WHETHER YOU’RE JUST OUT OF residency and applying to opportunities for your first practice or considering a change in practice or location, an invitation to a site visit is an essential (and exciting) step. Carefully review the itinerary set up by the physician recruiter and staff to know what to expect on a medical site visit, then plan ahead to make a great impression and get the most out of your visit.

Before inviting you for a site visit, a physician recruiter likely would have performed a thorough screening to confirm that you could be a good fit for the position.

Zizi Sipe, an in-house physician recruiter for Sentara Medical Group in Virginia Beach, Virginia, says, “I think it’s important to know what the candidate is looking for in a position. That might be their preferred schedule, patient panel, procedures, etc., and what they are looking for in an employer: physician support, staff support, things of that nature. Why do they want that particular area? Are they interested in only one region or area?”

Site visits are an opportunity for candidates and employers to decide if they will be a fit— before any long-term commitments are made.

“We ask our residents to consider the characteristics of a community or a practice to figure out where they want to settle,” says Sarah Cole, D.O., family medicine physician and residency program director at Mercy Clinic in St. Louis. “How far away is it from where you did your training? Is it a rural versus urban versus a suburban setting? Are you looking for an employee practice, an independent practice or one with partners? Do you want to be in a solo practice?”

What to do before you arrive

Eric Lieberman, M.D., is a cardiologist with Cardiovascular Care-Palm Beach Health Network Physician Group and on staff at Delray Medical Center. He is also the national medical director of cardiology and the regional medical director of cardiology at Tenet Health Care. “In preparation, get to know a little bit about the area, get to know about the climate you are going into, in terms of the work climate,” he says. “What’s the nature of the medical practice, the level of sophistication? To some degree, understand the population you are going to be dealing with. Find out who the physicians are and how long they’ve been there. To me, it would be a red flag to an applicant if every physician has been in the practice two or three years and no one has been there 15 to 20 years.”

Lisa Hauck, senior physician recruiter at Mercy Clinic, suggests getting to know your potential colleagues before the on-site interview. “Go to the group’s website. Maybe watch the video clips of the physicians in the group. Read their bios online. Where did they do their training? What are the areas of interest? Prepare a list of questions that you want to ask. How many patients are they seeing a day? What does the patient population look like? What are they looking for in a partner?’’

Sipe says, “The more the candidate knows about what they are looking for, I think the better the call goes because then we can help determine if they are a good fit for us and if we are a good fit for them.”

Make sure your CV is up to date before a site visit as well. Alison Woods, director of physician recruiting at the University of Kansas Health System, suggests: “Take the time to evaluate your CV. Is it comprehensive enough? You should have two CVs: One that’s academically focused and one that is community focused.”

Review your itinerary and be sure to arrive early so you are not rushed. Your itinerary and previous discussions should mention who and where you will meet. Jason Maddox, D.O., chief family medicine resident at Mercy, says, “I was escorted by the practice manager, but a lot of it was set up between him and our recruiter.”

While on site

Anticipate open-ended questions and situational-based questions as you prepare for your site visit. You may also field some technical questions, depending on your specialty.

“More site visits are including questions such as, ‘If a patient came to you with this condition, how would you address that? If a practice was experiencing this situation, how would you address that?’” says Cole. “Or, ‘Tell us about a time that you have handled certain situations XYZ,’ so that they can get a gauge of past performance as well as aspirational performance moving forward. So, we have started to prepare our residents for that.”

Lieberman says, “We will run some cases by them; not detailed cases, but ask, ‘If you’re faced with this situation, how are you going to handle it? What are you looking for in a practice?’ From there, I will try to feed off of their responses as to where I go with other questions.”

To prepare for those questions, Woods suggests asking yourself what you’re comfortable doing—and what you’re not. “How do you interact with your team? How do you resolve conflict? How are your interactions with patients?” she says. “Stay open-minded about the questions you are going to be asked, because it can vary from person to person.”

Be candid, and don’t hesitate to find out what you really want to know. It’s important for both you and the interview panel to make sure you’re the right fit for each other.

“When I got to the site visit, I was offered more time to ask questions. I think it’s important to be prepared,” Maddox says. “Not only to share an interest in the site you want to work at, but also to make sure you are getting all of the information you need.”

Lieberman says, “I’m looking for someone presenting themselves well,” he says. “I want the individual to come in prepared with questions they want to know about a practice… in terms of how they are going to interact with the practice, what their growth is, how the practice might foresee their trajectory. I want that individual to be able to portray to us what they would be able to bring to the practice. What are their strengths? What are their weaknesses? What do they see themselves doing? Where do they see themselves five years from now regarding professional development?”

Maddox suggests asking, “What are the common diseases? What are the common socioeconomic challenges patients are facing that complement my strengths? What does the future hold? What roles do you see me doing in the next five to 10 years? I think it’s important to know what is coming down the pipeline.”

Cole adds, “Ask about that culture to get a sense of collegiality and whether that’s a good personal fit. Thematically, I think that’s one of the most important questions that someone can ask. The second thing I would mention is asking what resources are available. I don’t mean salary; I mean, what is the electronic health record that is being used? What is the ratio of support staff to the physician? The third thing I would mention thematically is, what is the scope of the practice?”

If you’ve done your homework beforehand, you might be somewhat versed on some of the team members, which may come in handy during the interview and help you connect.

“The nature of the interaction, the ability just to have a conversation back and forth with the group, cannot be understated in terms of importance,” Lieberman says. “I get so much out of how I interact with someone. How confident they are without being cocky and arrogant. Are they comfortable in their own skin? Do they portray themselves with a level of confidence and yet be compassionate in dealing with other physicians? The other thing we look for regarding our local group is how are they going to fit into the team. Do we see them as someone we want to work with for the next 30 years?”

Robin Anderson, M.D., is executive director of medical operations for Southside Ambulatory Care and eCare medical director for Sentara in Virginia Beach, Virginia. She suggests candidates on a site visit ask “what are the struggles that are facing the practice? What are areas that are being worked on?” 

In addition to focusing on what you say and do, what you see is equally important. 

“You’re going to be able to practice medicine at any site or clinic,” Maddox says. “The big thing is to make sure it’s a place you’re going to be happy doing that. Pay attention to the culture. Do the physicians and the support staff seem to be happy, cooperative with team members and appear to be excited to be there? I feel that it’s an intuitive sense you get whenever you go to any of the clinics. Secondly, focus on the resources that are there. Would the resources support your practice goals? …Many of us dedicate so much time and energy to supporting the populations we care for that you want to make sure it’s a place that’s going to support you just as much.”

Bringing your team

You may be invited to bring your spouse/partner with you. More than likely, your partner will not be invited to the group interview, but will be invited to a post-interview dinner. While you’re interviewing, Hauck says, “usually, the partner may go around with a real estate agent for a community tour.”

After the visit

Even after your visit, you’re still being evaluated—keep that in mind for everything from the interview to the dinner to submitting your expense report.

And when it’s all said and done, send a thank-you note. It’s important to express your appreciation and interest—and to send it as soon as possible after the visit. If you remain interested in the opportunity, let the key individuals know as soon as possible.

How soon after the site visit can you expect an offer? “It’s really dependent on the candidate,” Hauck says. “I want to set the expectation as the recruiter. I want to find out when the candidate wants to make the decision. What is your timeframe? I would also communicate to the candidate what our timeframe is.”

From that point, it’s a matter of frequent communication, feedback, and ensuring a great match for all. •