Blog Highlights
How Is Working Locum Tenens Similar to Owning a Private Practice
Gaining Greater Flexibility in Your Locum Tenens Career
Expanding Access to High-Quality Patient Care
Increasing Your Earning Potential
Start Your Locum Tenens Career with Confidence
Ask physicians and advanced practitioners what draws them to private practice, and the answers tend to cluster around the same three things: independence, flexibility, and patient-centered care. At the same time, establishing and maintaining an independent practice requires significant commitment, with attention to business operations, overhead, and long-term planning.
For clinicians who are drawn to the benefits of private practice but not necessarily to the business of running one, locum tenens offers a compelling alternative. While the two career paths may look very different on the surface, they share more in common than you might expect.
How Is Working Locum Tenens Similar to Owning a Private Practice?
Gaining Greater Flexibility in Your Career
One of the biggest draws of private practice is the freedom to have more say in how you work. You can shape your schedule, make decisions about how your practice operates, and build a career around your own priorities. That level of independence can be deeply rewarding. At the same time, ownership comes with responsibilities beyond patient care, from managing staff and finances to keeping the day-to-day business running, which can make it harder to fully step away from work.
How Locum Tenens Compares: Working locum tenens offers a similar sense of independence without the added responsibility of managing a practice. As a locum tenens clinician, you can select locum tenens jobs based on your availability, preferred schedule, location, and overall career goals, giving you more flexibility to shape your professional life around your personal one, not the other way around.
Expanding Access to High-Quality Patient Care
One of the most rewarding parts of owning a private practice is the opportunity to ensure access to care for the people within your community. You can build long-term relationships, establish a trusted local presence, and make an impact that grows alongside the practice. That kind of connection can be incredibly meaningful, though it often requires years of commitment to a single location.
How Locum Tenens Compares: Working locum tenens gives you the opportunity to expand access to care across different communities. By stepping into coverage gaps, you can help healthcare organizations maintain services and support patients who might otherwise face delays in care. Depending on the opportunities you choose, that could mean working close to home or taking your skills to a new city, region, or practice setting, giving you the flexibility to make an impact in the places that matter most to you.
Increasing Your Earning Potential
One of the financial appeals of private practice is the opportunity to increase your earning potential as your practice grows. That potential, however, often requires a significant upfront investment. Estimates suggest that startup costs for opening a private practice can range from $70,000 to $500,000, depending on the specialty, which can be a considerable hurdle, especially for those early in their careers.
How Locum Tenens Compares: Working locum tenens jobs can also give you more flexibility around your earning potential, without requiring the same financial investment to get started. Since locum tenens jobs are typically contract-based, hourly rates are often higher than traditional employed roles. Compensation can also vary by specialty, location, schedule, and demand, giving you the flexibility to pursue locum tenens jobs that align with your financial goals.
Start Your Locum Tenens Career with Confidence
If the flexibility and independence of working locum tenens sounds like a fit for you and your career, partnering with a trusted locum tenens agency can make getting started feel much more manageable. At Medicus, that begins with getting to know you and what you’re looking for, from the types of clinical settings you prefer to where and when you want to practice.
From there, our team helps match you with tailored locum tenens job opportunities and supports you through the details of each assignment, including licensing, credentialing, and travel coordination. With a dedicated team helping you navigate the process, you’ll spend less time managing logistics and more time focused on providing high-quality patient care.
Ready to get your locum tenens career started with Medicus? View our open locum tenens jobs here or complete the short form below to connect with a Medicus recruiter.
Frequently Asked Questions About Locum Tenens and Private Practice
Is Working Locum Tenens Similar to Owning Your Own Private Practice?
While locum tenens and private practice are two different career models, they can offer similar benefits. Both offer the ability to create your own schedule, expand access to care, and the ability increase your earning potential beyond a traditional W2 role.
Does Locum Tenens Offer the Same Flexibility as Private Practice Ownership?
Both can offer greater flexibility, though in different ways. Private practice gives you more control over your own personal schedule and how your practice operates, while locum tenens allows you to choose opportunities based on factors such as your availability, preferred schedule, location, and career goals.
Is Locum Tenens a Good Alternative to Opening a Private Practice?
For clinicians drawn to the independence and flexibility of private practice but less interested in running a business, locum tenens work can be a compelling alternative, due to the flexibility, patient-centered care, and increased earning potential.
What Makes Locum Tenens Appealing to Clinicians Who Have Considered Private Practice?
The appeal can vary from one clinician to another, depending on what they value most in their career. For some, locum tenens offers greater flexibility and independence. For others, the draw may be earning potential, the ability to support different communities, or the freedom to focus on patient care without the added responsibilities of running a business. Many of the same qualities that make private practice ownership attractive can also be found in locum tenens, just through a different career model.
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