2024’s top 10 in-demand specialties for locum tenens physicians
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To learn more about locum tenens opportunities in your specialty, call CompHealth at 800.453.3030 or view locum tenens job opportunities in your specialty.
While locum tenens work can be done almost anywhere in any specialty, certain specialties are in higher demand nationwide. If you want to see how your passion and expertise can go further for patients in high-demand areas while exploring new places and getting paid well, here’s the list of 2024’s top 10 specialties for locum tenens.
1. Family medicine
Family medicine is experiencing a growing demand of 2-3% annually, with a predicted shortage of 17,800 to 48,000 family physicians over the next decade. Locum tenens in family medicine allows physicians to work in diverse environments, from urban clinics to rural health centers, providing comprehensive care to a wide range of patients. This adaptability is crucial for addressing the healthcare needs of various communities.
Dr. Colin Zhu, an osteopath and family practice physician, finds that locums helps keep his schedule open for passions that complement his practice. “Locum tenens is great because it provides me the freedom and autonomy to dictate the type of lifestyle and work/life balance that I seek personally. With more time and freedom, I’m able to pursue other passions, like my passion for culinary medicine. I’m able to do both, side-by-side, with enough energy.”
2. Anesthesiology
Due to high levels of burnout in the field, anesthesiology is another specialty in which locum physicians are in high demand. Many anesthesiologists are also nearing retirement, meaning gaps in service are appearing nationwide. For those who suffer from burnout and feel like they aren’t paid fairly, locum tenens can be a smart, economical way to practice while maintaining work/life balance.
Anesthesiologist Dr. Noel Lumpkin found working as a locum tenens helped her precisely in this way. “I probably would have burned out from medicine by now if I hadn’t chosen locums. It allows me to have a work/life balance, and I have ultimate control over my schedule.”
3. OB/GYN
According to a 2024 Medscape report, OB/GYN salaries grew in 2024, part of a 4% average yearly gain. Due to factors like long hours, the demands of the profession, and high malpractice insurance costs, many specialists are still turning to locum tenens for a better work/life balance.
The report also notes that most OB/GYNs chose the field for the impact they could have on their patients' lives, and locum OB/GYNs have more freedom to bring care to patients in rural and underserved areas who otherwise might have more difficulty accessing essential care.
4. Gastroenterology
The demand for gastroenterologists is growing, but there aren’t enough to meet that demand. Recent changes in how GIs can monetize their practice have led to an early wave of retirees, leading to growing need in hospitals and clinics. Lack of work/life balance and burnout are also factors for the decline, but for those looking to keep practicing, working locum tenens can be a strategy to avoid burnout.
It’s been a great way for gastroenterologist Dr. Robert Brenner to earn a full-time salary while still having a good work/life balance. “If someone is at a point where they don't really want to maintain a full-time position, I think locums is a good alternative for them,” he says. Some use locums to prepare for retirement, to keep working after retirement, or in Dr. Brenner’s case, to have a more flexible full-time schedule.
5. Internal medicine
There is a consistently high demand for internists. However, with a projected 24% shortage of internists by 2036, there is critical need for these professionals. Because of the complexity of the position and the range of patients they work with, internists can make a lot of money, but this often comes with long hours and the risk of burnout.
Because internal medicine requires a high level of one-on-one patient care, practitioners may find switching to locum tenens gives them their ideal work/life balance. Internists practicing through locums also get more time to spend on their patients and don’t have to deal with many of the hospital administrative duties that can keep them at work longer. This flexibility can lead to better patient care and job satisfaction, making locum tenens an attractive option.
6. Neurology
“Part-time locums is a terrific way to reinvigorate your enthusiasm for clinical medicine,” says neurologist Dr. Andrew Wilner. “Every assignment exists because a clinic or hospital must satisfy patient demand. Rather than a daily grind, locums offers select opportunities to treat patients who desperately need a competent, caring physician.” Dr. Wilner found his way to working locums as a neurologist because of a desire for flexibility and less administrative burden. When he worked a full-time position, he wasn’t able to take time off without giving six months of notice.
Upon moving to locums, Dr. Wilner realized that patients everywhere need the kind of specialized care doctors like him can give. However, with many neurologists approaching retirement age, not all patients do or will have access to specialized neurology care, leading to the high demand for neurologists.
7. Surgical specialties
Many surgeons are nearing retirement, and the impending shortage of between 15,800 and 30,200 surgeons by 2034 is a significant factor driving the demand for surgeons. Another factor is an aging population: this combination of an aging workforce, an aging patient population, and geographic disparities in surgeon distribution underscores the urgent need for more surgical specialists.
For doctors like orthopedic surgeon Dr. Sonya Sloan, this demand has helped her create a flexible schedule that accommodates personal life changes, her family, and commitments outside of work. It wasn’t easy, she says, coming from a specialty that expects its surgeons to work 24/7. “So, I thought, what about life? What about all the things I really want to do? That’s why I turned to locums work.”
8. Medical oncology
Similar to surgeons, medical oncologists are less likely to be found in rural areas than urban areas, with only 3% practicing in rural areas, contributing to the 40% rise in demand between 2012 and 2025. There are other factors, too, like retiring practitioners, insurance concerns, and the geographic-dependent occurrences of cancer and disparities in recovery. And it’s an emotionally taxing specialty, meaning that early burnout rates can be higher among oncologists.
For a specialty with such high stakes for patients, providers must be able to work at their very best. Locums can be the key to avoiding burnout, focusing on patients, and maintaining a positive relationship with the work while bringing services where they are needed.
9. Psychiatry
Despite the growth in awareness around mental health and the large swaths of the population seeking help with it, there is still not enough supply to reach the demand when it comes to psychiatry. In fact, the number of psychiatrists is expected to decrease by 20%. This, coupled with the fact that nearly half of all Americans will experience some behavioral health problem in their lifetime, only adds to the demand. Other staggering statistics are that over half of U.S. counties lack psychiatric specialists, and counties outside metropolitan areas only have a third of the professional presence.
Psychiatrists who choose locums fill a huge gap, especially if they travel outside of metropolitan centers and work with communities that otherwise don’t have access to care. Locum psychiatrist Dr. Heather Cumbo says, “I’m also taking care of people that otherwise would not have any mental healthcare at all. So, it’s very gratifying to feel as though I’m actually giving back to my community.”
10. Cardiology
Like many of the high-demand specialties, cardiology is an area where patients and doctors are aging together, causing a rise in demand as doctors retire. With the aging population at a higher risk of cardiac issues and the rising rates of chronic conditions, including heart disease in general, the demand is even higher.
Some retirement-age doctors, however, are choosing to meet this need by opting for part-time locum work over fully retiring from the work they love.
Cardiologist Dr. Michael Higginbotham says that although he was of retirement age, he wasn’t ready to retire yet — and not because of any preconceived notions about doctors being addicted to work. “I don’t think it’s that. I think it’s just that you’re getting up every day and doing something useful. That was the formula for me thinking ahead — the feeling that you’re doing something you’re good at and useful at.”
To learn more about locum tenens opportunities in your specialty,
call CompHealth at 800.453.3030 or view locum tenens job opportunities in your specialty.
NATIVE CONTENT ADVERTORIAL | Brought to you by: CompHealth
