BY EMERY H. CHANG, MD, NMPRA TRAVEL ADVISOR AND PAST TREASURER
originally published in the NMPRA Perspective, Spring 2010
T
he end is near with residency coming to a finish and you’ve got some leads on a job. There are many issues and possible pitfalls that can happen with any job but getting details ironed out ahead of time can save you lots of headache.
The most important step is to first think about what you want. What are your priorities? Is it making lots of money, vacation time, weekends off, type of medicine you’ll be practicing? This will help focus you in your job hunt and contract negotiations.
THE FINE PRINT
O
f course, what is in writing is what counts. Make sure that all the details are in writing. This includes call time, salary, pro-duction bonuses, benefits, (including health, dis-ability, dental, vision, life, and malpractice insurance, 401(k) or other retirement benefits (hopefully with some matching funds), moving expenses, production requirements, holiday and CME time, partner track, covered ex-penses (such as DEA, medical licenses, board exams, society memberships, cell phone), dates of employment and time needed for termination of the contract, and if there are limits to legal fees or process for disputes.
LAWYER
I
t is always a good idea to have an experienced lawyer review the contract. The prospective employer, of course, wrote the contract in their favor and especially if the agreement is com-plex, advice from someone on your side is important.
“ Ask for what you want and for what is important to you. ”
NON-COMPETITION
F
requently, there may be non-competition clauses in the con-tract which is intended to limit you from joining another group or starting your own practice in a defined geographic region. This may also limit you from moonlighting as well. Be very careful, since most people leave their first job and you don’t want to limit your future options.
DOCUMENT YOUR CONVERSATIONS
O
ften most of our negotiations are verbal and may not make it into written forms. After each important con-versation, send an e-mail to those involved that sum-marizes the decisions that were made. This gives them a chance to correct any misunderstandings and if there are later disputes, you have some documentation of what had been agreed upon.
DON’T BE AFRAID
A
sk for what you want and for what is important to you. Many doctors don’t ask for more money, even when the offer is clearly low. Of course, you may have to give up some things for other priorities, but make sure you advocate for yourself.
disclaimer: As always, neither NMPRA nor I are financial experts and advise that you consult your own personal law and financial experts prior to making any decisions based on the information in this article.