A non-profit physician entrepreneur who anticipated burnout and acted

Dr. Richard (Rich) Sagall is a very busy physician entrepreneur these days. As co-founder and president of the 501(c)(3) non-profit NeedyMeds, he is reaping the rewards of having pursued his passion -- helping those whose circumstances make receiving affordable healthcare treatments and services a significant challenge. 

Over 25 years ago, Rich began his clinical life as a family physician in practice and went on to work in occupational medicine, before ultimately moving full-time into his own non-profit start-up. 

On the advice of his father, he wisely looked ahead while still practicing clinical medicine, and anticipated the day when providing care one-on-one to patients would no longer satisfy his sense of purpose. He began to acquire multiple ancillary skills, including computer programming and comptency with the Internet.

A chance conversation with a medical social worker colleague, Libby Overly, provided his next opportunity and NeedyMeds was born in 1997.

NeedyMeds started life almost as a hobby and has evolved to the point that it was named one of theTop 50 Non-Profit Best Places to Work in 2013, alongside such luminaries as the American Heart Association, the Alzheimer's Association and The LIVESTRONG Foundation. Its statement is as follows:

The mission of NeedyMeds has been, since its inception, to make information about assistance programs available to low-income patients and their advocates at no cost

Listen to my conversation with Trailblazer Rich Sagall MD of NeedyMeds and then rejoin The Entrepreneurial MD to add your thoughts.