Neurosurgery Locum Tenens Jobs Booming

In addition, various trauma situations may require the skills of a neurosurgeon, one of the most serious is an intracranial, or inside the brain, bleeding. Secondary to trauma a blood vessel inside the brain may rupture and the blood may start to accumulate quickly inside the brain. The only way to relieve the pressure on the brain is via surgical decompression or the placement of holes in the skull by the neurosurgeon to relieve the pressure. This is often a life saving procedure.
To become a neurosurgeon, one must attend four years of medical school, and then complete a six to seven year residency in neurosurgery. Often a component of research training is included in the neurosurgery residency. During a neurosurgical operation the patient may be awake and able to respond to commands by the neurosurgeon. This is done as it allows the neurosurgeon to "map" out the important areas of brain function during surgery to avoid removing any critical brain tissue.
Locum tenens jobs for neurosurgeons are positions in hospitals for neurosurgeons that were left open due to the departure or retirement of a neurosurgeon. A neurosurgeon might be attracted to take a locum tenens job as it allows one to see different areas of the country and thus allows for travel if several locum tenens jobs are performed one after the other. A neurosurgeon would also be able to assess different practice styles from what they are accustomed to by taking a locum tenens job in a different state. Because neurosurgery is such a specialized field, employers offering neurosurgery locum tenens jobs often have difficulty filling all of their positions. Many health care experts predict a severe shortage of neurosurgeons in the future as baby boomer neurosurgeons retire and as the population ages there will likely be an increased need for neurosurgeons.
In addition, as malpractice rates increase and reimbursement decreases this may lead many practicing neurosurgeons to consider other lines of employment. Many neurosurgeons also are less inclined to work the long hours that their predecessors worked, and more likely to want a balance between work and home life. Besides performing brain surgery, there are abundant opportunities available for neurosurgeons in research. As cancer research becomes more sophisticated, there is an increased need for neurosurgeon scientists to be available to test new brain cancer treatments in clinical trials.
More neurosurgeons are considering taking on only low-risk surgical cases due to medico-legal liabilities, and a significant nubmer of neurosurgeons are also considering retirement. Many in the neurosurgical profession feel that the number of neurosurgical training positions has not kept up with demand. As the need for neurosurgeons increases, more and more hospital centers can be expected to offer locum tenens positions to neurosurgeons in an attempt to fill the growing number of neurosurgeon vacancies nationwide.