Physicians in Pennsylvania go through years of school and training, learning how to treat patients for their injuries and illnesses. After all of these years of learning and training, they are finally ready to start their careers as physicians and will be looking for hospitals and clinics to hire them. They will go through interviews and hopefully receive job offers to consider.
Once they receive a job offer and accept it, they may feel like they can just start practicing, but there is one more step they need to complete to finish the process. Like many other professions, physicians usually sign employment contracts, detailing the terms of their employment with the hospital or clinic.
Important elements of physicians’ contracts
These are important documents and should not just be glossed over and signed simply to start the job. There are certain elements of these employment contracts that are important and physicians need to be aware of them. These elements include:
- Compensation: It is important to know what physicians in the area with similar skills and experience are earning to ensure that the compensation offered is in line with those numbers.
- Hours and schedule: The contract will state the rotations they will need to cover and the schedule they will need to keep. This can include on-call requirements.
- Benefits: This can include health insurance, paid time off, reimbursement for continuing education requirements and malpractice insurance, retirement benefits and others.
- Restrictive covenants: These include noncompete agreements and it is important to know the restrictions and whether they are likely enforceable.
- Termination: There should be language regarding when the physician can quit and when the hospital or clinic can terminate the physician.
Physicians in Pennsylvania who have found a job they hoped for or like may be eager to start the job as soon as possible. However, it is important to carefully review the contract first. While many of the elements may not be as big of a concern initially, years later, those elements may become a concern and it will be too late. Experienced attorneys understand physicians’ contracts and may be a useful resource.