BOSS Business of Surgery Series

Narrative Summary Surgeons are trained to endure, perform, and prove — but nobody ever teaches them to negotiate. In this episode, Amy pulls back the curtain on a live Boss Surgeons coaching call to teach the framework she calls “lion taming”: a way to hold your ground with the difficult partner, the dismissive colleague, or the patient who’s testing you, without becoming someone you’re not. The c...

Dr. Amy Vertrees reflects on the weekend screening of the documentary A Thousand and One Cuts and the coaching call that followed it, unpacking why women surgeons' careers are rarely derailed by one dramatic event but by an accumulation of small, repeated moments. She backs this up with hard data: female physicians and surgeons consistently produce lower mortality and complication rates than their...

Turning Pain Points Into Innovation | Dr. Prakash Gatta FULL DESCRIPTION  Dr. Prakash Gatta is a foregut and esophageal surgeon who built his hospital's surgical program from zero — and then built two healthcare technology companies from the pain points he kept running into in the OR. In this episode of BOSS: Business of Surgery, host Dr. Amy Vertrees talks with Dr. Gatta about what happens w...

Dr. Erin King Mullins is a double board-certified general and colorectal surgeon with 12 years in practice and founder of Colorectal Wellness Center in Metro Atlanta. In this episode, she shares the hard-won business lessons from a difficult exit from her fellowship practice, how she navigated a non-compete clause that left her unable to stay or relocate, and the step-by-step path to launching sol...

Episode Summary What do you do when you discover something that could harm patients—and the system doesn't want to hear it? In this powerful episode, Dr. Amy Vertrees sits down with renowned breast surgeon Dr. Beth Dupree to discuss her extraordinary journey after identifying multiple missed breast cancer diagnoses within a healthcare system. After discovering what initially appeared to be a singl...

🔹 Episode Overview This episode explores intimate partner violence (IPV) in the orthopedic/surgical patient population — an issue surgeons encounter frequently but often fail to recognize or feel unprepared to address . The discussion focuses on: Awareness Identification Surgeon responsibility Practical next steps Key message: 👉 Surgeons see IPV regularly — whether they realize it or not. 👩‍⚕️...

Episode Summary What happens when a surgeon decides she's done being underpaid and undervalued — and refuses to sell her practice to private equity? She goes out of network. That's exactly what Dr. Sarah Bryczkowski did, and in this episode she walks us through every step of how she made it work. Dr. Bryczkowski is a robotic general surgeon in Somerset County, New Jersey and a partner at Somerset...

What happens when the job you moved your family for turns out to be the wrong fit? In this episode, Dr. Amy Vertrees sits down with urologist and entrepreneur Dr. Joe Pazona , founder and CEO of VirtuCare, to discuss the unexpected path from being fired to building a new model of healthcare delivery. After experiencing broken promises, loss of autonomy, and ethical conflicts inside traditional emp...

In this powerful and deeply human episode of the BOSS Podcast, Amy sits down with physician advocate Kim Downey — a three-time cancer survivor whose life changed after the tragic loss of her radiologist to suicide. What began as personal grief became a national mission to support physician wellbeing. Together, they explore the hidden emotional cost of practicing medicine, the culture of emotional...

Episode Overview Dr. Jessica Hott shares her journey from hospital-employed surgeon and medical director to private practice founder after uncovering systemic billing and coding failures that prevented physicians from receiving credit for the care they were already providing. Her investigation revealed a critical truth: physician burnout is often not caused by workload alone — but by invisible, un...

Episode Summary In Episode 226 of the BOSS Business of Surgery Series , Dr. Amy Vertrees , general surgeon, certified coach, and founder of the series, is joined by healthcare attorney Amanda Hill to discuss one of the most important — and misunderstood — career decisions physicians face: how to strategically navigate job transitions . This webinar-style episode focuses on empowerment, professiona...

Episode Overview In this episode, Dr. Amy Vertrees breaks down the most common—and costly—mistakes surgeons make when transitioning from residency to independent practice. Medical training prepares physicians to be excellent employees inside hierarchical systems. But the moment residency ends, surgeons must suddenly step into leadership roles — becoming the CEO of their own careers, practices, and...

90 Day Notice Returns: Protecting Your Career Before You Need To Register for the free call 14 April at 6pm central here In this episode, Dr. Amy Vertrees and healthcare attorney Amanda Hill announce the return of Season 4 of the 90 Day Notice program , launching April 14th. Originally created after a wave of unexpected physician layoffs, 90 Day Notice was designed to help doctors protect their ca...

Episode Description: What is the real cost of hospital employment for surgeons—and is it as “safe” as it seems? In this episode of the Boss Business of Surgery Series, Dr. Amy Vertrens sits down with plastic surgeon Dr. Mark Shashikant to explore his journey from military medicine at Walter Reed to civilian practice, and ultimately toward greater autonomy and entrepreneurial thinking. Dr. Shashika...

Episode Summary What does it really take to build a successful career as a woman in surgery? In this episode of BOSS Business of Surgery , host Dr. Amy Vertrees sits down with the editors of the new book Women in Surgery: Navigating Challenges and Triumphs to discuss the real stories behind surgical careers. Instead of theoretical advice, this book shares honest experiences from surgeons across ge...

What New Attendings Need to Know About Credentialing, Peer Review, and Protecting Your Career Guest: Dr. Claudia Emami Starting your first job as an attending physician involves navigating systems that residency rarely teaches you about. In this episode, Dr. Claudia Emami joins the BOSS Business of Surgery Series to explain how hospital credentialing works, how peer review actually functions, and...

🎙️ Navigating a Successful Military Surgical Career With Dr. Andrew Schlussel In this episode of the BOSS Business of Surgery Series, Dr. Amy Vertrees interviews Andrew  Schlussel , colorectal surgeon, Army veteran, and co-editor of The SAGES Manual for Navigating a Successful Military Surgical Career . Dr. Schlussel  shares insights from his 15 years on active duty in the U.S. Army, his...

After a decade in private practice, Dr. Claudia Emami transitioned from pediatric surgeon to Chief Medical Officer—driven by burnout and a deep curiosity about how healthcare systems function. In this episode, she shares the behind-the-scenes structure of hospital operations that every surgeon should know but rarely learns in training. We cover: The difference between medical staff and hospital ad...

As surgeons, we are trained to go big or go home. 45-minute workouts. Perfect outcomes. Hero-level stamina. And when we can’t do it perfectly? We often do nothing. In this week’s episode of the BOSS Business of Surgery Series, I sat down with Dr. Sara Ionescu — family physician, movement coach, mother of five (ages 8 and under), and spouse of a general surgeon. Her question can change how you...

In this episode of the BOSS Business of Surgery Series , Dr. Vertrees sits down with Dr. Alex Schloe , Air Force veteran, family medicine physician, and host of the Physicians and Properties podcast, for a wide-ranging conversation on financial freedom, real estate, and practicing medicine on your own terms . Dr. Schloe shares his path through military medicine via the HPSP scholarship, his experi...

Description: In this episode of the BOSS Business of Surgery Series , I sit down with Dr. Ronan Elefant , trauma surgeon, entrepreneur, and pilot, to explore a radically different way of delivering surgical care. Dr. Elefant shares how his background in biomedical engineering shaped his view of surgery, why he believes healthcare insurance should be reserved for catastrophic events , and how trans...

Episode Description How do you know when it’s time to leave a job—and how do you trust yourself enough to do it? In this episode of the BOSS Business of Surgery Series , host Dr. Amy Vertrees sits down with longtime friend and colleague Dr. Sujata Gill for a candid, deeply honest conversation about career fit, power, gender dynamics, and navigating a difficult transition in surgery. Dr. Gill share...