3 malignant retention strategies in health care contracts

Establishing a medical career inevitably requires signing a number of contracts along the way that we are not trained to evaluate, leaving us at risk for malignant retention strategies. At the beginnings of our careers, we were obligated to sign all contracts offered to us without question. The medical school match did not leave much choice, and salary negotiations were nonexistent. This lack of choice later changed, as most of us can keenly recall receiving our first confusing offer letter while completing the last few months of training. Some of us try to sift through the legalese alone, while others will start the daunting process of procuring a lawyer. Regardless of your approach, be sure to look out for the following three common retention strategies in health care, designed to increase the burden — and thus decrease the freedom — of leaving your position. 1. Exiling restrictive covenants (a.k.a the non-compete) The general purpose of a restrictive covenant is to ensure medical providers do not take patients from a practice upon leaving. The equity in a medical practice is in its patient panel, and they have every right to guard that asset when a staff member changes their employer. To that goal, a balanced restrictive covenant is generally limited to the catchment area of the provider’s main established site(s). By restricting the area where an ex-employee can work, a medical practice is at less risk of losing patients, most of whom prefer to maintain care at a co...
Source: Kevin, M.D. - Medical Weblog - Category: General Medicine Authors: Tags: Physician Practice Management Source Type: blogs