A locum clinician reads your orientation packet twice. The first time is a few days before the shift, usually on a phone. The second time is during the shift, when they need one answer and have a patient waiting.
A packet written as a policy document works for neither reading. The seven locum orientation mistakes covers what a locum needs to know and who delivers each part. This post covers the document itself: how to order it, word it, format it and keep it current.
Order the Orientation Packet by When the Locum Needs It
Put the content in the order the clinician will use it.
- Before they arrive. The address, where to park, which door to use, what time to arrive, who to ask for, and the direct number of their day-one contact.
- The first hour. How to log in, where their workstation is, who's working with them and what each person does, and where the equipment and supplies are.
- During the shift. How labs and imaging are routed, how to reach the medical director, who handles which questions, and which service lines the clinic runs.
- The end of the shift. When charts are due, how the handoff or closing works, and how their hours get confirmed.
A packet ordered by department or by policy number puts the parking instructions after the compliance forms. The clinician needs the parking instructions first.
Write the Locum Orientation Packet as Instructions
Policy language tells the reader that a rule exists. An instruction tells them what to do. Compare two versions of the same item:
- "Specimens are to be handled in accordance with the laboratory policy."
- "Leave urine specimens in the pass-through window in the patient restroom. The MA runs the test and enters the result in the chart."
The second version names the place, the person and the next step. Write every operational item that way. Use role names and phone numbers, and write one instruction per line so a clinician can find it while scanning.
Clinical protocols are your medical director's to write. The packet says where they're kept and who to ask about them.
Format the Urgent Care Orientation Packet for a Phone
Open the packet on your own phone before you send it. If you have to zoom or scroll sideways, a locum will too.
- Use one link or one file. Five attachments get opened in the wrong order, or not at all.
- Prefer a link to an attachment. A linked document shows the current version. A downloaded PDF shows the version from the day it was sent.
- Use headings and short lines. The clinician looks things up by heading during the shift.
- Type the text. A scanned page can't be searched.
- Type phone numbers as numbers. On a phone, a typed number can be tapped to call.
- Add a labeled floor plan. A simple drawing with room names shows the layout faster than a paragraph does.
Ask for a short reply confirming the clinician has opened the packet. That reply also tells you the link works and the message reached the right address.
What to Leave Out of a Locum Orientation Packet
Each of these makes the packet longer and pushes the operational content further down.
- Company history and mission statements. They don't help anyone work a shift.
- Benefits, paid time off and other employee policies. They're written for permanent staff.
- Full policy manuals. If part of a policy affects the shift, write that part as an instruction and leave out the rest.
- Credentialing documents. License copies and insurance certificates belong in the credentialing file, which the operator's guide to locum credentialing covers.
- Training modules. If your compliance lead requires training from a locum, assign it separately with its own deadline.
For anything else, ask one question: does a locum need this to work the first shift? If the answer is no, it stays out.
Write One Orientation Packet per Role
A physician, NP or PA needs the prescribing and ordering sections. An RN or MA needs rooming, intake and specimen handling as your clinic does them. One packet for every role means each reader skips the parts written for someone else.
Build a shared core that covers arrival, layout, people and contacts. Then add one or two pages for the role. When you send the packet, send the core and the pages for that role only.
Keep the Urgent Care Orientation Packet Current
A packet with an old phone number or a former employee's name sends the locum to the wrong person. Three habits keep it accurate.
Give it an owner. Assign the packet to a role, such as the clinic manager, so the job stays filled when a person leaves.
Put a date on the first page. The clinician can see how recent it is, and so can you.
Update it when something changes. Set a review on a fixed schedule, and also update the packet on the day any of these happen:
- The EMR templates or login steps change. EMR access for locum clinicians covers what the login section should say.
- A contact named in the packet leaves or changes roles.
- Equipment or supplies move.
- The clinic adds or drops a service line.
After each locum's first shift, ask one question: what did you need today that wasn't in the packet? Add the answer before the next locum arrives. A locum notices what your permanent staff no longer have to look up.
Rediworks is a self-service marketplace for urgent care locum shifts. Post the clinician type, dates and shift details you need, and have your packet ready to send when the shift is filled. Sign up to post shifts.