As a doctor fresh out of medical school, you’re likely excited to start your career in full force. It’s also likely an intimidating prospect, with so many practices and roles to choose from. Some doctors prefer to form a new practice, while others maintain partnerships or employment at other practices. If you’re uncertain what direction you’d like your medical career to take you, it’s essential to understand your options and the best ways to get there. There is no wrong path to choose, but you’ll see the most success when you employ the right tactics to go far.
Network With Other Healthcare Professionals
Networking in any career field is incredibly beneficial. When you form professional friendships, connections, or relationships with other medical professionals, you can gain industry insight, career advice, additional education, marketing, and exclusive job opportunities. Networking can also market your name and skills to other professionals, allowing you to receive recognition and opportunities for your achievements. You can start networking using professional social media like LinkedIn or any healthcare-specific social platform. Attending medical conferences and partnering with other professionals for research, trials, jobs, or medical papers also allows you to network professionally.
Establish an Online Presence
One of the most important steps to professional networking and marketing as a healthcare professional is to establish an online presence. Online presences make you more available and accessible to potential employees, employers, and patients. You can communicate with audiences more easily, review feedback, and provide personal and professional information about yourself to make you more personable. Applying for jobs and continuing your industry education is much easier with an established online presence. Create a professional website listing your achievements, resume, and practice information. Consider creating professional social media profiles on platforms like LinkedIn or Facebook. Encourage, respond, and adapt your career to the reviews you receive.
Utilize Job Platforms
Your healthcare employer or team significantly affects career satisfaction and success. Whether you’re looking for an employer or employee, you’ll need to use the right platforms to find and post healthcare jobs. While platforms like Indeed or LinkedIn can be very useful for finding and posting jobs, you don’t want to put all your hiring eggs in one basket. You may find more success at matching physicians and employers with healthcare-specific job platforms. Take advantage of medical career networks and job boards to see more specialty-specific roles and professionals to recruit. You may also want to rely on your professional network to find potential opportunities for both employers and employees.
Continue Your Education
The healthcare industry is constantly changing and updating. Graduating from medical school and renewing your medical license shouldn’t be the end of your education. Attend conferences, review studies, and familiarize yourself with new and upcoming research regarding medicine and epidemiology. You’ll want to attend optional classes and certifications, especially those involving your specialty. You can approach patient care with more diversity and insight when you remain up-to-date in the medical career field. Outdated treatment plans may not be effective for all patients; knowledge is both power and patient satisfaction. You can include any staff or coworkers in your educational findings, too.
Adapt to Technology
Like medical research, technology is constantly changing in the medical career sector. You can manage patients much more efficiently when you take advantage of advancing healthcare technology. Technology remains a significant asset in the medical field, from surgical robotics to appointment scheduling software. While technology may require a bit of a learning curve, you’ll be disadvantaged if you or your practice avoids medical tech. Learn about automation regarding clinical tasks like scheduling, lab work, and patient records. Please use better technology regarding health equipment like EKGs or blood pressure readers. Tech can improve patient communication, too; make sure you implement patient portals and messaging systems to help improve patient care. Train any staff you take on to help the entire practice adapt better to technology as well.
Conclusion
Choosing a path in your medical career can be intimidating, especially when you’re new to the field. When you start networking and creating an online presence, you can learn about the different roles and standards in the medical field to find a fit that meets both your and your patient’s needs. Taking advantage of continuing education and technology can make your career easier and more efficient. While many medical roles are very demanding, you should find value and meaning in your work. If you don’t, you may need to revisit your career priorities to ensure the most satisfaction. With the right strategies, you can create a medical career that satisfies your life goals while providing the highest quality patient care.
Image Credit: Photo by Piron Guillaume; Unsplash
