Locum tenens clinicians are an essential part of today’s healthcare system, providing the skills, resilience, and dedication that ensure continuous, high-quality care in communities everywhere. They step in where the need is greatest, stabilizing care teams and profoundly influencing patient lives.
To honor this vital service and the clinicians who embody its highest ideals, Locumpedia proudly announces the five winners of the 2025 Locum Tenens Providers of the Year Award, selected from dozens of distinguished nominees submitted by their respective staffing agencies. Each of this year’s honorees brings a singular and vital quality to their assignments.
One Ob/Gyn has made “empowering” women the central mission of her practice, extending her work to education and advocacy. The presence of a cardiac anesthesiology provider is often “essential,” as their expertise is the crucial factor that allows complex, life-saving surgeries to proceed. A general surgery specialist is renowned for being deeply “accountable,” focusing on showing up for his teams and delivering the right care in high-need facilities.
For one emergency medicine provider, practicing in remote communities is a “heartfelt” calling, guided by deep trust and connection. Finally, a “disciplined” and focused approach to collaboration and patient safety is what a cardiothoracic surgery provider brings to his demanding assignments.
Let’s meet this year’s winners.
1. Dr. Sanlare Gordon
Specialty:
Ob/Gyn
Years Practicing Locums: 2
Staffing Agency:
Orchard Corp
Nominated by:
Indira Saladi, President
Dr. Sanlare Gordon has built her career around one central mission: empowering women to take ownership of their health. That focus started early, shaped by what she saw in her South Carolina community.
“I just remember a whole bunch of women, they would always put themselves second,” she said.
As a locum tenens OB/GYN with Orchard Corp., Dr. Gordon provides critical coverage in underserved, often rural communities where sustaining continuity of women’s health services can be difficult. “Locum tenens has given me the opportunity to practice in the areas that I want to practice in,” she said, including “rural places in Washington and Wisconsin, Kansas and New Mexico.”
She’s known for her calm presence in high-stress clinical situations, which she traces back to her training. “My calmness comes from a place of experience,” she said.
Trust and education are central to her approach, especially for patients who have felt dismissed or uninformed. “Stop being a backseat to your care. You need to advocate for yourself,” she said, explaining why she created her women’s health podcast and maternal education initiatives.
Beyond the clinic, she also runs a natural hair and skincare line, a project she says began “from a place of necessity” and has now evolved “to a place of purpose.”
“Dr. Gordon’s work embodies the values of care, education, and empowerment that are worthy of recognition. Her dedication to women’s health, both in the clinic and in the community, makes her an outstanding representative of the locum tenens profession and a deserving nominee for recognition.”
2. Dr. Meredith Goodwin
Specialty:
Cardiac Anesthesiology
Years Practicing Locums: 1
Staffing Agency:
Medicus Healthcare Solutions
Nominated by:
Alexia Courteau, Provider Consultant
Dr. Meredith Goodwin entered locum tenens after a major life transition.
“We decided that we wanted to move to the Upper Peninsula of Michigan,” she said, “and what we found here was that there was limited work for me.” Rather than pursue another permanent job, she chose work-life balance and the ability to make a difference in patients’ lives in varied clinical settings. “I decided that instead of seeking out another full-time position, I would start locum work.”
That freedom matters to her family. “I get to pick my own schedule, pick the places that I like working,” she said. “I have flexibility in my schedule to be home or to be working.”
In the operating room, she sees the stakes clearly. “Those patients are often very much in need of the support that we can offer to be able to proceed with their surgeries,” she said, noting that many sites rely on locum anesthesiologists for access. “Without us, those hospitals wouldn’t be able to give surgery to those patients.”
Goodwin’s approach to new environments is deliberate. “I try to be very open and communicate a lot even from the point prior to entering the hospital,” she said. “I always introduce myself,” and work to “learn the system and get a rapport so that people find that trust easily.”
“On every locum assignment, clinical leadership, patients, and support staff consistently praise her expertise, dedication, and ability to light up every room she walks into.”
3. Dr. Reginald Mason
Specialty:
General Surgery
Years Practicing Locums: 4
Staffing Agency:
Floyd Lee Locums
Nominated by:
Elizabeth Bates, VP of Marketing
After decades in permanent practice, Dr. Reginald Mason turned to locum tenens during a period of professional reckoning that began when his regional hospital was acquired.
“Rather than continuing to offer a full spectrum of care, their plan was to move subspecialty services to a larger city,” he said. “They gutted our hospital. Mammography, breast biopsy… many services we provided to the community were taken away. Locums became the next step. I needed a break and some autonomy. I didn’t know how long I’d do it, but I wanted to try it.”
With Floyd Lee Locums, Dr. Mason has served facilities facing shortages, including tribal health facilities, which he describes as deeply mission-driven. At Chickasaw Nation Medical Center, “everyone was mission-focused on doing what was right for that patient population,” he said. “They weren’t chasing revenue or prestige. They were passionate about caring for tribal members.”
In surgical environments where trust is everything, he emphasizes presence, humility, and shared accountability. “Leadership isn’t about declaring yourself a leader,” he said. “It’s about accountability, doing your personal best, being kind and compassionate to patients and coworkers.”
“Dr. Mason demonstrates integrity, authenticity, and compassion, the very qualities that define the best in healthcare. His dedication to serving where the need is greatest has touched patients across rural America and strengthened the communities he enters.”
4. Michael Molnar, PA-C
Specialty:
Emergency Medicine
Years Practicing Locums: 2
Staffing Agency:
Wilderness Medical Staffing
Nominated by:
Nyree Legnon, Marketing Coordinator
Michael Molnar’s journey to locum tenens spans more than three decades in emergency medicine, beginning as a paramedic and evolving into a physician assistant serving remote communities. “I became a paramedic at 19 in upstate New York and worked for almost three decades doing that,” he said. Later, “At the age of 44, I decided to go back to school and become a PA.”
When his hospital stopped using PAs in the ED, he faced a sudden crossroads. “And with that, I was like, ‘Oh my goodness, what am I going to do? I’ve got student loans. I’ve got a house payment.’”
With Wilderness Medical Staffing, he practices in austere settings because that is where he feels most aligned. “It’s a different brand of medicine,” he said. And when he saw a remote Alaskan community on the list of villages, he thought, “I’m going to get to go out there and provide healthcare.”
In the communities he serves, relationship-building is clinical care. “For me, the community has taught me to practice medicine with my heart,” he said. “The trust aspect of things is the foundation of everything here,” and “leading with love and leading with an open heart is what seems to build it.”
“Michael is not only an exceptional provider; he is a compassionate presence and a steady source of trust in environments where continuity, respect, and understanding matter most.”
5. Alain Raymond, PA-C
Specialty:
Cardiothoracic Surgery
Years Practicing Locums: 3
Staffing Agency:
Aya Locums
Nominated by:
Deana Dziadosz, Communications Manager
With 15 years of experience in cardiothoracic, cardiovascular, and transplant surgery, Alain Raymond, PA-C, brings a mission-first mindset shaped in part by his Navy service, including combat medicine.
He pursued locum assignments to expand his clinical range. “Over the years, you kind of get settled in your position and the cases that you see,” he said. “Locums enhanced my skills and gave me exposure to a different population.”
He also values the perspective that comes from seeing how different institutions operate. “Every institution has its own adaptation,” he said. “I find it meaningful to see a wider range of cardiac disorders and vascular disorders.”
When he steps into a new facility, his first priority is integration, not reinvention. “I usually volunteer myself to come in as neutral and ask the providers there to assimilate me into their routine rather than trying to force my routine,” he said. “I try to learn their day-to-day first and then balance with my own knowledge and habits.”
Raymond credits the military with shaping how he works under pressure and how he supports a team. “I think it helps with the efficiency of the practice,” he said, noting that “the look and the approach of military medicine versus civilian is very different and much more conservative.”
In both military and surgical settings, the standard is the same: “the biggest thing is the team spirit; being there to pull your weight and ensure that the mission, which is patient care and patient safety, is priority number one.”
“Alain is a clinician of extraordinary skill, a colleague of unmatched dependability, a father who leads by example, and an advocate for education. His impact reverberates across operating rooms, classrooms, communities, and the future of healthcare itself.”
Congratulations to the 2025 Providers of the Year!
Locumpedia’s 2025 Providers of the Year Award honors locum clinicians for exceptional service and expanded healthcare access. Continuing a 20-year legacy from LocumLife magazine, this recognition is made possible by the recruiters and staffing agencies who share the inspiring stories of these honorees with the broader locum tenens community.
About Locumpedia
Locumpedia is the premier independent platform for the $10 billion locum tenens industry. We empower clinicians, staffing firms, and healthcare employers with the news, industry insights, and practical resources needed to navigate the market with confidence. By providing actionable analysis and a free job board, Locumpedia helps providers optimize their careers while enabling organizations to staff more efficiently and cost-effectively.
