Signing NHSC job contracts early

[hiplikeahippo]

I have been told since I was a medical student by scholars to "look for sites early". I started that process and some sites seem interested in offering contracts early as well, since they can only have one scholar per site. However, the people I have talked to at the NHSC say it is not possible to sign a contract early because we don't know the HPSA scores until the year of and if a site will qualify for a given scholar.

Did any of you sign before your last year of residency? If so, did you sign with sites that had HPSAs significantly higher than what was required and just hope it would still be eligible when you started your repayment? Or write into your contract that it was only binding if the HPSA scores continued to qualify?

Just trying to figure out how to resolve these two competing ideas of having to wait until my final year and getting an early start on placement. I appreciate any input you might have!

---

Members don't see this ad.

 

[Notsosuperman]

Don't sign too early. The last thing you'd want is two obligations over your head. There is some point in which the HPSA is locked in for that year, and I believe that is just the New Year (Jan 1st). Also, if I remember correctly, you have to have NHSC look at your contract to confirm that it meets their requirements.

I am a dentist, so I only had a year long residency. But I started looking in November or December before my residency was up the next June. I signed in April or May. Worked out well for me.

I suppose you could sign some non-binding letter of intent so you both feel a little more comfortable in the meantime. But keep in mind, you may want to keep your options open in case you find a dream job somewhere else. Or they may find someone available sooner.

 

[simpler2]

At least for my area, there is no clinic system that will look at a provider for employment more that 6 months in advance. They may begin a conversation, but will not sign any binding contract. Especially among FQHCs, most are looking at their immediate provider need and would have difficulty planning a hire a year out. There, of course, are exceptions for a provider planning to retire from a system or take sabbatical. I recommend scoping possible sites as soon as you start residency, start talking to sites and medical/dental directors last year of residency, and try to have a contract in place 6 months prior to graduation.

 

[Ψ-117]

I agree that it's a good idea to look for sites early. You might be able to find a great job in a place you'd enjoy before it is officially listed anywhere. However, don't get yourself locked into a job until you know when it's safe to do so. I just received an email from the NHSC today informing me that the HPSA score requirement is going up this year. I'm graduating next June, so it's very reasonable for me to be doing a serious job search at this point. Until today, I had been planning on fulfilling my NHSC obligation at a site with a score of 16 or higher. Now, however, the required minimum score when I enter service will be 17. Had I signed a contract yesterday for a site that had a score of 16, I guess I'd be up a creek without a paddle right now.