How to hire a medical doctor

How to hire a medical doctor, step by step

Here's a step-by-step medical doctor hiring guide:

• Step 1: Identify your hiring needs
• Step 2: Create an ideal candidate profile
• Step 3: Make a budget
• Step 4: Write a medical doctor job description
• Step 5: Post your job
• Step 6: Interview candidates
• Step 7: Send a job offer and onboard your new medical doctor
• Step 8: Go through the hiring process checklist

What does a medical doctor do?

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1. Identify your hiring needs

   Before you start hiring a medical doctor, identify what type of worker you actually need. Certain positions might call for a full-time employee, while others can be done by a part-time worker or contractor.

   Determine employee vs contractor status

   Is the person you're thinking of hiring a US citizen or green card holder?

   Yes

   No

   A medical doctor's background is also an important factor in determining whether they'll be a good fit for the position. For example, medical doctors from different industries or fields will have radically different experiences and will bring different viewpoints to the role. You also need to consider the candidate's previous level of experience to make sure they'll be comfortable with the job's level of seniority.

   Here's a comparison of medical doctor salaries for various roles:

   Type of Medical Doctor	Description	Hourly rate
   Medical Doctor	Physicians and surgeons diagnose and treat injuries or illnesses. Physicians examine patients; take medical histories; prescribe medications; and order, perform, and interpret diagnostic tests... Show more	$45-166
   Family Practice Physician	Family practice physicians provide comprehensive medical care services to each family member. These services may include disease diagnosis and treatment, family planning, and immunizations... Show more	$65-149
   Family Physician	A family physician specializes in providing health care services to an entire family, regardless of age, health condition, or gender. Aside from conducting regular check-ups and consultations, they serve as a family's primary contact when health problems occur... Show more	$64-164

   Show more

2. Create an ideal candidate profile

   Common skills:

   • Patients
   • Patient Care
   • Internal Medicine
   • Primary Care
   • Diagnosis
   • Medical History
   • Family Practice
   • Emergency Medicine
   • Medical Services
   • Medical Care
   • Emergency Room
   • EMR
   • Surgery
   • Medical Treatment

   Check all skills

   Responsibilities:

   • Partner with team to achieve overall well-being patients and contribute to successful department research accreditation.
   • Perform selection and interpretation of labs including EKG readings, diagnostic imaging, blood work, and urinalyses.
   • Batch to clearing house, upload files from insurance, data entry answer phones, collect payments over phone, EMR.
   • Examine patients, order laboratory test and other diagnostic procedures and follow up with acute and chronic diseases
   • Provide overall quality prenatal health care, gynecological services, patient triage, refer patients with complications, provide patient education service
   • Perform and interpret ECG test.

   More medical doctor duties

3. Make a budget

   Including a salary range in your medical doctor job description is one of the best ways to attract top talent. A medical doctor can vary based on:

   • Location. For example, medical doctors' average salary in wyoming is 27% less than in new jersey.
   • Seniority. Entry-level medical doctors 73% less than senior-level medical doctors.
   • Certifications. A medical doctor with certifications usually earns a higher salary.
   • Company. Working for an established firm or a new start-up company can make a big difference in a medical doctor's salary.

   Average medical doctor salary

   $181,967yearly

   $87.48 hourly rate

   ---

   Entry-level medical doctor salary

   $95,000 yearly salary

   Updated January 23, 2026

   Average medical doctor salary by state

   Rank	State	Avg. salary	Hourly rate
   1	Texas	$190,328	$92
   2	Florida	$185,977	$89
   3	California	$178,493	$86
   4	Kansas	$177,784	$85
   5	Oklahoma	$172,693	$83
   6	North Carolina	$172,361	$83
   7	South Carolina	$165,775	$80
   8	Arizona	$160,409	$77
   9	Wisconsin	$158,755	$76
   10	Iowa	$157,053	$76
   11	Ohio	$153,047	$74
   12	Virginia	$152,177	$73
   13	Connecticut	$151,732	$73
   14	Oregon	$151,312	$73
   15	Michigan	$144,393	$69
   16	New York	$139,475	$67
   17	Massachusetts	$138,525	$67
   18	District of Columbia	$138,095	$66
   19	Indiana	$135,507	$65

   Average medical doctor salary by company

   Company

   Rank	Company	Average salary	Hourly rate	Job openings
   1	Pacific Medical Centers	$250,848	$120.60	2
   2	Fairview Health Services	$222,644	$107.04	46
   3	Silver Cross Hospital	$221,707	$106.59	17
   4	Kaiser Permanente	$217,240	$104.44	58
   5	Mobile Programming	$208,514	$100.25
   6	Medical Center Clinic	$206,942	$99.49
   7	Kirkman Co	$206,819	$99.43
   8	ST. JOSEPH'S MERCY HEALTH CENTER	$206,819	$99.43
   9	DOCTORS' CENTER MANAGEMENT CORP	$206,819	$99.43	2
   10	Amg Illinois Ltd	$202,948	$97.57
   11	NextLevel Health	$197,529	$94.97
   12	Central Florida Health Care, Inc.	$196,869	$94.65
   13	Acacia Network	$192,396	$92.50
   14	Lexington Medical Center	$186,201	$89.52
   15	Bastion Technologies	$183,824	$88.38
   16	BRC	$180,647	$86.85
   17	Acadia Pharmaceuticals	$180,462	$86.76
   18	Pediatric Associates, Inc.	$170,840	$82.13
   19	ARUP Laboratories	$161,575	$77.68
   20	Rome Medical Group	$158,009	$75.97	1

4. Writing a medical doctor job description

   A medical doctor job description should include a summary of the role, required skills, and a list of responsibilities. It's also good to include a salary range and the first name of the hiring manager. Below, you can find an example of a medical doctor job description:

   Medical doctor job description example

   Assists in examination and treatment of patients under the direction of the Physician and/or Designee.
   Essential Responsibilities:
   
   + Interviews patients and measure vital signs and other pertinent information as required by department. Records information in patients medical record. Prepares treatment rooms and patients for examination. Assists clinician with care of the patient. Inventories, orders and replenishes medical supplies and materials. Gives treatments and performs routine laboratory tests as required by department.
   
   + Schedules appointments, performs clinical tasks and completes appropriate forms as required by department. May be responsible for administering medications, including injections. May be responsible for cleaning, processing, sterilizing and checking instruments. Performs computer data entry functions. Performs clinical/technical skills specific to the department. Performs other related duties as necessary. Customer Service: Practices customer service standards as defined by the Medical Center and specified department.
   
   + Anticipates the customers needs, takes proactive steps to meet those needs, by listening and taking responsibility within scope to ensure issues are resolved. Promptly responds to alarms and patient requests. Facilitates the customers ability to utilize resources. Assures a clean, orderly, and functional work environment. Team Commitment: Is an effective team member who is flexible, cooperative, and willing to assist others.
   
   + Manages difficult or conflict situations constructively and seeks appropriate assistance. Takes accountability for own actions. Acts as a resource and mentor to new employees, students, and other team members. Actively participates in departmental professional development activities. Adheres to Attendance Policy. Supports a collaborative labor-management partnership environment.
   
   + Supervisory Responsibilities: This job has no supervisory responsibilities.
   
   Grade 180
   
   Basic Qualifications:
   
   Experience
   
   + Minimum six (6) months of experience or successful completion of Kaiser Permanente externship.
   
   + Per the National Agreement, current KP Coalition employees have this experience requirement waived.
   
   Education
   
   + High School Diploma/GED.
   
   + Completion of a course of study consistent with the requirements for Medical Assistants as specified by the Medical Board of California.
   
   License, Certification, Registration
   
   + Basic Life Support
   
   Additional Requirements:
   
   + Medical Terminology Certificate or equivalent experience.
   
   + Ability to read, write, and comprehend medical information.
   
   + Ability to effectively present information, both verbal and written.
   
   + Must be willing to work in a Labor Management Partnership environment.
   
   + Refer to Position Specifications outlined in the appropriate collective bargaining agreement.
   
   + Demonstrated ability to use personal computer.
   
   Preferred Qualifications:
   
   + N/A
   
   This position supports Kaiser Permanente's code of conduct and compliance by adhering to all laws and regulations, accreditation and licensure requirements, and internal policies and procedures. Kaiser Permanente is proud to be an equal opportunity/affirmative action employer.
   
   INTERNAL POSTING PERIOD: Starts 12:00AM 09/23/2022 - Ends 12:00AM 09/30/2022
   
   COMPANY: KAISER
   
   TITLE: Medical Assisant
   
   LOCATION: Santa Clara, California
   
   REQNUMBER: 1116040
   
   External hires must pass a background check/drug screen. Qualified applicants with arrest and/or conviction records will be considered for employment in a manner consistent with Federal, state and local laws, including but not limited to the San Francisco Fair Chance Ordinance. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, national origin, sexual orientation, gender identity, protected veteran, or disability status.

   Copy this example

   

5. Post your job

   To find medical doctors for your business, try out a few different recruiting strategies:

   • Consider internal talent. One of the most important talent pools for any company is its current employees.
   • Ask for referrals. Reach out to friends, family members, and your current work to ask if they know any medical doctors they would recommend.
   • Recruit at local colleges. Attend job fairs at local colleges to recruit entry-level medical doctors with the right educational background.
   • Social media platforms. LinkedIn, Facebook, and Twitter have more than 3.5 billion users, and they're a great place for company branding and reaching potential job candidates.

   Post your job online:

   • Post your medical doctor job on Zippia to find and recruit medical doctor candidates who meet your exact specifications.
   • Use field-specific websites such as healthcarejobsite, health jobs nationwide, hospitalcareers, medreps.com.
   • Post a job on free websites.

6. Interview candidates

   To successfully recruit medical doctors, your first interview needs to engage with candidates to learn about their interest in the role and experience in the field. You can go into more detail about the company, the role, and the responsibilities during follow-up interviews.

   It's also good to ask about candidates' unique skills and talents to see if they match your ideal candidate profile. If you think a candidate is good enough for the next step, you can move on to the technical interview.

   The right interview questions can help you assess a candidate's hard skills, behavioral intelligence, and soft skills.

7. Send a job offer and onboard your new medical doctor

   Once you have selected a candidate for the medical doctor position, it is time to create an offer letter. In addition to salary, the offer letter should include details about benefits and perks that are available to the employee. Ensuring your offer is competitive is vital, as qualified candidates may be considering other job opportunities. The candidate may wish to negotiate the terms of the offer, and it is important to be open to discussion and reach a mutually beneficial agreement. After the offer has been accepted, it is a good idea to formalize the agreement with a contract.

   It's equally important to follow up with applicants who don't get the job with an email letting them know that the position has been filled.

   After that, you can create an onboarding schedule for a new medical doctor. Human Resources and the hiring manager should complete Employee Action Forms. Human Resources should also ensure that onboarding paperwork is completed, including I-9s, benefits enrollment, federal and state tax forms, etc., and that new employee files are created.

8. Go through the hiring process checklist

   • Determine employee type (full-time, part-time, contractor, etc.)
   • Submit a job requisition form to the HR department
   • Define job responsibilities and requirements
   • Establish budget and timeline
   • Determine hiring decision makers for the role
   • Write job description
   • Post job on job boards, company website, etc.
   • Promote the job internally
   • Process applications through applicant tracking system
   • Review resumes and cover letters
   • Shortlist candidates for screening
   • Hold phone/virtual interview screening with first round of candidates
   • Conduct in-person interviews with top candidates from first round
   • Score candidates based on weighted criteria (e.g., experience, education, background, cultural fit, skill set, etc.)
   • Conduct background checks on top candidates
   • Check references of top candidates
   • Consult with HR and hiring decision makers on job offer specifics
   • Extend offer to top candidate(s)
   • Receive formal job offer acceptance and signed employment contract
   • Inform other candidates that the position has been filled
   • Set and communicate onboarding schedule to new hire(s)
   • Complete new hire paperwork (i9, benefits enrollment, tax forms, etc.)

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