Here's the next installment in the saga for me to find work that pays money.
Two weeks ago, I went on an interview in northern California. The city is two hours away from the Sacramento airport, up a winding, twisty, two lane road. In other words, quite inaccessible to Daniel, who would be frequently traveling to see me from southern California. Other than the location, everything was wonderful: the hospital facilities were excellent, the other physicians (surgeons and otherwise) were young, friendly, and welcoming, and they were very excited at the prospect of having a young female surgeon join their ranks. In a few weeks, they will be sending me an offer letter. But I have to keep looking because it's just too far away. If nothing else turns up, I'll take it, but I'm afraid that I'll feel stranded. It's truly a rural setting; the town has no stoplights, one stop sign and a Walmart as the biggest shopping experience.
I have another interview this week in the Central Valley of California, which is where I grew up. The benefits of this job are immediately obvious; if Daniel can visit or I can't get away for a bigger trip, my family is close. My mom is ecstatic about the possibility that I could be an hour away from them. And that doesn't bother me; they understand that I have to work very hard sometimes. I'm keeping my fingers crossed and, even if they offer me less money than the other opportunity, I'm going to take it.
You might be wondering... why is it so hard for a surgeon just out of training to find a job in California? The answer isn't simple, but a big part of it is that the California legislature, in it's infinite wisdom (insert sarcasm here), decided that it should be illegal for hospitals to employ physicians directly. So that means that I either need to find a large group of surgeons to join and they are going to pay me money, or the hospital has to give that group some money to help support me in the beginning. But this latter arrangement is how I got into the mess I'm currently in. The hospital just doesn't give away free money. They sort of make you an indentured servant for the "gift" of a salary. You agree to take this money, then you have to stay in the area for 2-3 years to pay it off. The problem is, if the situation is bad, and the year is over and you can't make money any more, you're stuck, or have to pay it back.
While I'm not looking forward to having to pay back a year's worth of salary, it makes sense in the long run to leave. Here's an example: I wouldn't stay in one place, making no money for three years, just to forgive a debt of $20 when I could go somewhere else, make $100 in the same three years and have to pay the $20 back.
These two jobs are unique in California in that they do not have the repayment part to working there. I get a salary and a W-2, just like most other people. In fact, I won't be agreeing to any more repayment options ever again.
