Provider Stories

Locum Tenens Spotlight: Dr. Simran Kalra

Dr. Simran KalraDr. Simran Kalra was preparing to graduate from residency in 2012 when she learned about locum tenens jobs just a few hours from Maryland, her home state. She looked forward gaining more clinical experience.

“I like being able to focus on helping patients instead of the business side of medicine, and that’s what I primarily spend my time doing,” Dr. Kalra says. “I enjoy traveling and being able to make my own schedule.”

Working Locum Tenens Long-Term

Though the pediatrician originally planned to take locum tenens jobs for a short time, she discovered that she liked the flexibility the career offered and has now been taking assignments for four years.

Locum tenens is great because you get diverse exposure to different opportunities and see different populations of people you may not necessarily ever interact with,” Dr. Kalra expresses. “I thought I’d work locum tenens temporarily until I figured out where I wanted to settle down, but I love doing it and don’t see an end in the future.”

Adjusting to Locum Tenens Assignments

Gaining trust from your patients is the most difficult part of working locum tenens, Dr. Kalra says, along with gaining your coworkers’ trust at a new opportunity. However, she says she’s found it easy to become comfortable at a new place over the years.

“Within the first hour of meeting people, you easily adapt and it feels like you’ve been there before,” she says. “A clinic in northern Virginia, where I worked my first locum tenens assignment, asks me back multiple times a year, so I’m seeing some of my patients growing up. I was afraid I’d lose continuity, but I’m able to see many of the kids I’ve treated and follow up on referrals when I’m there during the summer or holidays.”

Setting a Schedule that Works for You

Dr. Kalra says she’s grateful for the opportunity to be able to travel and be familiar with different locations and situations. She recommends locum tenens jobs for both short-term and long-term work.

“You can make your own schedule, spend time with your family, take long periods off, and you don’t get stuck in a rut,” Dr. Kalra says. “There’s an opportunity for everybody for as long or as short as they’d like to work.”

About the author

Lindsay Wilcox

Lindsay Wilcox is a communication professional with experience writing for the healthcare and entertainment industries as well as local government. When she's not circling typos, she's enjoying fish tacos and hanging out with her family.

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