At UW Health, we understand that making the decision to change jobs or take your first job can be a difficult one. Whether this is your first position, you are relocating, or looking for a new opportunity within an academic health care environment, we hope to make this decision a little easier by answering some of the most frequently asked questions that have come in from our new advanced practice provider candidates.
Benefits, licenses and malpractice
Are my license/certifications reimbursed?
After hire, Advanced Practice Providers (APPs) that work at lease a 0.5 FTE or greater, will be reimbursed for professional expenses required to practice in their position, such as a WI, PA, APNP license, national recertification, Drug Enforcement Agency (DEA) license or other certifications required by the department or specialty.
Is a DEA required for my job?
Yes, in order to be an ordering provider in Health Link, our electronic health record, and obtain clinical privileges, a DEA is required prior to being hired (with the exception of clinical anesthetists).
Do you provide malpractice insurance?
Corporate malpractice coverage is provided in the amount of $1,000,000 per incident, $3,000,000 annual aggregate.
How much vacation time is provided?
Paid time off is a combination of vacation, personal and sick days. The accrual is based on years of service with UW Medical Foundation and is pro-rated per pay period.
Orientation
How long is the credentialing/privileging process?
It currently takes 90 days for a new APP to become credentialed and privileged with UW Health. New grads may take longer as we can’t start the credentialing process until you have your national certification and applicable state licenses.
What type of employee orientation do you offer?
We have an APP-specific orientation designed by APPs for APPs. Topics for initial orientation include welcome by our APP managers, being an APP at UW Health, risk management, billing/coding/compliance, patient experience, clinical protocols and policies, communication and professional opportunities for APPs, to name a few.
APP orientation is offered once a month. All new employees must attend orientation prior to beginning their clinical duties. As a new APP, you will attend new employee orientation on your first four days of employment, with additional 60- and 90-day follow-up orientations.
What does the orientation process look like in my department?
Each department offers a slightly different orientation experience. Orientation may include time with other providers (physicians and other APPs), support staff such as nurses, receptionists, medical assistants, and orientation to ancillary departments such as radiology and physical therapy.
Professional development
What is offered for continuing medical education (CME)?
We offer competitive CME benefits to assist our APPs with professional expense fees, as well as fees associated with job-related continuing professional education such as seminars and conferences.
What opportunities do you provide to be a preceptor for future APP students?
Preceptorships are coordinated through the Office of Advanced Practice. Those who have been employed at least two years, are interested in precepting students, and have satisfactory clinical performance and teaching assessment are matched through the Office of Advanced Practice.
Do you have advancement opportunities for APPs in your organization?
There are opportunities for advancement based on an your area of interest, including:
- Committee involvement at the organizational, department or clinical level
- Leadership development programs
- Clinician teacher experiences (precepting)
- Participation in research, poster presentations or lectures
- Project workgroups
- Quality improvement initiatives
Do you offer tuition reimbursement?
Yes. We offer education assistance to our employees that have been employed for one year and work at least a 0.5 FTE or greater.
Miscellaneous
How many other APPs will I be working with in this position (department, specialty, sub-specialty)?
There are APPs employed across most specialties within UW Health in both ambulatory and inpatient settings. We encourage candidates to inquire about the number of APPs who will be part of their immediate team during the interview process.
What is the culture of the department/team that I would be working with?
APPs are part of the provider complement and integral to our clinical teams, meeting the needs of the clinic, inpatient service and our patients. At UW Health, we expect and demonstrate a culture of support, respect and collaboration. We recognize the invaluable contribution that APPs bring in achieving cost-effective, high-quality and patient- and family-centered care. We support practice at the top of APP license.
Do you have opportunities to pick up on-call/additional hours?
Opportunities for additional hours are determined at the department level based on clinical and business needs.
How is compensation determined?
UW Health is committed to providing all employees with a competitive level of compensation. This is done through a comparison of UW Health salary ranges to compensation benchmarks in the external labor market. Compensation rates for new hires will also be established in a similar manner to be competitive with the external labor market based on the job and an individual’s experience, education and or expectations.