How necessary is having a contract lawyer review before signing?

[deleted1100659]

see title. Also if you guys went that route, what were you guys paying for a lawyer to do contract review? Im seeing anywhere from 500 to 2,000.

I had a job offer today and they sent over the contract, but its fairly complex, 23 pages of all kinds of stipulations, lol

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[Sushirolls]

Got a contract? Get a lawyer.

For the new grads, or the seasoned docs changing jobs, get a lawyer to review your contracts AND represent you. Most jobs are boiler plate templates, but even then I've combed over one such boiler plate and found few errors. In conjunction with a lawyer better language was drafted, additions...

forums.studentdoctor.net

 

[comp1]

I guess it depends on the job. The VA contract for example is near completely non-negotiable. The parts that are negotiable, a lawyer likely wouldn't understand, like possibly call expectations. Further, you don't like it, you quit. No strings. Even the sign on bonuses are usually prorated. Heck, you're even in a union. I'm not sure how a lawyer would help with that. I'm sure there are private enterprises out that there that try to trick doctors with weird long term commitments or non-compete clauses. Maybe for those.

 

[Nudexta]

I always hire a lawyer for full time job

 

[calvnandhobbs68]

It's always worth it to have a lawyer review your contract. 500 or 1000 bucks is nothing when you're talking about contracts where 250K-300K is on the line. Now, I'd only do that for a contract where I was seriously considering joining and wanted to actually flesh out the fine points of the contract before signing. I wouldn't be paying for 5 different contract reviews.

It's correct that a lawyer isn't really going to help you negotiate the medical stuff (ex. how much call, patient visit times, number of patients per day/week, etc) because they just won't know what's reasonable for the speciality (a healthcare lawyer might do an ortho contract one day, an IM contract another day and a psych contract the next day). However, they are very helpful for knowing rules around non-competes for your state, possible anti-kickback violation statutes, inserting language protecting you from bad behavior by your employer. etc. Also keep in mind that some practices will want you to try to sign very one-sided, lazy contracts that basically throw all liability/obligations on you and none on the employer...for instance my lawyer recognized that my contract didn't include anything about the EMPLOYERs obligation to be properly licensed, carry proper liability insurance, etc etc and inserted that language into the contract.

It's also true that you might run into an employer (etc government agency) who has pretty "non negotiable" contracts, however it's still worth it to have a lawyer review because a lawyer will tell you their own legal concerns about the contract and what liability it could possibly open you up to, helping you decide if you want to go through with it or not.

 

[dl2dp2]

I'm gonna be contrarian again. In general, I think that lawyers are useless except when you are going for a possible partnership track, or that there are esoteric incentive/profit-sharing plans. If either is the case, spending some money on the lawyer is worthwhile because details in profit sharing/equity ownership structure or other exotic things like major deferred comp/cash balance plan, ERISA, very large severance packages, etc. can easily be worth a few million down the line, and litigation is a real possibility later on or during acquisition, etc.

OTOH, for the vast majority of cookie-cutter facility-based contracts, 1) generally can't really negotiate on a clause by clause level. The negotiable parts are usually collected in an addendum. 2) things you can negotiate you can understand pretty well without a lawyer. I would read the contract carefully, but I think a lawyer wouldn't really provide additional insight. They will TELL you things where you are like a-ha, okay good to know, but that's usually pretty much it. It's expensive tuition for legal trivia.

 

[IMGASMD]

It’s less than your one day pay…… just spend the money, and sleep better.

 

[deleted1100659]

I think im going to spring for one. At the end of the day, its a 23 page contract, and after my recent job experience I just dont trust employers.

 

[littlefred]

I think the bigger question is... why do they have a 23 page contract?

Is it because:
-They have difficulty retaining staff and need legal mumbo jumbo to keep you around for a prolonged period of time?
-Are they micromanaging the crap out of you and eloquently laying it out in all those pages?
-Is the offer attractive enough to overlook all this?
-Have you spoken to others in a similar position that you are applying for?

 

[deleted1100659]

I think the bigger question is... why do they have a 23 page contract?

Is it because:
-They have difficulty retaining staff and need legal mumbo jumbo to keep you around for a prolonged period of time?
-Are they micromanaging the crap out of you and eloquently laying it out in all those pages?
-Is the offer attractive enough to overlook all this?
-Have you spoken to others in a similar position that you are applying for?

The compensation is definitely very attractive but there seems to be some caveats. Its salary + rvu and the RVU part seems really hard to hit.

Its 9 hours of clinical time a day, 4 days a week essentially. Have to hit above 30 units a day to get rvu bonuses (37.50 per each additional unit over 30), but 99213/99214 are only one unit a piece, but the 90833 add on adds .33 units. Intakes are around 2.3 units.

Seems like a difficult RVU structure or am I wrong? The base salary is good though for the area

 

[psych_0]

The compensation is definitely very attractive but there seems to be some caveats. Its salary + rvu and the RVU part seems really hard to hit.

Its 9 hours of clinical time a day, 4 days a week essentially. Have to hit above 30 units a day to get rvu bonuses (37.50 per each additional unit over 30), but 99213/99214 are only one unit a piece, but the 90833 add on adds .33 units. Intakes are around 2.3 units.

Seems like a difficult RVU structure or am I wrong? The base salary is good though for the area

All of these questions you have are exactly why you would benefit from a contract lawyer. Also, you can call the bar association in your state and find a lawyer that specializes in physician contracts. It's one extra step that will both help you sleep easier signing a contract you can barely understand (because of the legal mumbo-jumbo bloat) and possibly help you protect yourself from agreeing to things you shouldn't be (or don't need to be).

 

[randomdoc1]

I'd totally recommend an attorney's feedback. It's like insurance, not having one can really screw you over. And if they are not helpful, well, it's not a massive amount of loss. If feasible, try to find one that is familiar with MDs, ideally psychiatrists as they will be better versed with some of the caveats specific to our field.

Although I'm an employer now, I work with a law firm that represents Rogers Behavioral Health in my area. They know their stuff so well. I know all the i's are dotted and t's crossed. They help me write really great employee (and patient paperwork) contracts and are familiar with things that have gone south in other behavioral healthcare settings. Super helpful.

 

[TexasPhysician]

I might not use one if going to the VA. They likely won’t adjust anything out of the lack of resources to do so.

Anywhere else and I would always use one. Even a moonlighting gig 1x/month should have an attorney review it. You wouldn’t believe how badly I’ve seen physicians get screwed. I’m talking 6-7 figure mistakes.

 

[Ironspy]

I’m biased because I have a lawyer in the family who looks at all my contracts for free. However, I think paying 1k to understand the document you are signing makes sense even if it’s not negotiable. I’ve declined jobs over what I thought were unreasonable clauses that they would not alter to my liking. Also, lawyer gives me a sense of how aggressively employer is protecting v. Exploiting staff. Some contracts have attempted to restrict my ability to find other jobs and attempted to own intellectual property that was (IMO) mine and they were subtle enough that I may not have realized myself

 

[Merovinge]

The compensation is definitely very attractive but there seems to be some caveats. Its salary + rvu and the RVU part seems really hard to hit.

Its 9 hours of clinical time a day, 4 days a week essentially. Have to hit above 30 units a day to get rvu bonuses (37.50 per each additional unit over 30), but 99213/99214 are only one unit a piece, but the 90833 add on adds .33 units. Intakes are around 2.3 units.

Seems like a difficult RVU structure or am I wrong? The base salary is good though for the area

Uh so you have to see 22.5 f/u's per day if everyone has a 90833. That's basically 3 per hour for 8 clinical hours/day with 95% show rate and only then you get a bonus? Definitely would not expect to get much bonus if you are planning on providing good care.

 

[calvnandhobbs68]

Uh so you have to see 22.5 f/u's per day if everyone has a 90833. That's basically 3 per hour for 8 clinical hours/day with 95% show rate and only then you get a bonus? Definitely would not expect to get much bonus if you are planning on providing good care.

Yeah and why would you get the same amount of RVUs for a 213 vs 214? There's a 0.7wRVU difference between 99213 and 99214.
Why would that give you any incentive to bill 214s considering the amount of documentation you have to have for 213s is like nothing...I'd just be billing 213s all day every day.

 

[Sushirolls]

The compensation is definitely very attractive but there seems to be some caveats. Its salary + rvu and the RVU part seems really hard to hit.

Its 9 hours of clinical time a day, 4 days a week essentially. Have to hit above 30 units a day to get rvu bonuses (37.50 per each additional unit over 30), but 99213/99214 are only one unit a piece, but the 90833 add on adds .33 units. Intakes are around 2.3 units.

Seems like a difficult RVU structure or am I wrong? The base salary is good though for the area

Yeah, what others are saying.
If they have come up with their own numbers for wRVUs and not using the usual customary default, you will be the short necked giraffe trying to jump for any leaf from the Acacia tree. You lost before you even started.

30 wRVUs per day, with 9 clinical hours, equates to a rate of 3.33 per hour.
Back when I was in the wRVU mine I was pushing about 1.8 per encounter so ~3.6 per hour. Our highest biller was doing about 2.0 wRVUs per encounter. This 30 wRVU goal might be doable, but only if they are using standard wRVU numbers and not some watered down version they came up with.

 

[clozareal]

A contract lawyer might not know the ins and outs of how to maximize compensation and minimize the physician burden. They can help you understand the contract in plain language and make sure you're being intentional about what you are signing. I went with a physician contract negotiation company that wasn't a lawyer, but had them on staff to collaborate with them. They understood the average compensation in the area, the RVU structures that were ideal, the good vs bad call schedules, etc. and coached me on the strategies to negotiate rather than doing the negotiation themselves (this was an additional expense). I thought it was definitely worth it, even though I ended up not going with that job offer.

 

[FlowRate]

A contract lawyer might not know the ins and outs of how to maximize compensation and minimize the physician burden. They can help you understand the contract in plain language and make sure you're being intentional about what you are signing. I went with a physician contract negotiation company that wasn't a lawyer, but had them on staff to collaborate with them. They understood the average compensation in the area, the RVU structures that were ideal, the good vs bad call schedules, etc. and coached me on the strategies to negotiate rather than doing the negotiation themselves (this was an additional expense). I thought it was definitely worth it, even though I ended up not going with that job offer.

If you don't mind, how much did you pay for such a service?

 

[deleted1100659]

Yeah, what others are saying.
If they have come up with their own numbers for wRVUs and not using the usual customary default, you will be the short necked giraffe trying to jump for any leaf from the Acacia tree. You lost before you even started.

30 wRVUs per day, with 9 clinical hours, equates to a rate of 3.33 per hour.
Back when I was in the wRVU mine I was pushing about 1.8 per encounter so ~3.6 per hour. Our highest biller was doing about 2.0 wRVUs per encounter. This 30 wRVU goal might be doable, but only if they are using standard wRVU numbers and not some watered down version they came up with.

do you have a link to the standard wrvus for billing codes?

 

[ObsequiousAplomb]

do you have a link to the standard wrvus for billing codes?

90792 = 4.16 wRVU
99205 = 3.5 wRVU
99204 = 2.6 wRVU
99215 = 2.8 wRVU
99214 = 1.92 wRVU
99213 = 1.3
90837 = 3.31 wRVU
90833 = 1.5 wRVU

Three 99214 an hour is 5.76 wRVU an hour
Two 99214 + 90833 is 6.84 wRVU an hour.
Two 99213 + 90833 is 5.6 wRVU an hour.

aapc.com/practice-management/rvu-calculator.aspx

CMS.gov/Medicare/Medicare-Fee-for-Service-Payment/PFSlookup

 

[deleted1100659]

Yeah and why would you get the same amount of RVUs for a 213 vs 214? There's a 0.7wRVU difference between 99213 and 99214.
Why would that give you any incentive to bill 214s considering the amount of documentation you have to have for 213s is like nothing...I'd just be billing 213s all day every day.

this part had me scratching my head too...If 99214 are worth the exact same may as well just bill everything as a 99213. Seems odd

 

[Sushirolls]

90792 = 4.16 wRVU
99205 = 3.5 wRVU
99204 = 2.6 wRVU
99215 = 2.8 wRVU
99214 = 1.92 wRVU
99213 = 1.3
90837 = 3.31 wRVU
90833 = 1.5 wRVU

Three 99214 an hour is 5.76 wRVU an hour
Two 99214 + 90833 is 6.84 wRVU an hour.
Two 99213 + 90833 is 5.6 wRVU an hour.

aapc.com/practice-management/rvu-calculator.aspx

CMS.gov/Medicare/Medicare-Fee-for-Service-Payment/PFSlookup

Did these numbers change in the past few years?
When I was last in the wRVU mines, 99213 was 1.0 and 99214 was 1.5 wRVU

 

[ObsequiousAplomb]

Did these numbers change in the past few years?
When I was last in the wRVU mines, 99213 was 1.0 and 99214 was 1.5 wRVU

Yeah, there was a change, I think with the 2021 updates. I have a feeling it is mostly inflation of wRVU numbers and employers will reimburse less per wRVU.

 

[deleted1100659]

is each wrvu worth $34.89?

 

[ObsequiousAplomb]

Reimbursement per RVU varies based on multiple factors, like where in the country you are working and whether you're talking just Medicare or private insurance or Medicaid or private pay. Employers will pass along some proportion of the gravy onto people on wRVU payment models, but that amount would vary based on terms of your contract.

 

[splik]

The compensation is definitely very attractive but there seems to be some caveats. Its salary + rvu and the RVU part seems really hard to hit.

Its 9 hours of clinical time a day, 4 days a week essentially. Have to hit above 30 units a day to get rvu bonuses (37.50 per each additional unit over 30), but 99213/99214 are only one unit a piece, but the 90833 add on adds .33 units. Intakes are around 2.3 units.

Seems like a difficult RVU structure or am I wrong? The base salary is good though for the area

This is not an RVU system. It sounds like they have their own made up system. Is this a telepsych job? It looks like one of the tele psych pill mills.I would run. These kinds of job are all about volume. They want you seeing 4-6 patients an hour.

 

[deleted1100659]

This is not an RVU system. It sounds like they have their own made up system. Is this a telepsych job? It looks like one of the tele psych pill mills.I would run. These kinds of job are all about volume. They want you seeing 4-6 patients an hour.

They have clinics+plus telepsych but yep im getting the sense its all about volume. They give a good base salary but the bonuses and RVU bonuses seem absurdly hard to reach. Plus non compete clause in their contract for 2 years among other things. Oh well i guess the job search continues

 

[clozareal]

If you don't mind, how much did you pay for such a service?

There are different packages starting at $200 but I believe I chose one that was ~$800? The highest price was around $2-3k for them to negotiate for you IIRC.

 

[psych_0]

If you don't mind, how much did you pay for such a service?

I paid $300 flat fee

 

[Sapien3]

This is a great discussion and helpful. I am in the job hunt process as well.

I had my 1st interview and got a letter of intent outlining base salary, sign-on bonus, and benefits. I start in 2023 July and I need visa sponsorship. I liked the hospital, staff, and potential for growth. The environment seems supportive. The location is meh - 1- 2 hrs from major cities and 2 hrs to domestic airport.

I have 2 issues
1) Need more time - as I am early on in my job hunt. I am hesitant to commit early without exploring other jobs out thier. Also, my partner who is moving with me needs to figure out their work situation.
2) Negotiate base - it is a good offer, but I have additional skills and training than other providers which I will be bringing into the practice and grow their diagnostic service. CMO did mention during the interview that I could negotiate.

How can I respond to them without closing the doors? TIA

 

[Merovinge]

This is a great discussion and helpful. I am in the job hunt process as well.

I had my 1st interview and got a letter of intent outlining base salary, sign-on bonus, and benefits. I start in 2023 July and I need visa sponsorship. I liked the hospital, staff, and potential for growth. The environment seems supportive. The location is meh - 1- 2 hrs from major cities and 2 hrs to domestic airport.

I have 2 issues
1) Need more time - as I am early on in my job hunt. I am hesitant to commit early without exploring other jobs out thier. Also, my partner who is moving with me needs to figure out their work situation.
2) Negotiate base - it is a good offer, but I have additional skills and training than other providers which I will be bringing into the practice and grow their diagnostic service. CMO did mention during the interview that I could negotiate.

How can I respond to them without closing the doors? TIA

Most places looking that far out will give you some time to decide, don't be pressured to sign. That said, if your spouse is also dependent on this decision, I would get cracking and try to interview with 4-5 places to get a good feel for your worth. This will help you negotiate (given other offers in hand), although if the geographical areas differ significantly that would be important to take into account. A CMO mentioning you can negotiate is pretty atypical, that clearly means they do expect to have flexibility on the offer.

You are not going to get the best jobs in most cases if you need a visa sponsorship and I would likely expect to move following completion of your requirement (of course different visa situations are different). I think valuing a supportive environment with other established psychiatrists that seem interested in helping and satisfied with their job should be paramount, even if it means working a bit harder or taking less money, as you do not have the same ability to walk away from the job and some employers that often utilize visa doctors have reputations for really putting the screws to these doctors.

 

[deleted1100659]

I think valuing a supportive environment with other established psychiatrists that seem interested in helping and satisfied with their job should be paramount, even if it means working a bit harder or taking less money,

This. I would have taken an 10k a year paycut, without hesitation to be in a work environment with other psychiatrists with a high amount of job satisfaction. Definitely consider that with your first job. Money and location are important but you want to like where you work, and not leave each day feeling anxious.

 

[Merovinge]

This. I would have taken an 10k a year paycut, without hesitation to be in a work environment with other psychiatrists with a high amount of job satisfaction. Definitely consider that with your first job. Money and location are important but you want to like where you work, and not leave each day feeling anxious.

Looking back on things, I would take between a 20-50k paycut for improved job satisfaction and good colleagues/work environment. There's something to the lower burnout rates of academic doctors and we really over-estimate the happiness money will buy us past a certain point. If you have 700k in debt or multiple dependents etc your mileage may vary.

 

[clozareal]

This is a great discussion and helpful. I am in the job hunt process as well.

I had my 1st interview and got a letter of intent outlining base salary, sign-on bonus, and benefits. I start in 2023 July and I need visa sponsorship. I liked the hospital, staff, and potential for growth. The environment seems supportive. The location is meh - 1- 2 hrs from major cities and 2 hrs to domestic airport.

I have 2 issues
1) Need more time - as I am early on in my job hunt. I am hesitant to commit early without exploring other jobs out thier. Also, my partner who is moving with me needs to figure out their work situation.
2) Negotiate base - it is a good offer, but I have additional skills and training than other providers which I will be bringing into the practice and grow their diagnostic service. CMO did mention during the interview that I could negotiate.

How can I respond to them without closing the doors? TIA

1) Are they telling you when you need to respond by? If not, then just say that you'll need more time or delay it by negotiating more. If they want you to sign sooner than you are comfortable, then you can negotiate a higher sign on bonus to make you more comfortable if this is acceptable to you and your partner. If you want to be less confrontational about needing more time, you can set up meetings with them to continue the conversation to negotiate and schedule those meetings weeks out at a time to delay the decision. If they're looking to expand, I highly doubt the opportunity will close even if they hire someone else. You're directly generating revenue more than the expenses unlike other non-clinical staff members in clinics.

2) Come from a place of strength and say how your additional skills and training are going to bring a unique aspect to your contributions to the practice. What they probably care about is profit. If you can support how these additional skills are going to contribute to higher earnings for the practice overall, then it's a stronger argument. You want to communicate how you can translate your skills into marketable services. This can be in the form of a unique niche to capture certain patient population that hasn't been tapped into yet but has high demand, contributing to the culture of education and collaboration, the growth potential of potentially starting a specialty area that you can build up in terms of different programming (IOP, PHP, RTC in specialty areas are highly desired because you can charge facility fees and then it becomes more lucrative, especially if there's real estate equity involved).

If you do #2 well, then you will also address #1 as the back and forth conversation takes time.

 

[Sushirolls]

Looking back on things, I would take between a 20-50k paycut for improved job satisfaction and good colleagues/work environment. There's something to the lower burnout rates of academic doctors and we really over-estimate the happiness money will buy us past a certain point. If you have 700k in debt or multiple dependents etc your mileage may vary.

I'm taking a 200k cut with my current solo practice, as of last years numbers.

 

[nexus73]

90792 = 4.16 wRVU
99205 = 3.5 wRVU
99204 = 2.6 wRVU
99215 = 2.8 wRVU
99214 = 1.92 wRVU
99213 = 1.3
90837 = 3.31 wRVU
90833 = 1.5 wRVU

Three 99214 an hour is 5.76 wRVU an hour
Two 99214 + 90833 is 6.84 wRVU an hour.
Two 99213 + 90833 is 5.6 wRVU an hour.

aapc.com/practice-management/rvu-calculator.aspx

CMS.gov/Medicare/Medicare-Fee-for-Service-Payment/PFSlookup

I thought 90833 dropped to 0.9.

 

[clozareal]

90833 is 1.5 from the Medicare fee schedule as of 2022

 

[Sapien3]

1) Are they telling you when you need to respond by? If not, then just say that you'll need more time or delay it by negotiating more. If they want you to sign sooner than you are comfortable, then you can negotiate a higher sign on bonus to make you more comfortable if this is acceptable to you and your partner. If you want to be less confrontational about needing more time, you can set up meetings with them to continue the conversation to negotiate and schedule those meetings weeks out at a time to delay the decision. If they're looking to expand, I highly doubt the opportunity will close even if they hire someone else. You're directly generating revenue more than the expenses unlike other non-clinical staff members in clinics.

2) Come from a place of strength and say how your additional skills and training are going to bring a unique aspect to your contributions to the practice. What they probably care about is profit. If you can support how these additional skills are going to contribute to higher earnings for the practice overall, then it's a stronger argument. You want to communicate how you can translate your skills into marketable services. This can be in the form of a unique niche to capture certain patient population that hasn't been tapped into yet but has high demand, contributing to the culture of education and collaboration, the growth potential of potentially starting a specialty area that you can build up in terms of different programming (IOP, PHP, RTC in specialty areas are highly desired because you can charge facility fees and then it becomes more lucrative, especially if there's real estate equity involved).

If you do #2 well, then you will also address #1 as the back and forth conversation takes time.

Thank you this is so helpful.

They have not asked me to respond in any timeframe. I did request some time and to discuss about duty hours (clarify if my clinic hours be reduced if I am investing in developing a new line of diagnostic service).

I have received letter of intent, would you start negotiating now so they include your needs in the contract before you review it?

 

[clozareal]

Thank you this is so helpful.

They have not asked me to respond in any timeframe. I did request some time and to discuss about duty hours (clarify if my clinic hours be reduced if I am investing in developing a new line of diagnostic service).

I have received letter of intent, would you start negotiating now so they include your needs in the contract before you review ?

If they haven't asked you about time frame, you can take your time until they follow-up. The earlier you negotiate, the more likely they are to know that you want the job. What do you mean "before you review"? If you don't have certain things you want in the LOI, then you can ask to see if those items can be changed or added.

 

[Sapien3]

I received the contract to reveiw. It doesn’t specify call scheduled (quoted 1:6), clinic schedule (quoted 5 days a week) and in patient consult commitment (1 week(5 weekdays) a month). Since they are hiring more specialists this may change.

From my meeting and site visit - they seem to be flexible. Should I insist that the contract to be revised to mention the specific job details and time commitments? I don’t want to appear knit picky. I am happy with the compensation as long as my clinic responsibilities is 4 days a week with 1 day of admin time.

 

[Sushirolls]

If you don't care, sign it and be done.

If you do care, you need to think about how you will react in the future. Mass colleague exodus, or Covid Beta Theta Sigma shows up and they demand you do a completely different setting, like all C/L or all inpatient, etc. How do you foresee yourself reacting? Do you just quit and go elsewhere? Do you want compensations or stop gap measure to prevent abuse? If its not in the contract, then they will take that mile you have given with this inch now.

Some people truly don't care. Others do, which are you?

I care, and won't work Big Box shops as a result anymore. Should I ever go back, I will have a more detailed contract with parameters and parameters that bite the Big Box shop if they don't hold up their end as the employer.

 

[Merovinge]

I received the contract to reveiw. It doesn’t specify call scheduled (quoted 1:6), clinic schedule (quoted 5 days a week) and in patient consult commitment (1 week(5 weekdays) a month). Since they are hiring more specialists this may change.

From my meeting and site visit - they seem to be flexible. Should I insist that the contract to be revised to mention the specific job details and time commitments? I don’t want to appear knit picky. I am happy with the compensation as long as my clinic responsibilities is 4 days a week with 1 day of admin time.

Ah yes the no specification of call and verbal only on this. I made this mistake at my last (and only) big box shop employment. I emailed them about call, they emailed back "call me", told me no call on the phone, then it was q3 call when I got there for no pay. Keep in mind much of call at any multispecialty location is determined by med staff and that surgeons are not exactly the most sympathetic to any call concerns you may have as a psychiatrist.

 

[splik]

I received the contract to reveiw. It doesn’t specify call scheduled (quoted 1:6), clinic schedule (quoted 5 days a week) and in patient consult commitment (1 week(5 weekdays) a month). Since they are hiring more specialists this may change.

From my meeting and site visit - they seem to be flexible. Should I insist that the contract to be revised to mention the specific job details and time commitments? I don’t want to appear knit picky. I am happy with the compensation as long as my clinic responsibilities is 4 days a week with 1 day of admin time.

You should have some written record from someone in charge about this. It doesn't have to be in the contract but you do want it in writing. As merovinge says, don't just accept what is said on the phone. If something is mentioned on the phone, send an email with the information requesting written confirmation.

 

[Sushirolls]

You should have some written record from someone in charge about this. It doesn't have to be in the contract but you do want it in writing. As merovinge says, don't just accept what is said on the phone. If something is mentioned on the phone, send an email with the information requesting written confirmation.

Been there done that. Hospital based recruiter said XYZ, ultimately was considered moot because it wasn't in the contract.

 

[troutscout]

My favorite bait and switch with a health care system employer was when I had signed on for an outpatient position and within a week of starting, was told by the clinic manager that (surprise!) I would be covering the inpatient unit there a quarter of the time. That is an excellent way to extinguish any ounce of trust. I resigned after 7 months, opened my own practice, and haven't looked back. Always have an exit strategy, even if they shower you with love and promise you the world before you start.