As a doctor, finding a practice with the right culture fit cuts both ways.

To get the best out of each other, it’s important for both a doctor and a medical practice that your goals align.

The first step towards finding the right fit for you is to think carefully about what is really important to you as a doctor.

Regardless of the industry, the most successful and harmonious workplace environments always value respect, trust, transparency, teamwork and empathy.

They will also be great communicators and offer support to all their staff, regardless of the issue.

Let’s take a closer look at how you can find a clinic that shapes as your perfect culture fit.

Research

Do your homework, go online and try to learn everything you can about your potential new employer.

Examine the organisation’s web page.

Pay close attention to its core values and mission statement as well as the language it uses.

Does its beliefs align with yours?

Does it feel like a collaborative environment or one where your feedback, challenges and concerns will be ignored?

Reviews

While researching a medical practice, don’t limit yourself to online reviews.

There really is no substitute for talking with your peers who are working at the practice you seek to join.

Use your network to try connecting with a doctor for an honest assessment of what it’s like.

If you are from interstate or overseas and have no connections, ask the practice if they can put you in touch with one or two doctors who work there so they can answer some of your questions candidly.

Size

When considering a new workplace, the size of a clinic is no small matter.

In a more intimate clinic with only a handful of doctors, you’re likely to have much more autonomy which is likely to prove more satisfying.

You’re also become much more engaged with your patients and the local community.

Conversely, smaller clinics may require greater administration to maintain their efficiency.

Some of that extra work inevitably falls upon its doctors.

Taking leave may also prove problematic if the burden of seeing a doctor’s patients falls upon a small number of their colleagues.

While some doctors just grow restless or bored in smaller clinics and prefer the fast-paced vibe of a bigger environment.

Location

The location of a clinic is something else to consider when weighing up if it is the right fit for you.

A clinic based in a CBD or busy inner suburb will almost certainly experience a more hectic schedule than one in a quieter, outer suburb or country town.

This in turn plays a significant factor in workplace culture.

Some people love the constant stimulation of forever being on the go.

While others savour a more relaxed work day with the opportunity to take the odd time out to cool their jets, enjoy a brief walk and breathe in the fresh air.

Leadership

An interview is a two-way street so don’t be afraid to ask some poignant questions of your potential new employer.

Of great significance is how the business is managed, how important decisions affecting the business are made and who makes them.

Are the wishes of doctors genuinely heard and actioned or brushed aside?

Is there really an open line of communication to the top and a commitment to transparency in decision making or is it all just a facade?

Work-life balance

Some doctors are workaholics.

But it’s a profession that has seen much of its cohort stretched to and beyond its capacity in recent years.

Most doctors have come to appreciate the importance of work-life balance.

If it’s important to you, don’t be backward in asking about work-life balance and the opportunity for flexible hours.

Being satisfied and happy at work goes hand in hand with a person’s ability to perform at their best in any workplace.

An organisation that values its doctors’ rights to work-life balance is likely to be a better culture fit than one that doesn’t.

Contact AHA Clinics today

Many workplaces are very good at selling themselves both internally and externally.

They use words like ‘communication’, ‘care’ and ‘value’.

But a great number of them fail to live up to the buzzwords they preach.

At AHA Clinics, we don’t just talk the talk.

Reach out to our team and you’ll quickly begin to appreciate that we are fiercely proud of the way we care not just for our patients but our doctors and staff as well.

We place a premium on work-life balance and strive to ensure the wishes of all of our doctors are met.

Our two practices at Seaford and Seaford Meadows are busy, well-resourced clinics.

They offer our doctors the benefits of both larger and more intimate operations.

We are based in the rapidly-growing outer, southern suburbs of Adelaide.

Seaford boasts all the facilities, schools and shopping precincts of the city, without all the hustle and bustle.

You’ll be able to see as many patients as you desire while enjoying the relaxed lifestyle of one of South Australia’s premium beach locations.

If you’d like to work the morning shift, we’ll make it happen.

You can then sip a latte, enjoy lunch with friends or hit the local beaches during the afternoon.

We work closely with GPs moving to Australia, offering them personal support every step of the way.

Our purpose-built, modern and stunning facilities utilise natural light and make coming to work here a joy.

But don’t take our word for it – we’ll happily put you in touch with some of our doctors.

They can tell you themselves what it’s like to work at AHA and why it could be the right culture fit for you.

You can learn more about our practice and register your interest here or email recruit@aharecruitment.com.au.

Our AHA leadership team will contact you soon to see how we can help and arrange an interview.