By: Allison McCarthy, MBA | amccarthy@barlowmccarthy.com

Recent client work has found us soliciting feedback from new physician recruits about their experience entering their hiring organization. Based on what we’re hearing, we have some work to do to ensure we have them fully engaged.

Lackluster Orientations

At the outset, new physicians feel they need an adequate orientation to operational policies and procedures, billing and coding practices (whether a recent trainee or seasoned physician – they believe they can never get enough about coding), IT and even communications systems (phones, paging, email).

Unfortunately, many only experience hospital “new employee” orientation – most of which seems irrelevant to them as physician employees. They want a customized orientation addressing their needs as clinicians, business developers and colleagues. Doing it as a formal session – as a group or individually – is fine but not for multiple days in a row. Several abbreviated sessions across a couple of weeks are preferable. Otherwise, they can’t retain the learning and adapt it to their practice style.

Setting is Not Ready

Walking into a practice setting not properly “outfitted” is like arranging a singer to perform a concert and not having available the stage, microphones, back-up musicians or audience. They perceive it as “you didn’t care enough” or worse “you don’t know how to manage a physician practice”.  Confidence and credibility just takes a blow.

It’s particularly unsettling for new physicians launching a new service or opening a new office location. When hospitals wait to ensure the physician contract is signed before starting the actual practice build-out – there isn’t enough time to get all of the pieces put together. And we’re assigning responsibility for that to someone with already full plates – trying to get it all done on top of everything else.

Limited People Support

Physicians also feel the need for the “soft” stuff. Interactions with leaders (of the practice, group/department and hospital) and social connections – having colleagues and staff ask them about their family/personal interests – helps connect them to the regional offerings. It also helps to simply demonstrate a concern about how things are going for them at a personal level. And those physicians new to practice need a mentor to offer guidance about work processes, collaborate on clinical matters and support them in enhancing skills important to growth as a practitioner.

Referral Development

While new specialists will make some connections when rounding on hospital patients or at medical staff events, this is often inadequate for generating new patient referrals  – particularly with the growing use of hospitalists. Someone needs to make the necessary introductions and facilitate referral development discussions. This is also a concern raised by new referring physicians – as they recognize their obligation is to retain referrals within the system.

There’s a big difference between an oriented physician and an engaged physician.  A new clinician can become familiar with the operational pieces and parts and feel like just a “cog in the wheel” unless they have solid interpersonal connections, fulfill their professional aspirations and feel they fit well into the mission, vision and culture of the larger organization.