The Doctor's Crossing Carpe Diem Podcast

While many physicians are able to spend time pondering their transition out of clinical practice, some are faced with acute challenges that abruptly end their clinical careers. This is what happened to today's guest, Dr. Stephanie Pearson. Dr. Pearson loved her work as an Ob/Gyn, but when she experienced a severe injury during a delivery that left her unable to practice, her career path took a sha...

Whether you are transitioning from one clinical job to another or making the leap into the nonclinical world, a common question physicians have is whether to take a break between jobs. Most of you need and deserve some time off, but may be wondering how that will affect your resume, finances, or future ability to practice. I'm taking an in depth look at this issue on today's solo episode and discu...

If you're planning to make a move to a nonclinical role, you may be wondering if you should leave your current position before your job search or find a job first and then give notice. Many factors like burnout, finances, length of job search, and a potential gap on your resume can factor into this complex decision. I'll be going solo in today's episode to take an in depth look at this common ques...

Many physicians enjoy seeing patients but find that the logistics of working in an office or hospital setting don't allow the flexibility they need. If you're looking for a change of pace or want more latitude in your schedule, telemedicine may be just the right fit. Dr. Chet Tharpe, my guest today, is an allergist/immunologist who found he loved telemedicine so much as a side gig that he made it...

Have you heard that you'll take a pay cut by leaving clinical medicine and going into industry? Or that you can't get a job in pharma without prior experience? My guest today, Dr. Marjorie Stiegler, is here to bust myths like these that have found their way into physician folklore. Dr. Stiegler is an anesthesiologist and Executive Director in Medical Affairs in the pharmaceutical industry in addit...

If you graduated from medical school but didn't completed a residency, it can feel like you've spent a long time investing in your career path but aren't well qualified for any specific jobs. You may want to use your medical knowledge but think that the doors are only open to those who followed the traditional path. The truth is, there are many different options for you as a medical school graduat...

Have you ever felt like you had a great idea for a business but weren't sure where to start? Or that you have a creative side that's going unused in your clinical role? You are not alone! Many physicians feel this itch and aren't sure how to scratch it. Today we're talking to Dr. Adam Rosh, emergency medicine physician and founder of Rosh Review, about pursuing your entrepreneurial dreams. He'll s...

As physicians are given progressively less time for visits with often complex patients, many are left wondering how they can still help patients and their families understand diagnoses and better navigate the healthcare system. Enter the patient advocate! Today we are talking with Dr. Nicole Rochester whose personal experience with the healthcare system when caring for her father led her to pursue...

If you've decided to transition to a nonclinical career, you may be wondering how to make yourself a desirable candidate for the role you want. As a physician, you already bring a lot to the table. Your years of training and experience, excellent people skills, and leadership capabilities are highly desired by employers. However, if you want to set yourself up for success, there are ways to stand...

The first step many physicians take when considering a nonclinical career is to browse job listings. And more often than not, this leads to confusion rather than clarity in the career transition process. Do I really need all of the required qualifications? What about the preferred skills and experience? Not to worry, today's episode (part one of a two-part series) is here to alleviate your confusi...

When physicians consider the field of informatics, many think the only opportunities are working in a hospital- and they want to run the other way! But as today's guest Dr. Dan Drozd shares, informatics has so much more to offer. As the CMO of PicnicHealth, Dr. Drozd leads a multidisciplinary team that collects data from electronic medical records and uses it to improve patient care at both the mi...

Have you ever wondered what it would be like to do another residency or fellowship? Many physicians consider this option, but worry they may be too old or far along in their career path to change course. Pediatrician Dr. Betsy Baker knew she needed to make some significant changes and decided to take on a child and adolescent psychiatry fellowship later in her career. Her initial goal for the trai...

If you're dealing with anxiety as physician, you're not alone. And while a certain amount of anxiety can serve a purpose, it sometimes tips the scales and becomes a problem that interferes with everyday life. Excessive worry may even cause a highly competent doctor to consider leaving medicine. Today we're talking to Dr. Sarah Jenkins, a psychologist who specializes in helping physicians cope with...

When you're feeling burned out, sometimes all it takes is just one little thing to spark an "a-ha" realization that it's time for a change. That's what happened to Dr. Lara Salyer when an email about a new workplace dress code proved to be the proverbial straw that broke the camel's back. Today we'll learn how Dr. Salyer used creativity and fun as key elements in transforming her career, a process...

Many physicians experience anxiety, especially in those first few years of practice. And for some, this overwhelming worry can even be debilitating and affect both their professional and personal lives. Today's guest, colorectal surgeon Dr. John Fondran, knows what it's like to worry about your patients and your performance. He shares with us both his own experiences with anxiety in his first year...

Although physicians are trained to heal others, this is often done at the expense of caring for themselves. When Dr. Danielle Gerry found herself struggling with trying to meet her patients' needs in extremely limited time, she tried to push through, but her body had other ideas. In this episode, Danielle shares seven valuable lessons she learned over the past ten years from her career transition....

If you're like a lot of physicians, it can be scary to take a big leap from your secure job into something totally new. You don't want to make a mistake or jeopardize your financial security. What if you could test drive a career idea before risking the family farm? My guest, pediatric cardiologist Dr. Sue MacLellan-Tobert, joins us to talk about how to do a test drive to explore a potential caree...

Not everyone who attends medical school goes on to do a residency. And for different reasons, not all physicians finish a residency. What kind of opportunities are available if this happens to be you? The short answer is, there are an infinite number of options. Dr. John Jurica, host of the Physician NonClinical Careers Podcast joins me today to discuss the wide variety of options for MD and DO gr...

Many physicians are reluctant to work in health insurance but once they become an employee, they often like their job. Today we hear from interventional radiologist Dr. Robert Kanterman why he enjoys his work as a medical director for a large health insurer. We learn about his role doing utilization management, what he likes and dislikes, and what's required to get hired. He addresses the common c...

Today we're looking at this question of whether or not work culture can trump the work itself. My guest, Dr. Jenny Goss, a board-certified OB/Gyn thought she was taking a temporary nonclinical job to help with burnout but ended up loving the company culture so much she decided to stay. We look at the different ways this company makes it so enjoyable to be an employee and what the work itself is li...

When she found herself at the crossroads, Dr. Laura Marusinec had no idea she would end up in a great job improving the EMR and training other physicians. In this episode, she shares how saying yes to an opportunity to be an EPIC trainer led to a new career path she loves in informatics. We also hear about strategies she used to move forward from uncertainty that can be applied to any career trans...

As a physician you are teaching every day. If this is a skill you enjoy, you may be wondering how you can find additional teaching opportunities. Our guest, Dr. Liz McMurtry is an Emergency Medicine physician who's currently the Assistant Dean at an osteopathic medical school. She shares with us different ways physicians can become more involved in a teaching role, both as a mentor and in a paid p...

In this one-year anniversary episode, I share the truth behind why starting this podcast was such a struggle for me. My personal story revolves around some issues I've had with my voice starting in 5th grade which manifested in different settings, including my job at a veterinary clinic. The issues almost prevented me from doing the podcast altogether. My intention in telling this story is to offe...

We know how to follow steps, work hard, and care for others in distress. But how prepared are we for handling the emotions that come up around leaving medicine? It's easy to get tangled up in the emotional seaweed that inevitably arises. Dr. Morgan Leafe, a pediatrician who transitioned into medical writing and informatics discovered a variety of ways to cope with the challenging emotions around c...

Having an adverse patient outcome or a malpractice suit is something we hope we can avoid, but they happen. When they do occur, they can bring on anxiety and depression, take away our joy, and even cause us to leave medicine. Dr. Stacia Dearmin went through a very challenging malpractice lawsuit which inspired her to start her business helping other physicians in similar circumstances. On the podc...