Tips for Using Locum Tenens Coverage

It's a good idea to plan ahead so someone can cover for you when you know you're going to be out of the office. Keeping the following in mind can help the process go smoother:

Posted in Naturopath on Saturday, August 25, 2018

It’s a good idea to plan ahead so someone can cover for you when you know you’re going to be out of the office. Keeping the following in mind can help the process go smoother: 

1. The provider covering during your absence will be representing your practice. Therefore, he or she should echo your professionalism and standard of care. Anything less will jeopardize your practice’s reputation and patient satisfaction. In turn, this could lead to a claim. 
2. When choosing a person to cover for you, choose an individual who currently practices in your specialty or subspecialty. Issues can arise when the specialty training is too dissimilar or the provider has not been actively practicing recently. Even if the covering practitioner is from within your own multispecialty group, it is better to have someone from your same specialty.
3. If you are using a provider who is not part of your group, be sure to review the person’s credentials and malpractice insurance. The best case scenario is to conduct a face-to-face interview to confirm that the provider’s style of treatment is consistent with yours. During the interview, have the provider meet with staff, discuss any patients who might require special attention, and review any charting and policies and procedures that might be pertinent. Finally, discuss how information will be communicated with you when you return. 
4. Once you’ve made arrangements to cover your absence, make sure the provider’s contact information is distributed to all necessary staff, including your answering service.

Your policy with us includes locum tenens coverage at no charge. If the provider doesn’t have malpractice insurance or if their policy doesn’t cover working at your practice, you can let them “use” your policy while you’re out of the office. 

To access this coverage, the locum tenens must complete an application and be pre-approved by our underwriting staff. If the covering provider has malpractice that includes working at your location, get a copy of their policy for your records before retaining their services. Ask your client representative for more information on this topic.

For more information about our locum tenens coverage, contact us.