85% of Health Facilities Use Locum Tenens To Fill Care Gaps

Eighty-five percent of healthcare workforce management reported using locum tenens physicians sometime during the last 12 months, down from 94 percent in 2016, according to a recent survey. 

Staff Care’s 2020 Survey Temporary Physician Staffing Trends was based on surveys sent by e-mail to healthcare executives at hospitals, medical groups, FQHCs and other healthcare facilities worldwide during August, September, and October 2019. The study uncovered that the use of locum tenens physicians at hospitals, medical groups, and other healthcare facilities remains pervasive.

Locum Tenens physicians or doctors stand in temporarily for someone else, traditionally for a few weeks or months at a time.

Primary care physicians were the most on-demand type of locum tenens doctor over the last year, with 30 percent of healthcare facility managers responding that they used locum tenens primary care physicians in the last 12 months.

And 21 percent of healthcare managers reported using locum tenens surgeons in 2019 compared to 10.8 percent in 2016. 

Most hospitals and health systems believe locum tenens physicians are skilled and well-equipped to fill in for care providers when needed. Sixty-two percent rated the skill level of locum tenens physicians as excellent or good, while 33 percent rated the skill level of locum tenens as adequate.

And 73 percent of healthcare facility managers rated locum tenens physicians as worth the cost. Although this percentage is high, it decreased seven percent from 2016 when 80 percent believed they were worth every penny. 

The report uncovered that the use of locum tenens physicians at hospitals, medical groups, and other healthcare facilities remains pervasive.

Currently, 72 percent of healthcare facility managers reported that they are actively seeking locum tenens physicians, which is up from 47 percent in 2016. Researchers noted this is the highest number of healthcare facilities currently looking for locum tenens providers recorded by Staff Care in any of its annual surveys. 

The two most prominent driving factors behind the use of locum tenens are physician shortages of both primary care and specialty physicians, as well as increasing physician turnover rates.

Healthcare facility managers also use locum tenens doctors to fill in while the facility seeks a permanent doctor (71 percent), to fill in for physicians and other providers who left (70 percent), and to fill in for doctors who were on vacation or pursuing a medical education (40 percent.) 

Nearly 70 percent said they use at least one locum tenens provider in a given month. 

Locum Tenens physicians are used to meet the rising patient demand caused by all of these factors, including population growth and increased access to insurance, among other factors. Physician supply and demand in the US continues to be a challenge for healthcare facilities and is likely to continue to increase in the future. 

The Complexities of Physician Supply and Demand, and Association of American Medical Colleges (AAMC) predicted that by 2032, the US will see a deficit of 121,900 physicians, including a shortage of up to 55,000 primary care physicians and 67,000 specialists. 

Physician practice patterns are a major factor inhibiting physician supply. A large number of physicians are employed by various hospital systems, while very few are in private practice.

Over half of physicians identified as independent owners in 2012, compared to only 31 percent in 2018, according to the national Survey of American’s Physicians.  

Nearly 76 million Americans live in primary care shortage areas, and less than half (43.84 percent) of primary care needs are met, the Staff Care survey stated. 

“The types of locum tenens providers healthcare facilities are seeking has shifted since Staff Care last completed this survey, with demand increasing for specialists and abating somewhat for primary care physicians. Given the trends, Staff Care anticipates that demand for all types of locum tenens providers will continue to be robust for the foreseeable future,” the survey concluded.