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ER physician is one of the best jobs you could have – the variety of cases, good pay, a fast-paced professional environment, and the ability to save lives make an emergency doctor an exciting position. Unfortunately, the schedule of most ER doctors can make the profession feel a little less wonderful, and may even lead to frustration, stress, and burnout over time.
The good news is that you can build your dream ER physician schedule to create your best year yet. An optimal physician scheduling system allows you to work the shifts you want, take vacations without stress, and enjoy your preferred holidays with your family.
Steps to Building Your Dream Schedule
You planned every aspect of your career carefully, and now it’s time to build your dream schedule – one that gives you the time off you want without sacrificing the pay you need.
Make the most of your favorite shift
Everyone has their preferred time to work. You might be a night owl who wakes up when the sun goes down, for example, or you may like working weekends. Make your preferences known to the people in charge of scheduling at your institution.
Explore various shift scheduling patterns
To provide coverage for nights and weekends, most emergency department doctors work shifts that aren’t necessarily their favorites. Many organizations use shift scheduling patterns in which physicians rotate through cycles of day and night shifts. Rotating shift schedule patterns include the 2-2-3 Schedule (Panama Plan), DuPont Schedule, and Pitman Schedule. Some workplaces offer on-call hours too.
Plan your time off well in advance, whenever it is possible
When you can, schedule your vacation and other time off as far in advance as possible. There’s arguably nothing worse than battling to get your preferred time off, and nobody needs that kind of stress just before a vacation. Reserving time off well in advance can also help you secure time off during the busy holiday season.
Plan your extra shifts
Everyone needs a little extra cash now and then, especially when planning to build/buy a house, take an extended vacation, or pay down some bills. Review your finances to determine when extra earnings are most beneficial; plan to grab extra shifts just before Christmas, for example. Maximize your boost in earnings by taking extra shifts during seasonal volume surges, such as flu season, or around major holidays.
Utilize your organization’s shift scheduling software to optimize your ER doctor schedule
The very best emergency medicine scheduling software allows you to request extra shifts and time off, swap shifts, manage shifts, view available shifts, and more.
ByteBloc emergency room scheduling software can help emergency physicians build the perfect schedule for their best year yet. Founded by an emergency physician more than 30 years ago, ByteBloc software helps ER doctors in all 50 states, Canada, and many other countries around the world plan their shifts.
For more information on ER scheduling software for the perfect ER doctor schedule, contact ByteBloc.
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