Speaker: Surgeons should maximize their worth when negotiating employment contracts

Issue: April 2017

SAN DIEGO — When negotiating employment contracts in either a hospital or private practice setting, orthopedic surgeons should maximize their value as a surgeon, according to a presenter here.

“Make it hard for them to get rid of you,” Louis F. McIntyre, MD, said in a presentation at the American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons Annual Meeting. “That is it. You do not want to make it easy to get rid of you because if it is easy to get rid of you and something happens, then they will get rid of you.”

Louis F. McIntyre

McIntyre noted contracts should include how long surgeons need to be part of a private practice before they can make partnership, as well as detail the payout for the accounts receivable and whether there are any buy-ins for ancillaries. For hospital employment, McIntyre said surgeons need to pay attention to the length of time listed in the termination without a cause clause.

“If the termination without a cause clause is ‘X,’ that is what the term of the contract is because termination without a cause implies that you can be terminated for whatever reason — in so many months — at their whim,” McIntyre said.

He added that surgeons should make sure there is a pay-out clause worked into their contract as a hospital employee.

“It goes back to the point about making it difficult to get rid of you,” McIntyre said. “If the hospital has to pay you for 6 months if they terminate you without a cause, they are unlikely to do that.” – by Casey Tingle

Reference:

McIntyre LF. What’s important when comparing private group and hospital employment contracts. Presented at: American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons Annual Meeting; March 14-18, 2017; San Diego.

Disclosure: McIntyre is a paid consultant for Ceretix and Rotational Medicine, is a paid presenter or speaker and receives research support from Rotational Medicine, and has stock or stock options with Tornier.