Demand up for locum doctors

Staffing firms see a growing number of both older and younger physicians choosing to go the temporary route.

By Myrle Croasdale, AMNews staff. Nov. 6, 2006.

Recruiters nationwide say the number of days physician offices need temporary doctors to fill in continues to increase as practices can't find permanent employees to fill the jobs. They also are seeing requests from specialties they haven't seen in the past.

Physician staffing firms say those two factors signal that doctors' offices are showing the first symptoms of a physician shortage. The observation comes as work-force experts expect the United States to be short 85,000 to 200,000 physicians by 2020. Recruiters said the locum tenens demand is particularly noticeable in areas with populations of 500,000 or less.

"The No. 1 reason is the physician shortage. Also, locum tenens has become more of an adopted staffing method for large health care systems and organizations," said David Baldridge, vice president of CompHealth locum tenens division and president of the National Assn. of Locum Tenens Organizations.

Staff Care, one of the largest physician recruiting firms, reported requests of 316,946 physician days in 2005, a 37% increase for the company from 2004. The Irving, Texas-based firm anticipates requests will reach 430,000 physician days in 2006, a 36% increase from 2005.

Staffing Industry Analysts, which provides news and analysis of temporary worker markets, expects that type of trend to continue at firms nationwide. It projects the locum tenens market will grow 13% in 2007 with revenues reaching $1.6 billion.

"With only about 3,000 locums working in the United States on any given day, out of 810,000 doctors, the temporary physician business is still small," said Robyn Hessinger, an analyst for Staffing Industry Analysts in Los Altos, Calif. "But it is growing rapidly, and because of the shortage of physicians predicted by the end of the decade, its long-term potential looms large."