Career and Life Planning Guidebook for Medical Residents

Understanding the Employer’s Position Hospitals and medical groups are under pressure to provide quality patient care while managing the financial responsibilities of running an organization on ever-shrinking financial reimbursement. Organizations balance governmental requirements, payor expectations, and patient satisfaction in managing day-to-day operations, all while leading strategic development initiatives required for long- term success, including: Delivering high quality patient care Delivering strong financial performance Creating a positive and productive organizational culture Setting standards for operational excellence Hiring and retaining qualified staff Implementing effective policies for clinical procedures, safety measures, and governance  Safeguarding required compliance with state, federal and CMS regulations Developing positive relationships with outside organizations, including the medical community, referring physicians, and the media Hiring a physician who doesn’t align with the organization’smissionandvisioncan lead tounhappy or uncooperative physicians who poison the culture, while hiring the right physician strengthens the organization’s pursuit of purpose. Flight Risk Even when a new physician aligns with the organization’s values, one of the biggest fears an employer has when interviewing and negotiating with a candidate is that the physician will not stay for the long term. MaryFerguson, ChiefExecutiveOfficer at Desert Sage Health Centers states, “My biggest fear is hiring a physician who doesn’t understand the organization and community and leaves shortly after starting. A vacant position for us means that good staff might need to be laid off or terminated. Just like we invest in our providers, we invest in staff as well. We attempt to reassign, but that’s not always easy to do.” When a physician resigns, themedical staff, patients, and community are impacted. According to Ms. Ferguson: “If the provider has established a following of patients and decides to resign, it can be devastating. Not only can it mean a loss of revenue to the practice, but it also compromises patient health when they start to avoid important screenings and follow-ups because they are not happywith the providers exit. This is especially hard on our older patients who depend on continuity and don’t like change.” When a candidate demonstrates a long-term commitment to becoming part of the community, they gain important leverage in negotiating a win- win contract. Why Productivity Matters Compensation is an important factor when determining which opportunity is best for you, but is not the only consideration, and for some it may not be the most important. Your colleague may accept an opportunity with a significantly higher starting salary, but you may determine you would not thrive in the same type of community or practice. In my career, I’ve helped negotiate some $500 million in physician compensation packages, and I understand the importance physicians place on the “guarantee” part of compensation. But you cannot overlook how you will maintain or increase your income if/when you transition to a productivity- based payment structure. Philip Schaefer, FACHE, Senior Vice President at Southern Illinois HealthCare states: “Physicians who wish to negotiate for higher compensation should confirm if that compensation will result in an expectation of higher productivity SECTION III: T MINUS ONE YEAR CAREER AND LIFE PLANNING GUIDEBOOK FOR MEDICAL RESIDENTS 294