PAJM81 Posted October 16, 2013 Share Posted October 16, 2013 Hi everyone, Kind of feeling frustrated and would like some advice. I graduated end of May from a PA school up north. I was wanting to find a job in the South but did not find much. I had a few offers but at the time was being very selective. I gave myself a deadline and started to apply in other states. I just received an offer for a family medicine (very upscale in a busy wealthy area) in Texas. This was all verbal. Please advise as I know I will need to negotiate. Patient load expected is 20-25 pts/day. Salary 75k 1 wk PTO + 6 days holidays $1000 CME No medical coverage No mention of DEA, membership renewals, sign on, license renewal, etc. No mention of time off for CME I regret not accepting offers in the past as they were MUCH better, but I am starting to feel the pressure of accepting a position. Any advice is much appreciated. I am going to email him soon with a counter and follow-up questions. I initially did not want to accept less than 85k as my classmates in that area started at that and also I was offered something similar close by at the first of the year. THANK YOU! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Moderator ventana Posted October 17, 2013 Moderator Share Posted October 17, 2013 New grad should not see more then 10/day to start then build to 15 then 20 should be 3+ weeks vacation should be full health insurance should be $1000+ for CME Should be one week PTO for CME Should be at least 10 if not 12 holidays - 6 - yikes that sucks... Crappy offer - but you have to start somewhere....... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gaijyn Posted October 18, 2013 Share Posted October 18, 2013 Patient load is most likely too high. If you see that many per day out the gate, then likely your days are going to be long, and you will be charting long after the last patient is seen. As Ventana say 10-12 pts /day should be where you are starting and move up as you become more comfortable and efficient. I high work load will also subject you to missing something in the rush to get through them. Salary is a little low but doable as a new grad. Are there any bonuses? Does this area qualify for loan repayment. It is not a guarantee but it can help make the salary a lot better if you can/do get the repayment. CME is low. $1500 is typically the minimum I have seen for CME, or if less then an increased salary. Health coverage is a BIG DEAL. That can be anywhere from 1200 - 4000 /yr coming out of your salary after taxes. The offers I have seen often have a subsidy paid by the practice for health insurance that ranges about $300-400/mo to cover premiums. See if this can be included. Licensing and at least one org should be covered. At the very least licensing and DEA as it is part of what you are doing for the practice. Vacation should be at least 2 weeks. Overall it looks like a pretty crappy offer and one that they are purposely trying to lowball you for because you are a new grad. If you feel pressure that is one thing, but remember, you will be at this job for a year, so you have to decide what your bare minimum of an offer that you will accept is. Personally I would keep looking. Or, if your counter offer addresses those things and they accept it then fine. But, you should probably keep looking. Maybe expand the area of your job search? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Moderator EMEDPA Posted October 18, 2013 Moderator Share Posted October 18, 2013 New grad should not see more then 10/day to start then build to 15 then 20 should be 3+ weeks vacation should be full health insurance should be $1000+ for CME Should be one week PTO for CME I would love pto days for cme. I get cash but no days. 1000 for cme is low. I got more than that at my first job which provided 1200 for cme and 1200 for non-medical continuing education(college courses for "personal development") most positions do at least 1500 for cme. I currently get 2000/yr and no days. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mainah Posted October 18, 2013 Share Posted October 18, 2013 As a recent grad who just hit 1 year out (rural family practice), I couldn't agree more with Ventana's post. One thing rotations didn't prepare me for was just how much time you spend a day charting/doing paperwork/making phone calls. I started out at around 10 pts/day and it was nice having 40 min followups initially with my patients so I could have time to fully review their charts and get good histories, as well as have time to consult my SP if needed without getting behind in schedule. 20-25/day would be a bit much initially. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PAJM81 Posted October 18, 2013 Author Share Posted October 18, 2013 Thank you all so much! This information really helps...I greatly appreciate it. I asked a few f/u questions and here is what I got... -They do cover DEA & state licensure. ACLS/BLS, board certification, professional memberships would all be up to me or come out of my CME allowance. -2 days CME -Eligible raise after year. Something about 10% productivity after year 2 but only after his overhead (not sure how high his overhead is considering it is a very nice new practice). -No sign-on bonus I don't believe this practice qualifies for loan reimbursement either. My gut is telling me this is a bad offer much like you all have mentioned. I had told myself out of these last couple of interviews I had that I would hopefully find something....just haven't got that "feeling". I just fear that when I continue to interview I will be asked the questions like why haven't you found work yet, etc. I just feel my counter would be so much higher than what he is offering it wouldn't be possible to compromise. :( I really appreciate all of your comments. Thank you again! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gaijyn Posted October 18, 2013 Share Posted October 18, 2013 Thank you all so much! This information really helps...I greatly appreciate it. I asked a few f/u questions and here is what I got... -They do cover DEA & state licensure. ACLS/BLS, board certification, professional memberships would all be up to me or come out of my CME allowance. -2 days CME -Eligible raise after year. Something about 10% productivity after year 2 but only after his overhead (not sure how high his overhead is considering it is a very nice new practice). -No sign-on bonus I don't believe this practice qualifies for loan reimbursement either. My gut is telling me this is a bad offer much like you all have mentioned. I had told myself out of these last couple of interviews I had that I would hopefully find something....just haven't got that "feeling". I just fear that when I continue to interview I will be asked the questions like why haven't you found work yet, etc. I just feel my counter would be so much higher than what he is offering it wouldn't be possible to compromise. :( I really appreciate all of your comments. Thank you again! First, go with your gut. It typically knows what is up. The professional orgs, licensing, ACLS/BCLS/PALS is not a horrible thing but it is a cost to you. The fact that in your clarification there is nothing for health insurance, whether a reimbursement, allotment, or available plan, is a big issue (for me at least). Also, "Eligible" for a raise means what? That you may get "something" after a year but nothing saying you will or if you do what you will get? Plus a vague productivity bonus after overhead (sounds like a profit sharing) that is only available after 2 years. Add to that a high patient-load and it seems like you and the practice are in different ball parks. While people may ask why you haven't found a job, the simple truth is that you are looking for THE job. Our first year out is a rough one most of the time. One spent learning our craft. It is important that we do the utmost that we can to ensure that happens. Regarding what you want, it is not extreme. You are not saying you want to make 120k with 4wks PTO, and 5k CME; or anything as absurd as that as a new grad in PC. You just are looking for something that is fair. Think about what you are worth and what you will bring to as well as make for the practice you go into. If the benefit package was the standard or good the offer would not be a bad one. But as it stands, it looks like you are being lowballed and my opinion, for what it is worth is, for you to counter with a consensus of what we said,. If the practice says no then you should strongly consider looking elsewhere. I do not know your personal or financial situation but there are jobs out there. Or, at the very least if you decide to take this job, make sure you have an easy out and that your non-compete clause is easily surmountable. Good luck Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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