How important is moonlighting.

[seelee]

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So, I am torn between two programs who were pretty balanced in almost every aspect except for moonlighting. One program has in-house moonlighting which pays really well. The other program has no in-house moonlighting, though you can moonlight outside the hospital but you have to set it up on your own, get a license, and get malpractice insurance.

My question is how much weight would you put on moonlighting opportunities when choosing a residency program?

 

[lane]

We had in-house moonlighting where I trained. For those with financial obligations (ie kids), it was nice. For those with no financial obligations, like myself, it wasn't worth the $50/hour to sit in the hospital any more than I needed to. Of course it helped that my program paid really well considering the cost of living of the area it is located, so I didn't need the extra cash to live comfortably. So consider what that extra cash means to you and how much you'll be at work before the moonlighting begins.

 

[sevoflurane]

So, I am torn between two programs who were pretty balanced in almost every aspect except for moonlighting. One program has in-house moonlighting which pays really well. The other program has no in-house moonlighting, though you can moonlight outside the hospital but you have to set it up on your own, get a license, and get malpractice insurance.

My question is how much weight would you put on moonlighting opportunities when choosing a residency program?

It's near the bottom of the list of important aspects of a good residency.

 

[seelee]

I should mention that I am married with children.
Also, both programs gave a good vibe and are historically good programs. Cost of living is about the same in both places.

Program A is a "big name" program that also has everything that I want except that moonlighting is offsite and requires a commute of 30 min to an hour.

Program B is regionally well known, good vibe, strong program, etc. and has q7 call during CA1 and additional call is voluntary and pays $70/hr.

residents who moonlight can easily double their income.

 

[deleted126335]

I should mention that I am married with children.
Also, both programs gave a good vibe and are historically good programs. Cost of living is about the same in both places.

Program A is a "big name" program that also has everything that I want except that moonlighting is offsite and requires a commute of 30 min to an hour.

Program B is regionally well known, good vibe, strong program, etc. and has q7 call during CA1 and additional call is voluntary and pays $70/hr.

residents who moonlight can easily double their income.

Assuming that program A is not in the same geographic area as program B and you are strongly interested in living in program Bs region long term, I would take B.

Absent that criteria, I would take A. A few extra thousand dollars in residency is not worth taking a program that is second best or potentially opens fewer doors.

 

[afteranesthesia]

Program b sounds like Uab. Definitely a great place.

Do you have a location preference? Do you want academics as a career? I think you can do academics from Uab - the pd and the chair are amazing. They have a great program.

Obviously, I interviewed there too. Unsure what program a is but I would go more on fit, location and career goals. It's still somewhere you live for four years, so pick somewhere you like.

 

[BobBarker]

If you would be happy in Birmingham, choose UAB.

 

[Idiopathic]

if its important enough to you to need it, then you may find that external opportunities are a pain to arrange, schedule, and cover, and that an internal opportunity is infinitely eaiser to accomodate. i wouldnt place it ahead of strength of training, obviously.

 

[MilkmanAl]

Moonlighting was unimportant to me because I knew that no residency would ever pay the wage it'd require to get me to spend my precious free time doing more work. If I had a family, there's no way in hell I'd choose to be away from them unless it was for a ridiculous hourly rate. That said, it'd be nice to pick up some extra scratch for those awful days where you get Shanghaied into staying super late regardless of what you wanted to do, for whatever reason.

 

[seelee]

Good guess guys. So if it helps, program A is Mayo and Program B is UAB.

Does that change anyone's advice.

 

[Stank811]

I agree with everything already stated in that moonlighting is just an additional bonus after all the other important aspects of choosing a program are covered. I have a family and I can tell you that the extra 17000 a year is really nice for just doing a additional 24hrs/month of work. Our experience is OB call in house and when I work at night I usually am still able to get a descent nights sleep. It is a real nice option to have in a program as long as all your other criteria have been met in my opinion.

 

[Gern Blansten]

If UAB vs Mayo, already discussed extensively just a couple of weeks ago:
http://forums.studentdoctor.net/showthread.php?t=967084&highlight=mayo+UAB+anesthesia