Effective Cardiology Coverage Solutions Beyond Utilizing Locum Tenens Physicians

Are you constantly engaging locum tenens while scouting for a permanent physician? Or maybe you need coverage during your physicians’ holiday or sick leave? If the implications feel familiar, it’s time to look at other alternatives.

Locum tenens, while beneficial in immediate situations, can quickly become a considerable expense. Even short stretches of coverage can add up quickly. Plus, since locum tenens is inherently a short-term answer, it doesn’t provide the consistent care your patients anticipate when they seek treatment at your hospital.

When it comes to ensuring coverage for your cardiovascular service line without locums, you have a couple of options.

Recruit and employ more cardiologists

The obvious answer here is to bring on more employed physicians. You will need at least two to three cardiologists to ensure 24/7 coverage and avoid burnout. Factors like hospital size, location, situation, and culture will determine how challenging the recruitment process will be. If you’re able to offer an outstanding benefits package or you have a world-renowned cardiology program, it may not be too difficult. But, if you’re in a rural market or don’t yet have an interventional cardiology program, it could take months to assemble a team of physicians. And when time equals money, this solution has the potential to be a costly one.

Following recruitment, retention becomes a subsequent challenge. Cardiologists–especially those with advanced training–are in high demand across the country and they’re always being presented with new opportunities. If your new physician decides to leave, you’re right back at square one and will have to start the recruitment process over again.

Forge partnerships supporting long-term cardiology services

If you don’t have the resources to recruit physicians on your own, it may be beneficial to seek out a partner that can provide long-term physicians.

This is where VitalSolution excels every day. Regardless of your situation, we can aid in recruiting high-caliber physicians and ensure you offer 24/7/365 coverage for your patients. We aggressively publicize your vacancies, cautiously vet each candidate, and let you select those who best fit your hospital’s needs. Moreover, we credential 2-3 alternates to ensure coverage even if one physician decides to pursue another route.

So when weighing your options, ask yourself: “What’s best for my patients and my hospital, both now and in the foreseeable future?”

At VitalSolution, we tailor our fully customizable service line solutions to meet your hospital and patients’ unique needs. To get more insights on satisfying all your CVSL requirements, click here to request a consultation.