Surgical care spans the most procedurally demanding work in medicine — and when a surgical role goes unfilled, cases get cancelled, waitlists grow, and facilities without subspecialty backup face real limits on the care they can provide.
The access gap is not evenly distributed. Research using HRSA’s Health Workforce Simulation Model projects general surgeon adequacy in non-metropolitan areas at just 39.9% in 2025 — compared to 112% in metro areas — and that gap is projected to widen through 2037.
26 specialties across general surgery, subspecialty surgery, and surgical critical care.
General Surgery
Trauma Surgery
Surgical Critical Care
Colon & Rectal Surgery
Bariatric Surgery
Transplant Surgery
Pediatric Surgery
Cardiovascular &
Thoracic Surgery
Cardiac Surgery
Cardiothoracic Surgery
Thoracic Surgery
Vascular Surgery
Urology Surgery
Pediatric Urology Surgery
Urogynecology
Surgical Oncology
Orthopedic Surgery
Orthopedic Trauma
Hand Surgery
Otolaryngology (ENT) Surgery
Pediatric Otolaryngology
(ENT) Surgery
Oral & Maxillofacial Surgery
Neurological Surgery
Pediatric Neurological
Surgery
Plastic Surgery
Cosmetic SurgeryLocum tenens in surgery means you’re not waiting for the right opportunity — you’re building it. Choose when you work, where you go, and what comes next. Barton coordinates licensing, credentialing, travel, and onboarding so you can focus on the work.
Surgical compensation in locum tenens is driven by subspecialty, procedural scope, call structure, and setting. Cardiothoracic surgeons, vascular surgeons, and neurosurgeons typically command the highest locum tenens compensation given the complexity of care and limited supply of fellowship-trained specialists. Trauma, orthopedic trauma, and surgical critical care carry meaningful call premiums. Rural and critical access assignments add premium across all surgical subspecialties given the depth of the access gap.
When a surgical role goes unfilled, the impact is immediate — cases cancelled, OR time wasted, and patients redirected to systems already under strain. Barton fixes the friction, not just the vacancy.
Clinicians matched on subspecialty, fellowship training, procedural scope, call structure, and licensing — aligned to your case mix, acuity level, and coverage model. A general surgeon covering trauma call at a critical access hospital and a fellowship-trained cardiothoracic surgeon staffing a hybrid OR require different clinicians. Every placement is built around that distinction.
Qualified surgical candidates submitted in under five days — not five weeks — helping facilities reduce cancelled cases and maintain OR continuity.
Barton manages licensing, credentialing, and onboarding end to end — including fellowship training verification, procedural privilege confirmation, ATLS/ACLS/BLS certification, and subspecialty board certification verification across all 26 surgical disciplines. One partner, start to finish.
The surgical workforce shortage is both a volume problem and a geography problem. HRSA projects that by 2037, non-metropolitan areas will have general surgeon adequacy of just 42.2% — and approximately 25.6% of all U.S. surgeons are currently age 65 or older, with the Society of Thoracic Surgeons reporting that cardiothoracic surgery faces the largest projected shortfall of any evaluated physician specialty by 2035.
For facilities, that means gaps that won’t self-resolve — particularly in rural markets where a single surgeon vacancy can eliminate an entire service line. For clinicians, it means flexibility — consistent demand, strong compensation, and the ability to practice where the access gap is most acute.
With a nationwide network of surgical professionals across all 26 disciplines and a specialty-focused matching approach, Barton handles everything from first match through final shift — licensing, credentialing support, deployment, and ongoing coordination — without friction or delay.
Surgical care intersects with virtually every acute care and subspecialty discipline. If your needs span multiple specialties or fall outside what’s listed here, we can help with that too.
Whether you’re stepping into a role or filling one, Barton gets you there faster — with the right fit from the start.
12 high-demand specialties and 149 subspecialties.
