]

Never go to France.

Can't argue with that. Good advice.

 

[Shufflin]

I'm digressing for a second here. I'm not convinced more lazy med students pursue psychiatry than those pursuing pathology, derm, peds, family med, internal med, neurology, rads, even anesthesiology. In fact, my classmates going into psych are all extremely bright and have solid reasons for going into it, and I know others going into anesthesia who just want to sit and watch monitors.

I just don't buy into the stereotypes. Based on personal experience, the psych students at my institution including the residents are the coolest and friendliest group with high scores.

On the other had I do understand that lifestyle is a big draw for psych, and rightfully so. Anyhow, back to the $500K topic.

 

[whopper]

For the first time ever, I have not seen that stereotype within a large group but only in a very high upscale private facility that is run by Paul Keck, has 3 of the best doctors in the country (literally ranked that), and the rest of the staff including psychiatrists, psychologists, nurses, and social workers were hand-picked as the best ones in the country or the local area.

I've seen lazy and bad doctors in every field, but from my own perspective and biased opinions, lazy is a bit more in psychiatry. E.g. I've never seen anyone ever want to go into surgery to have an easy life, nor anyone have that opinion go into IM, Ob-Gyn, or FP. I did, however, see quite a few residents specifically go into psychiatry so they could have easier calls. That does not diminish the legitimacy of the field. Bad is pretty much equally prevalent in all fields. I've seen plenty of bad neurologists (unfortunately one is the consultant I have to deal with at my hospital!), surgeons, Ob-Gyn doctors, PCPs, etc. I wouldn't call them lazy but I would call them bad.

Further, I have no problem with someone wanting an easier life, just don't do bad work. You want to work 30 hours a week? Do it. More power to you, just do good work during those 30 hours. I'm not defining lazy as that. I'm defining lazy as someone who had no passion to be in the field to begin with and wanting an easier time, and doing poor work. At least a guy who doesn't want to work much, but does do good work knows what he wants and doesn't push a bad service.

If you're not seeing it, then you might be in a very good immediate surrounding.