How PAs can earn more, work less, and find balance with locum tenens

Physician assistants (PAs) are in high demand across the country, but that doesn’t mean every PA feels satisfied with their work. Many find themselves stretched thin, frustrated by long hours, or bogged down by hospital politics. If you want more control over your career, locum tenens work offers a powerful alternative.

By taking temporary assignments, you can earn more, work fewer hours, and gain the flexibility to create a schedule that works for you. Along the way, you’ll build new skills, travel if you choose, and have time to recharge between assignments.

Here’s why more PAs are exploring locum tenens—and what you should know if you’re considering it yourself.

Earn more without burning out as a locum PA

For many PAs, the financial benefits of locum tenens are one of the first things that stand out. Because hospitals and clinics need qualified professionals right away, they’re willing to pay a premium for locum providers. That often means hourly pay instead of salary, so you’re compensated for every hour you work—something many staff PAs don’t experience.

“As a locum, we get paid hourly, and we actually get paid for our time,” says Diem Dang, a cardiovascular and thoracic surgery PA. “Whereas with salary, you work until it’s done, and they kind of don’t care how much you work. You belong to them.”

Locums has also enabled Dang to invest and save more aggressively and even consider retiring earlier than she expected. “Locums has afforded me a lot, because it gives me a bigger income and it allows me to invest and save. Doing this, I don’t have to work until I’m 65.”

For other PAs, the benefits go beyond financial security, as Stacy Hicks can attest to.

Obviously, the pay is one thing for sure, but the biggest benefit is you get to practice, do more, see more people, and kind of get out there a little bit.

— Stacy Hicks, PA

That kind of variety and flexibility helps many PAs avoid burnout and find more satisfaction in their work.

Weatherby locum PAs keep their benefits

One common misconception is that taking locum tenens jobs means giving up benefits like health insurance and retirement contributions. That’s true with some agencies, where providers are considered independent contractors and expected to handle their own taxes and coverage.

Weatherby Healthcare takes a different approach. PAs working locum assignments with Weatherby are treated as W-2 employees. That means your taxes are withheld for you, and you have access to a package of traditional benefits you’d expect from a staff position.

Lauren Whitley, a cardiothoracic surgery PA, experienced that firsthand. “I had health insurance and a 401(k) investment option. I felt like I was just a full-time employee that had the opportunity to go to other hospitals and perform and learn,” she says.

In addition to medical and dental insurance and retirement savings, Weatherby also offers life insurance and other voluntary benefits. For PAs who want to enjoy the flexibility of locums without giving up financial security, these benefits can make a big difference.

Get the details: The benefits package PAs receive when working locums with Weatherby

Locum PAs have freedom to create your their schedule

Locum tenens gives PAs control over something many have never had before: their schedule. You choose when to work, how much to work, and when to take time off.

My number one benefit from locums work was the schedule. I got to set my own schedule and my own time off. Typically, the places that I worked were just so thankful to have any sort of help.

— Lauren Whitley, PA-C

“My number one benefit from locums work was the schedule,” Whitley says. “I got to set my own schedule and my own time off. Typically, the places that I worked were just so thankful to have any sort of help.”

Dave Bosch, a PA with more than 15 years of experience, also appreciates how locums gives him a reset from the daily grind. “There was the draw that I didn’t have to be part of the day-to-day politics, and I was going somewhere where I was appreciated and needed. It wasn’t a justify-my-existence-every-five-minutes kind of thing,” he says.

Whether you want to work back-to-back assignments or take weeks off between them, locums lets you make those choices.

Travel more or stay close to home—it’s up to you

For PAs who love travel, locums is an opportunity to see the country while building your career. Some providers take assignments in different states, turning new cities into temporary homes. Others prefer staying closer to family, using locums to supplement a staff role or pick up additional shifts nearby.

Stacy uses locums as a way to expand his practice while still maintaining his full-time job. “I’m just using my vacation days since I lose them anyway every year at my job. I usually give them two weeks out of the month,” he says.

Locums can be what you want it to be—a chance to explore or a way to stay rooted while expanding your options.

Count the reasons: Why PAs love working locum tenens

Learn, grow, and build your network

Every hospital, clinic, and surgical team has its own way of working. As a locum PA, you’ll be exposed to different workflows, procedures, and approaches, all of which expand your professional toolkit.

“No matter how many surgeons I work with, there’s never been a surgeon that’s been identical to the next,” Dang shares. “They all do things differently. So being that I’ve been able to travel and work with so many different surgeons, my skill level is a lot better than the average PA that’s been at one job or the same place for a long time.”

In my last assignment, I saw a totally new approach to a routine procedure that I have seen so many times. I have never seen anyone do it that way, but it worked really well.

— Lauren Whitley, PA-C

Locums also expands your network. With each assignment, you meet surgeons, nurses, and fellow PAs who can become valuable mentors and future references.

Discover the benefits: Locum tenens work for surgical PAs

Why working with an agency matters

While some providers try to find locums assignments on their own, working with an agency makes the process smoother—and safer. Agencies handle credentialing, licensing, contracts, housing, and travel, allowing you to focus on practicing medicine.

Bosch’s recruiter made the transition easy for him. “Probably the best transition I have ever had. Anytime I had questions or concerns, she would smooth them out, and they would go away,” he says.

Not all agencies are the same, and many PAs point to Weatherby’s responsiveness and support as reasons they stay.

“I know there are other locum companies out there, but I think that Weatherby is probably one of the better ones,” Hicks says. “It’s been excellent. I have a slew of people who are willing to help me out and do whatever.”

That kind of support allows you to focus on what matters most: caring for patients and building a career you enjoy.

Making locums a career path

For many PAs, locum tenens isn’t just a temporary fix; it becomes a long-term career choice.

“I plan on doing locums until I retire. I don’t ever plan on going back to a tie-down job,” says Bosch. “My father told me every job is a step to another, and I think locums is the epitome of doing that.”

Others, like Whitley, step in and out of locums as their career evolves.

“The only reason that I am not traveling right now is because I wanted to learn transplant, with full intentions of taking this skill set back to the locums world whenever I get ready to start traveling again,” she shares.

Whether you’re looking for a full-time alternative or a flexible supplement to your current job, locums can help you create the career—and the life—you want.

Are you interested in learning more about locum tenens for physician assistants? Give us a call at 954.343.3050 or view today’s physician assistant job openings.