Best Careers for Hospitalist's Wife

[locumtenenswife]

Hello!

After some searching, I found your site online and I'm interested in learning more about what careers you had (or currently have) and which jobs provide enough flexibility to manage a family and a hospitalist lifestyle.

I quit my job last year to travel out of state with my husband, who is currently working as a locum tenens hospitalist. The challenge for me has been meeting other stay-at-home wives and mothers who are home during the work week and can provide much needed friendship and support while my husband is at work. We are planning on moving back to Los Angeles in March and I am considering going back to work, mainly to alleviate my boredom and to interact with people again.

My husband is planning on getting a full time hospitalist job in the spring, working week on/week off, and since we don't have any kids (yet), I was thinking about going back to work full time. I did business-to-business sales for 8 years before my husband and I got married, but its difficult for me to maintain a career that requires 10+ hours/day and being married to my blackberry instead of my husband. Also, since hubby will be working week on/week off, I'd like a job that offers scheduling flexibility so my husband and I can still enjoy each other's company on his days off.

Any ideas?

Thanks!

[Momo]

Re: Best Careers for Hospitalist's Wife

It's like a "Temp" Doctor. It's ideal if you want to make big $$$ fast. Single physcians do it more frequently than the married ones. from our experience.

They set you up w/ housing and often transportation once you get to the location of your temp assignment/ job.

[Momo]

Re: Best Careers for Hospitalist's Wife

BTW welcome to the board...I'm a SAHM so no career advice from me!

[locumtenenswife]

Re: Best Careers for Hospitalist's Wife

Thanks for your replies. Sorry, I didn't explain what locum tenens was, or what my husband does as a hospitalist. Basically, he travels as a physician on-call for different hospitals, usually working 3 month contracts. He trained in internal medicine, and now works 12 hour shifts, 7 days on/7 days off, doing admissions and rounds for inpatients in the hospital setting. He is technically employed by a temporary placement agency, and just works when and where he's needed.

As for me, I've been a SAHW for the last year, and really enjoyed being able to travel with my husband and spend quality time with him. Don't get me wrong, I LOVE not having a "regular" job, but being a housewife and not having a great support system while hubby is at work is starting to wear me down. I'm ready to go back to work, but I don't want to give up the quality time with my hubby. Any ideas?

[Meenah]

Re: Best Careers for Hospitalist's Wife

Nursing is ideal for that lifestyle. You can do travel and go to the same places he goes!!! I know several couples who did that. I think one couple actually met doing it. I don't know where they are now, but they loved it.

[locumtenenswife]

Re: Best Careers for Hospitalist's Wife

I thought about nursing, but it does require that I go back to school.

[planet]

Re: Best Careers for Hospitalist's Wife

Welcome!

[locumtenenswife]

Re: Best Careers for Hospitalist's Wife

Thank you to all of you who replied, and for your great ideas. Since I used to do consultative sales with business owners, I like the idea about financial advising and/or life insurance sales. I already have my series 6 certification, but I'm having trouble finding a firm in Los Angeles that just allows you to do it part time. I had a job lined up as a financial advisor last year before I quit my last job, but the manager was a workaholic along with the rest of the sales reps and I didn't see that particular office as being a good fit for my goals in wanting to live a more balanced life with my husband.

Also, I was wondering how many of you have a regular job outside the home or have a home based business. From just taking this year off and being a SAHW, I'm getting used to having time to be a "good wife" and having time for myself, too. It seems most "doctor's wives" are SAHM, and I'm curious how those of you who work outside the home or have a home based business balance it all. You're SUPERMOMS in my book! How do you do it!? My hubby and I are planning on starting a family in Fall '08, and I don't want to put too much on my plate before the kids come along.

[SuzySunshine]

Re: Best Careers for Hospitalist's Wife

I don't have any job suggestions as my jobs have been mostly stationary but you'll fine most of the members on this board are still in medical school or residency. I've worked clear through my husband's education and will only start staying home when we have our 1st child in December. I haven't found working with him in medical school or residency difficult at all but then again he's not jumping from hospital to hospital.

[locumtenenswife]

Re: Best Careers for Hospitalist's Wife

I worked though my husband's residency, too, and my husband and I had no problems with it, especially since the income I made helped tremendously. Are you planning on going back to work when your child goes back to school? Thanks for your reply, and best wishes for you and the baby!

[poky]

Re: Best Careers for Hospitalist's Wife

I got extremely lucky, and landed a telecommuting IT job for a company based in Anchorage just 5 months before my DH started medical school. So I work full time, but I can work at home, or at a coffee shop or bookstore...anywhere there's wifi and I can sit for a while with my laptop.

It's nice to not have a commute, and to be able to get laundry and dishes and such done during work hours; we also save money on lunches. We've talked about DH maybe doing some locum tenens once he's done with training; it'd definitely be possible with my work setup.

We're not planning on kids, though. I agree with the supermom (and dad!) assessment, though I'd include those who don't have full-time jobs as well; taking care of kid(s) when one's partner is essentially not there takes a lot of strength.

[Auspicious]

Re: Best Careers for Hospitalist's Wife

I've been working at home for almost a year and a half--ever since we moved for residency--as a freelance copyeditor/proofreader. I was able to transition into that from working in regular in-office jobs in book publishing for a number of years before that. And I pursued freelancing instead of a regular job in anticipation of having kids.

I have no idea how it will balance with kids, as our first is still in utero (for the moment). I have two friends who already have babies/toddlers and are doing it, though, so I assume I'll figure it out--they assure me it's possible but difficult. One friend is in the same line of work as me, and the other, from what I understand, turns hand drawings into CAD for a kitchen and bathroom designer? Both of them also worked out their current situations based on the careers they had pre-kids.

I do currently imagine that I'll eventually go back to work in a regular office job sometime in the future, but I'm hoping that my current situation will be portable and flexible through the next few years of adding additional children and possibly moving for fellowship and then again after fellowship.

Good luck figuring out what's best for you, and welcome!

[locumtenenswife]

Re: Best Careers for Hospitalist's Wife

I am so impressed with how much the women on this board are able to accomplish, what with spouses in med school/residency/fellowship, etc., and with kids and some with careers, too... You all inspire me!

For "poky", the locum tenens gig is AWESOME, my husband and I are currently on assignment right now and loving it. They pretty much pay for everything: housing, rental car, transportation, airfare (for hubby only, we had to pay for my airfare out of pocket). He receives income as a 1099 independent contractor, the only thing is we have to be careful to save money for income taxes and self-employment taxes, which is about 30% of his pay. Just make sure that whatever locum tenens company he works for is very professional, really good with follow through and good about getting back to you in a timely manner. My husband and I had THE BEST experiences with Vista Staffing. We had one experience with another staffing company (NOT Vista) that was not so good. They lost his credentialing paperwork, which resulted in a delay in credentialing and loss of work hours (and income), they set us up in a poor housing situation and work hours were promised to my husband and not scheduled (as a result, we had to deal with a unexpected and significant drop in income and bills to pay).

I do admit that it is difficult to adjust to a new city every few months. In my experience, its just been difficult to meet people who are SAHW or SAHM that I can socialize with, but I think that's just a function of what city we're in. We were in Honolulu for 3 months, and as soon as I got adjusted, we moved back to Los Angeles for 6 months, and now we're in Hilo, Hawaii for 3 months and then moving back to Honolulu for another 3 months. My husband has (on average) every other week off, we've been able to spend a lot of time together, which has been really nice.

I'm trying to mentally prepare myself for March when we permanently settle down in Los Angeles ...Should I go back to work? I love being a housewife, but why do I feel guilty admitting that?...There is still a part of me that feels like I should be a "working woman", with a career outside the home...but why? We don't really need the extra income, but it would be nice...my husband makes enough for us to live comfortably and the only debt we have is a mortgage and student loans. I'm the first in my group of friends to get married, and the only one to have given up her career to be a housewife. Will having a career shortchange my husband and my family?

[weeniegeniewife]

Re: Best Careers for Hospitalist's Wife

Welcome!

DH and I have three kids between us, and both of us work. He is a peds urologist, and I am a psychotherapist in private practice. Honestly, with busy work and kid schedules, we just make it work! My DH is lucky in that he's far enough along in his career that he is home by 5pm each day.

Jamie