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How much do you guys make moonlight? Can you start moonlighting after the intern year?
Moonlight....
- Thread starter link2swim06
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I would not recommend anyone begin "out of house" moonlighting after the intern year. You will definitely find yourself in trouble and unprepared for "whatever walks in the door". I'm not sure there's a program that would knowingly condone moonlighting after just 1 year.
However, there are plenty of programs that allow in house moonlighting to their ER resident, which I feel is totally appropriate... as long as you are presenting to an attending.
You can make as much as an attending per hour by moonlighting, just remember, you are taking the same risk as an attending. IMO, the risk deserves the same reward. Obviously, desperation provides more loot.
RAGE
However, there are plenty of programs that allow in house moonlighting to their ER resident, which I feel is totally appropriate... as long as you are presenting to an attending.
You can make as much as an attending per hour by moonlighting, just remember, you are taking the same risk as an attending. IMO, the risk deserves the same reward. Obviously, desperation provides more loot.
RAGE
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Each program is different and there are pros and cons to moonlighting. Some programs forbid it, some will only allow within their system which isn't true moonlighting, you're just picking up extra shifts for more money but with staff nearby, and other programs unofficially encourage it such as mine but you must be approved to moonlight which often depends on ITE scores, and how good of a resident you are. Most programs that allow moonlighting, people start sometime near the end of their 2nd year. Also, most start out moonlighting in a safer environment with lots of coverage and low acuity. The pros are that it provides a tremendous amount of confidence in the autonomy, and oftentimes first jobs ask if you've done any moonlighting because it's usually seen as a positive attribute in that you've already been out from under your institutions wing and been able to handle things on your own independently. The negatives are that you don't want to be involved in a lawsuit as a resident. You also don't want moonlighting to interfere with your learning. Someone that graduated from a program I'm familiar with last year and is in his first year of private practice just got named in a lawsuit while he moonlighted as a resident where he missed a DVT in a young pt who subsequently showed up the next day with a PE. You don't want to start your career off this way. The money is attractive, but don't do it until you feel ready. There will be no attending standing nearby to bail you out of trouble. You probably also need to know your ACLS/ATLS stuff down cold and feel comfortable in any code situation.
This is generally information relayed to me by the upper level residents at my program. I have not started moonlighting yet and probably won't until the beginning of my 3rd year.
This is generally information relayed to me by the upper level residents at my program. I have not started moonlighting yet and probably won't until the beginning of my 3rd year.
D
deleted109597
I've never seen such a place. Usually the more the coverage, the more patients. While the acuity may be low (ie, you're at a small hospital really close to a big hospital), you're cranking through the patients at an elevated speed. Generally people miss more of the scary things hidden in the self selected low acuity patient than they do the guy that comes up to the ED with chest pain.
Simple answer, moonlight when you're ready. Try to be ready before you graduate, because otherwise, the first job is an eye opener. Also, it helps you get your licensing stuff done early as well.
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Agreed. ONe of the reasons I dont like Urgent Care / low acuity is it is like trying to find a needle in a haystack, Serious badness is more hidden and you can be lulled into a false sense of security.
I moonlit at 2 places when i was a resident. One was single coverage low volume low acuity. They averaged 15 patients per day, and when i worked I averaged 1-2 admits a 24 shift.
The other place did about 100 patients per day, decent acuity.
Money wise.. the first place paid $80 per hour which as a chief gave me a ton of downtime to do scheduling and other stuff.
Place 2 paid their attendings $110 per hour 12 hour shifts and I saw about 2 PPH which is more than the others. I thought this was a great experience because most residents train at places with tons of resources. This allowed me to decide who I needed to transfer, what to do with these people and lastly I could ask my attendings if my actions made sense.
I think job 1 was all about $$$, job 2 was about some money but more about getting comfortable with practicing EM.
Just keep in mind my friends who moonlit had some bad cases, like a 30 something code, and a peds code. Its not like residency people give you your space and those are bad bad cases.
I moonlit at 2 places when i was a resident. One was single coverage low volume low acuity. They averaged 15 patients per day, and when i worked I averaged 1-2 admits a 24 shift.
The other place did about 100 patients per day, decent acuity.
Money wise.. the first place paid $80 per hour which as a chief gave me a ton of downtime to do scheduling and other stuff.
Place 2 paid their attendings $110 per hour 12 hour shifts and I saw about 2 PPH which is more than the others. I thought this was a great experience because most residents train at places with tons of resources. This allowed me to decide who I needed to transfer, what to do with these people and lastly I could ask my attendings if my actions made sense.
I think job 1 was all about $$$, job 2 was about some money but more about getting comfortable with practicing EM.
Just keep in mind my friends who moonlit had some bad cases, like a 30 something code, and a peds code. Its not like residency people give you your space and those are bad bad cases.
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I've had places offering me $175-200/hour lately. That's in busy, short staffed and high acuity EDs. Contact a recruiter online and you'll be swatting them away like flies for years. Moonlighting sounded great when I was a 3rd year resident until I actually did it and realized that the Pilot gets paid a lot more than the co-pilot for a reason. Enjoy being a resident and having an attending covering your butt at all times, because soon you won't have the luxury. Yes, it's a luxury.
