Anna Wahl, a Hayes Locums consultant and former physician assistant, spent years in clinical care before transitioning to locum tenens consulting. Her clinical background gives her a unique perspective on the challenges providers face—and what they need to thrive.
What inspired your transition from clinical practice to locum tenens consulting?
Ultimately, I realized the higher you go on the healthcare ladder, the less direct patient interaction you get.
When I worked in internal medicine, I was spending eight of my ten hours at the hospital doing documentation—not just for myself, but for my physicians too. As a PA, you see your own patients, but you’re also supporting the physician, so I spent most of my day writing notes on a computer. I reached a point where I realized that sitting behind a screen was not where I saw myself having the greatest impact.
I started exploring other options within the hospital, talking to the medical sales representatives and different consultants. But it wasn’t until I reached out to Hayes Locums that they opened my eyes to locums, and it has completely transformed me.
With locums, I feel like I can impact patient care on a larger scale. Instead of picking up an extra shift and seeing 5–6 patients myself, I now manage about ten doctors each day—each of whom cares for 5–6 patients. The multiplication of your impact on patient care is outstanding.
How does your clinical background help you match physicians with facilities?
Having worked in underserved communities, I know firsthand how far a little help can go.
When a provider shares the type of environment they’ve worked in, I can
picture their day and understand how busy they are.
When a physician explains how frustrated they are being a salaried employee—doing six hours of notes every night after performing five or six surgeries, and spending so much time on admin work that they can’t focus on what they love most, or find time for family and friends—my clinical background helps me relate to their challenges and say, “Let’s find something else.”
We often forget that clinicians are people too. Their needs are not different from ours. They deserve a day off, to spend time with their family, to celebrate their birthday and go on vacation. Locums provides a way for them to do that. We help them regain control of their careers and take advantage of their free time.
What surprised you most about the locum tenens industry?
I originally thought locums providers were doing temporary work because they couldn’t hold permanent positions. I wondered if there were red flags, like issues with their license or trouble getting along within a clinical team.
That was a total misconception. Most of the physicians I talk to have had multiple full-time clinical roles. These are physicians at the top of their game. They’ve been the Chief of Surgery or directors of their department. They’re not people who struggle with holding a permanent job—they simply do not want to. Most of the providers I work with have trained and worked at some of the top healthcare facilities in the country.
What is the biggest misconception about starting the locum tenens process?
Physicians sometimes get scared off by the paperwork, but they often don’t realize how much burden we are able to alleviate through the process.
Hospital credentialing can be a pain,so we help you by pre-filling your documents after your initial paperwork is completed. I consider it a general courtesy—if you send me your CV, the least I can do is plug it in for you.
From start to finish, our internal and external licensing teams oversee the full credentialing process. They’re always willing to get on the phone and call the board for a provider, or track a license, and make sure we’re on top of any other credentialing items.
Physicians typically have to navigate these processes alone, but our team at Hayes Locums streamlines everything. Yes, there’s paperwork involved, but we’re here to help make it as painless as possible.
What do you wish more PAs and NPs knew about locum tenens?
Being a PA or NP already gives you amazing work-life balance and a great paycheck. But imagine working half the year and making the same amount—plus getting to travel, meet amazing people, and be fully in control of your career. That doesn’t happen much in healthcare. But with locums, it’s possible.
My advice? While you’re sitting at the lunch table in the hospital, ask your colleagues about locum tenens work. There’s likely someone who’s completed a locums assignment—ask about their experience to gain firsthand insight.
I always tell my providers who are considering locums that I’d be happy to connect them with someone who is currently doing locums, so they can hear their perspective. Then they get to hear directly the difference locums can make in someone’s workload, and how much their life has improved. I have so many doctors who went from being completely overloaded in their schedule to finally having time to enjoy the things they’d been missing.
If you’re a PA or NP, I encourage you to give locums a try. It will allow you to network, grow your resume, and maybe even pay off a little bit of your student loans. You also get a cool story out of it.
