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January 2024Noncompete Clause Advice for Physician Practice Owners
Otolaryngologists who own their practices may choose to include noncompete clauses in employee contracts to protect their investment and business.
“We spend a lot of time and effort training very high-value employees,” said Marc G. Dubin, MD, managing partner of The Centers for Advanced ENT Care in Md./DC/Va., and past chair of the American Academy of Otolaryngology–Head and Neck Surgery Private Practice Study Group (PPSG). “Physician assistants are one such category now. Very few have otolaryngology training.”
Yet, according to the 2023 PPSG survey on employee contract noncompete clauses, fewer than one-third of surveyed employer members report using noncompete clauses with key nonphysician employees. Those who utilize noncompetes to secure key employees use them most often for physician assistants, audiologists, and nurse practitioners. Only one in five who use noncompetes ask office managers to sign a restrictive clause.
Check your state’s laws and review your noncompete clauses with a local attorney who has experience with healthcare and employment law. If you choose to use a noncompete, consider limiting the scope to otolaryngology.
Alternately, you can forego noncompete clauses and focus on creating a desirable and engaging work environment. That’s the approach Greg Davis, MD, MPH—who used to work under a noncompete clause in an employment contract—uses in his practice.
“We don’t have noncompetes,” Dr. Davis said. “That encourages us to be great employers who provide staff support and a happy work environment so our fellow colleagues don’t want to leave.”