Finding a PICU job after fellowship

[crazykarl801]

Hey out there, I've done some looking on this forum and online and there is very little in terms of advice approaching finding that first pediatric intensivist job after fellowship. Specifically someone who is not doing further training in neruocrit or PCICU. I do have a masters in medical education, but in general are there some do's and don't out there. Do people use recruiters or are they just sharks? Do people just find postings online? I know using your training center as a resource something a lot of people talk about. Whats a realistic starting salary for a new intensivist? I'd prefer an academic center vs a smaller or private unit, but is there a difference in terms of how to find these jobs or is the idea the same? Do people have good resources out there by way of online articles or something? Just thought this topic deserved a post since there is so little out there. I know a lot this comes down to what you want to do after fellowship but I'm trying to keep it broad so this will apply to many people as possible. Thanks.

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[SurfingDoctor]

Hey out there, I've done some looking on this forum and online and there is very little in terms of advice approaching finding that first pediatric intensivist job after fellowship. Specifically someone who is not doing further training in neruocrit or PCICU. I do have a masters in medical education, but in general are there some do's and don't out there. Do people use recruiters or are they just sharks? Do people just find postings online? I know using your training center as a resource something a lot of people talk about. Whats a realistic starting salary for a new intensivist? I'd prefer an academic center vs a smaller or private unit, but is there a difference in terms of how to find these jobs or is the idea the same? Do people have good resources out there by way of online articles or something? Just thought this topic deserved a post since there is so little out there. I know a lot this comes down to what you want to do after fellowship but I'm trying to keep it broad so this will apply to many people as possible. Thanks.

PEDSCCM.org

PedsCCM: The Web Site for Pediatric Critical Care Medicine

pedsccm.org

You can cold call or email a place, though generally you won’t get a response or youll get “Thanks for your interest. We’ll let you know”, which means there’s no position available and unlikely to be. Personally phone calls from attendings goes much further. I got a handful of fellows jobs at a previous institute by calling up the chief.

Starting salaries are institution dependent. The bigger the institute, typically the lower the salary but it’s not by a big margin. Academic starting positions in the 180-200k range and private practice is in 250k range. Pediatrix is the largest group, but there’s Kaiser on the west coast. HCA is also a big private employer.

There’s also locums position that can pay quite a bit if the place is desperate enough and you’re willing to not be locked down. I once saw one for like 10k/week. It was in the middle of nowhere though. Granted, that was an outlier, but locums pays more because the places are always in need of people urgently.

 

[PTPoeny]

I had a bunch of recruiters call me after I signed up for an online job site at the request of a job I was applying for. They... vary in quality. I had one ask if I was looking for inpatient or outpatient pediatric critical care jobs... Many were selling specific jobs that turned out to be combined ICU/floors. I didn't find any of the free range recruiters helpful. There are recruiters employed by specific hospitals and they are very helpful in terms of getting in touch with the right people and raining like responding to emails in a reasonable time period.

 

[crazykarl801]

Thanks for your input guys!

 

[BigRedBeta]

In addition to the Peds CCM board, it's reasonable to put together a list of places based on location, unit size, and career trajectory (and any considerations that your spouse or family might have) that you would consider ending up at, then taking that list to your faculty and seeing if they know people at any of those locations. Academic facilities are usually horrible about advertising positions, so sometimes a friendly phone call reveals positions that no one realizes are actually open. But as @SurfingDoctor said, you may still very well end up empty handed. Be realistic about what you want though, as it's not worth anyone's time to inquire for a position you have no real intention of taking (eg, if you're not prepared to publish multiple articles a year, don't worry about CHOP and Boston).

Would recommend looking at the careers sections of the corporate websites if you want to the fullest picture of PP jobs. My own practice ran into problems with Mednax only posting our opening on their corporate site and not PedsCCM job board despite the fact that they post tons of other jobs on there.

 

[michigangirl]

You need to turn to your PICU faculty for connections or knowledge they have as a start. Often the only way to get a a foot in the door is to be recommended by a known entity-- this is particularly true for a job at ANY academic center. There a several PICUs currently expanding beds/moving into new larger buildings that will be looking to expand, but you have to fill a niche they are seeking or bring something unique to the table that is compelling to them. If you're looking for primarily private practice jobs, then recruiters are fine. But in academics, recruiters are rarely the answer. Good luck.

 

[Stitch]

As above. Your faculty need to advocate for you, but also don't be afraid to reach out, especially if there's somewhere you really want to be. If you're thinking academic, you'll have to show them you can fill some niche they need. For example, I'm the ECMO guy at my shop and I do a fair amount of QI in general. If they already had an ECMO leader who didn't want help or something like that, it would have been a more difficult fit. Make sure you know how you want to fit in. Fellowship projects are a great 'in' but you don't have to be married to that project for life. Do you have a cover letter ready?