Locum Tenens

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Pinky

and the Brain
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I have this weird fantasy of working as an anesthesiologist in different states for months at a time doing locum tenens work.

How feasible is this? I think that the rate limiting factor would be the state licenses.

Any opinions on this? I just cannot imagine being stuck in one state forever.

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Very feasible. I have two friends who are doing this very pattern. They are licensed in about 14 states using the licensing option that allows you to bank your information and send it to different state licensing agencies without having to reenter the info. Very lucrative and fun for them (obviously single).
 
Not in Anesthesia but in Internal medicine. She has been doing it for about six years! She spends six months in Hawaii in the winter, usually Alaska or California in the summer and a few months doing charity work. She is obviously single! She is in Thailand right now doing a tour with Doctors without borders.
 
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I too have had this fantasy with gaswork. When I asked attendings about it, they said while lucrative, it would suck because you wouldn't get respect from surgeons. My follow-up question was "Do you think that negative (no respect from surgeons at the places you locum at) outweighs the positives of setting your own schedule, good pay, living somewhere warm in the winter, etc?" They thought it outweighed those positives, and these were guys who didn't seem to need that much social interaction, were in academic positions as opposed to high profile private practice.

Any thoughts on this? I would LOVE to do gas locums if there were residents/attendings who felt that not knowing the surgeons wouldn't be a deal breaker.
 
My sister usually spends about 6 months in a locum position which is long enough to get to know people. She has also gone back to the same locations year after year. Some people don't even realize that she is locum.

There is a downside. She is in her mid 40s and divorced. She loves the itinerant lifestyle and has no desire to put down roots.

The lifestyle is definitely not for everyone. She usually doesn't tell the doctors she works with about her life because they are too busy raising families and buying cars and houses and they don't understand why anyone would want to live like she does.
 
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