Physician Contract Reviews: 5 Do’s and Dont’s
After residency, physicians normally end up joining a medical practice. Here they will be required to sign an employment contract. This contract will control their rights and responsibilities in the new job. The obligations and responsibilities of their employer are also contained in the contract. Here are 5 do’s and don’ts before signing a physician employment contract.
Physician reviewing an employment contract
Top 5 Do’s
- Get a physician contract lawyer
Though you may incredibly smart, don’t try to do it yourself. A physician contract lawyer will act in your best interest. They will spot legal ambiguities and missing terms in the contract that could be disadvantageous to you.
- Research the Employer
It is essential to find out everything you can about the prospective employer. Remember that what an employer has done in the past is a predictor of how they will be. Employers can easily make promises only to break them once you sign the contract. In a healthcare setting, this means researching the employer’s credibility, the facilities they have, the kind of patients they admit, and so on. It’s also important to ensure that the provider’s medicare credentialing is in place to enable seamless participation in the Medicare program, which offers various benefits such as reliable reimbursement and enhanced reputation.
- Negotiate for Malpractice Insurance
You also need to ensure that the contract has terms for malpractice insurance. The benefits of the cover should be able to protect your personal resources in case of a lawsuit due to malpractice. Medical malpractice occurs when a healthcare professional deviates from the standards of their profession due to negligence and causes injury or death to a patient– a breast surgery gone wrong could be a good example of this. It can result in legal action from the patient or his family members, wherein they file a lawsuit for compensation with the help of lawyers.
- Understand Compensation and Bonus Terms
A physician’s salary is normally based on a number of factors such as the revenue they generate from the patients and the number of patients they see. Physicians should understand all the factors that may affect their compensation. Any bonus terms should also be included in the contract.
- Understand all Pay it Back Terms
Some medical practices will require physicians to pay back student loan repayments or sign-on bonuses in case of termination. It is crucial to know all the items you will need to pay in case you decide to move to a different job.
Top 5 Dont’s
- Getting a lawyer after an agreement
The right time to get a contract attorney is before employment negotiations begin. If you are presented with a contract, you can ask for a few days to go over it. In those few days, you could get an attorney to look at the contract.
- Relying on Oral Promises
Expectations in oral promises are usually not clearly defined. Misunderstanding can therefore occur. Oral promises are also difficult to prove because of the lack of evidence. Physicians should ensure that all oral promises are included in the written contract. Remember if it’s not in the contract, it doesn’t count.
- Disregard the Overly Legal Sections on the Contract
When reading through your employment contract, do not overlook the legal jargon. This could be a loophole an employer could use to overwork or underpay you. Physicians should ensure all the terms in the contract are clear and acceptable to them.
- Not Paying attention to a non-compete clause
The non-compete clause is designed to safeguard trade secrets for the employer in case an employee leaves the practice. It will limit the employee from working within a certain distance from the previous employer. Physicians should pay close attention to the details in a non-compete clause. An extreme non-compete clause may force a physician to practice in a different city when they weren’t even planning on moving.
- Not paying attention to termination provisions
It is critical for physicians to look at the events that could trigger a termination. Termination terms should be fair and reasonable. Any vague provisions need to be clarified by the employer before you sign the document.
Physician contracts can be extremely complicated documents. There are many things physicians need to pay attention to before signing an employment contract. By overlooking anything, they could end up with less than favorable terms. To avoid all these headaches, physicians need to get a physician contract lawyer.
