Negotiating On-Call Pay
Is it a sign of spending too much time online when you write a blog in response to a blog? (Wait, don't answer that.)
Naturally, I am a "fan" of Advance for NPs on Facebook and this week I noticed Jill wrote a post about "call" compensation. Now today I see another blog post about an "on call fiasco." So if you can stand one more post about call this week, I will try to demystify call and give you some tips to avoid "call" remorse.
Jill is right, call can indeed be mysterious. Not only is the method of compensation tough to pin down, but sometimes the structure of call is also murky.
Before you can begin to calculate compensation, you have to first define the call and the potential impact on your life:
Will the call be purely "phone" call, or will it require you to actually go in to work in response to a call? Don't underestimate the disruption to your life either way. Even phone consultations can seriously cut into what you do and where you go while you are on call. I don't care what the Verizon guy says, there are some places where even he and all his "network" buddies are not going to help him get decent cell reception.
How frequently will you be asked to take call? Once a month, every other week? One day a week, an entire week straight?
Is a call day the entire 24 hours? (i.e., will your phone ring at 2 a.m.?) How does this fit into your family life? One of my physician colleagues actually left a practice due to late night calls wreaking havoc with a family member's sleep disorder.
What is the volume of call? Does it matter? This is a red herring in my opinion, regardless of the call volume, you still have to be available and will have to restrict yourself to cell reception-friendly activities. Yes, that does mean no Merlot. And while we are on the subject of volume, will you be required to keep a log or chart later on the calls you take? It all takes time to do.
Will a phone be provided for you, or do you have to use your own? Call can eat up your cell minutes very quickly, so factor that in to your compensation.
There is no one universal "call" compensation structure, but these points may help you to determine what your time is worth. And as always, get it in writing, and set aside a date to revisit and revise.