Former Pharma rep of 15 years. Pharma used to be a good job, I got out on a 6 mos. buyout because I hated it. Hospice job found me. The base was slightly lower, went from 68K to 63K, car mileage .53/mile makes up for it. I bought a used loaded luxury car and love driving it. I never ride with anyone (boss) unless I ask them to. We don't currently have laptops although it has been talked about. Basically calls consist of speaking to people who influence the decision of which hospices to recommend to patients. (Social Workers, Dir. of Nursing, Admistrators, Healthcare coordiators, doctors, Medical directors, etc...) Most of these people are easy to reach with minimal planning and I absolutely love my product...a team of nurses, aides, social workers, chaplain, bereavement, volunteers and Medical Director. I believe it definitely is a calling. I happen to work for a non-profit who treats us as professionals. None of my customers expect anything (lunch) from me. We don't have any pharma codes so we still give out pens, pads, event tickets, gifts, lunches or whatever when we want to or feel necessary but it is not a requirement to access them.
Some of the Hospice reps don't seem as polished but I found that "the suit" tends to intimidate and is out of place. I wear them at times but I feel more approachable in business casual. Since starting I have increase our census by 40% and have things going on that will add to that. Hospice is very competitive! Relationships are key but you still have to know how to build them and sell at the same time.
As far as benefits..medical not as good as pharma but average. 401K-average, 18 pdo/year (paid days off), $50/mo cell phone but I don't have any counterparts so hardly use it. I have my own office-in house, meeting usually once a week but I tend to check in at lease 2-3 times a week (not required) mostly I work out of my office at home.
I do not miss anything about pharma, nothing, not a single thing.
