What do I need to know about Locums as a side hustle ? First time doing it

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ToKingdomCome

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Have a full time gig already.

Also is $275 in a major Midwest area a good rate or negotiate more ?
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One the attd at my place in nyc just got back from 3wks of locum in ohio at $400/hr 1.5x OT after 40hrs
 
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Nyc Locums is 350 at the moment ..
 
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kb1900 said:
One the attd at my place in nyc just got back from 3wks of locum in ohio at $400/hr 1.5x OT after 40hrs
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I’m glad physicians are now getting “time and a half” like the rest of the working world!
 
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kb1900 said:
One the attd at my place in nyc just got back from 3wks of locum in ohio at $400/hr 1.5x OT after 40hrs
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Alright so Don’t take it ? Are most of these locum companies willing to negotiate or is this mostly a take it or leave it
 
$300 is bare minimum at most places and it’s all about the workload

Workload is the key.

If u covering 1:2 on Asa 1-3 signing some preops on 2 hours gallbladders and 4 hour stable colon resection and get to trade stocks and side work Take the lower rate

If u covering 1:3 or 1:4 doing 10
Blocks a day hustling starting cases urself as the CRNA drops off the patient in pacu to expedite turnover at same $300/hr. Hmm no. I wouldn’t do that.

Workload people. That is the most important aspect when determining how much is appropriate pay.

Sure there are some easier $400/hr workload than others out there as well.
 
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This is pretty basic stuff, but as a W-2 employee who has the option to give back PTO at a pretty good weekly rate, is there a tax benefit to doing locums work instead?
 
zizzer said:
This is pretty basic stuff, but as a W-2 employee who has the option to give back PTO at a pretty good weekly rate, is there a tax benefit to doing locums work instead?
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Business expense deductions are generally easier to take on 1099 income than W2.

Better W2 jobs have mechanisms to pay for that stuff with pretax money, but most of that is mostly at the mercy of your employer. Best case is the "employer" is a private group where you're a partner and the partners can structure things to take maximum benefit. Worst case is the employer is a corporate overlord who isn't interested in maximizing your benefits.

And then there's always tax fraud, if you're so inclined. Sky's the limit.
 
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kb1900 said:
One the attd at my place in nyc just got back from 3wks of locum in ohio at $400/hr 1.5x OT after 40hrs
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Do you know where? I heard there is a hospital in Columbus that one of the CRNAs told me is a "name your price" type desperation.
 
zizzer said:
This is pretty basic stuff, but as a W-2 employee who has the option to give back PTO at a pretty good weekly rate, is there a tax benefit to doing locums work instead?
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Setup a SEP-IRA. Can contribute 25% of your income to an IRA pre-tax
 
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ToKingdomCome said:
Have a full time gig already.

Also is $275 in a major Midwest area a good rate or negotiate more ?
Click to expand...

Depends on the job. $275/hr might be worth it if you are doing your own easy cases on ASA 1s and 2s with nice staff. Anything more challenging than that and I would want >$300/hr.
 
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What is everyone’s idea of “major metropolitan area” ? I think it would have to be 1 mil or greater for most people with many having a higher threshold.
 
Bertelman said:
Setup a SEP-IRA. Can contribute 25% of your income to an IRA pre-tax
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Good point, I forgot about that -

I did a SEP every year I was moonlighting away from the Navy. You do need to roll it into a 401(k) every year though in order to do a backdoor Roth, but that's easy enough.
 
GravelRider said:
Depends on the job. $275/hr might be worth it if you are doing your own easy cases on ASA 1s and 2s with nice staff. Anything more challenging than that and I would want >$300/hr.
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Supervision unfortunately
 
brominator said:
Nyc Locums is 350 at the moment ..
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Where are these mythical 350/hr jobs in nyc? I’ve been hunting in nyc for a solid 9 months and the best I’ve gotten is “300 all inclusive” for some hospital in distant queens. Everyone is so short and desperate for me but they won’t pay. I literally have 4 locums companies on the search for me.
 
NotFrankUnderwood said:
Where are these mythical 350/hr jobs in nyc? I’ve been hunting in nyc for a solid 9 months and the best I’ve gotten is “300 all inclusive” for some hospital in distant queens. Everyone is so short and desperate for me but they won’t pay. I literally have 4 locums companies on the search for me.
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Bronx 375 all-inclusive. i think it was bronx central. I passed. 375 plus housing or pass.
 
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Demand more money. The business/admin class are experts at gaslighting you into accepting less pay for more work. Don't be a victim stand up for yourself.

"We can only afford", they can always do 20-30% more. Even if you're operating a charity they're still billing the patient so you might as well get paid and give back another way.
 
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As a long time locums I’m going to tell you something really important. Ask for a walk through before you sign contracts for dates. Inspect machines, put eyes on dantrolene, intralipid, defibrillator. You wouldn’t believe the number of times I have refused to work somewhere because there is a veterinary repurposed anesthesia machine, no dantrolene or other issues. Trust no one. I don’t even ask to get paid to come look, takes me 20 min.
 
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Arantius said:
As a long time locums I’m going to tell you something really important. Ask for a walk through before you sign contracts for dates. Inspect machines, put eyes on dantrolene, intralipid, defibrillator. You wouldn’t believe the number of times I have refused to work somewhere because there is a veterinary repurposed anesthesia machine, no dantrolene or other issues. Trust no one. I don’t even ask to get paid to come look, takes me 20 min.
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You gonna fly across another state for a walkthrough?
Its not a practical thing for most people.
Most, if not all, locums contracts have a safety clause that lets you quit immediately if there are safety concerns.
 
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GandalfTheWhite said:
You gonna fly across another state for a walkthrough?
Its not a practical thing for most people.
Most, if not all, locums contracts have a safety clause that lets you quit immediately if there are safety concerns.
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I do local locums don’t want to deal with transferring my DEA etc. all within driving distance. Yeah I’ve seen the safety clause and tried that once only to be black listed by vengeful surgeons who all talk. No thanks.
 
Arantius said:
I do local locums don’t want to deal with transferring my DEA etc. all within driving distance. Yeah I’ve seen the safety clause and tried that once only to be black listed by vengeful surgeons who all talk. No thanks.
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I'm sorry that happened to you, but atleast you got out of it.
The good thing is that surgeons dont really have the option to turn down anesthesiologists in this market. Either they take what they can, or their surgery doesnt get done.
 
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GandalfTheWhite said:
I'm sorry that happened to you, but atleast you got out of it.
The good thing is that surgeons dont really have the option to turn down anesthesiologists in this market. Either they take what they can, or their surgery doesnt get done.
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Yep everyone needs coverage and surgeons are getting dropped all the time. They should be buying us dinner and taking us out to fancy events
 
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GassYous said:
Yep everyone needs coverage and surgeons are getting dropped all the time. They should be buying us dinner and taking us out to fancy events
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Ah yes, Surgeons... an Anesthesiologist's Stryker rep.
 
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Also interested in this. What would be a good set of questions to ask other than the obvious (pay, coverage for travel, license renewal)?

Is there usually a minimum length of time for a contract? How about lead time if you need to leave the locums gig?

Anything else from you seasoned guys would be really appreciated! Thanks.
 
Potatoman1800 said:
Also interested in this. What would be a good set of questions to ask other than the obvious (pay, coverage for travel, license renewal)?

Is there usually a minimum length of time for a contract? How about lead time if you need to leave the locums gig?

Anything else from you seasoned guys would be really appreciated! Thanks.
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30 days opt out for either side. You can do a week at a time but they usually want some regular interval. Like one week a month minimum.

Locums reps know just enough medical terms to be dangerous. Don’t believe anything they say about the clinical side of things. Ask to speak to the site medical director if you have any concerns.
 
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