It's Not Just You with Dr. Kara Pepper

Micro Practice Mastermind - a vetted, expert roadmap to starting your own practice starting October 6, 2024. Register to join at any time. 

Dr. Amy Vertrees began her career and was deployed in the military, became an employed physician, and started her own private practice at the beginning of the COVID pandemic.  The constant evolution of her career path is a sign of personal and professional growth.  She models how our internal thoughts frame our happiness and success.  

In addition to her medical practice, Dr. Vertrees is a coach for surgeons, and the podcast host of "BOSS: Business of Surgery Series." You can find Dr. Vertrees on her website, Instagram, LinkedIn.

Micro Practice Mastermind - starting October 6, 2024. Register to join at any time. 

"When I think back about what has traumatized me as an Emergency physician, it was not being deployed [in the military], it was working in the American healthcare system with no room to breathe."

Dr Andrea Austin was taught in the military to debrief after mass casualties which allowed her team to process trauma and improve care. She now uses those skills to implement simulations for clinical teams - improving their wellbeing and delivery of care.

We don't have to suffer in silence. Our patients are better cared for when we systematically, intentionally build care into caregiving.
 

Connect with Dr. Austin via: www.andreaaustinmd.com LinkedIn Instagram Pre-order an e-copy of her book on Amazon here Pre-order an autographed paperback copy here

Dr. Rebecca Berens is a board-certified family physician and international board certified lactation consultant.  She opened her DPC practice in January 2020, just two months before the pandemic and just 10 months before having her second child. As an early career physician, she was balancing entrepreneurship, the practice of medicine, personal responsibilities, and student loan debt, but she was committed to building a sustainable practice.

Dr. Berens now helps many other doctors learn more about direct primary care and how to start their own practice. She is the president and co-founder of Direct Care Physicians of Greater Houston, a nonprofit that provides education and resources to patients and physicians who want to learn more about the direct care model.

You can find Dr. Berens on her website, Instagram, and LinkedIn.  She offers coaching to doctors interested in starting their own DPC practice. 

Dr. Jillian Bybee, a pediatric critical care medicine physician, medical educator, coach, and wellbeing leader is creating wellness within traditional academic medical centers.  After experiencing profound burnout twice, she became the person that she needed when her mental health was suffering.  She uses her personal experience with burnout to inform her work as the Director of Wellness for Graduate Medical Education and Associate Program Director of Wellbeing and Professional Development for the Pediatric Residency Program and Pediatric Critical Care Medicine Fellowship program at Michigan State University.

You can find Dr. Bybee on her website, Substack, Instagram, and LinkedIn.  She is the podcast host of "Humans Leading."

If you are thinking of starting your own medical practice, but want to join a community of physicians and receive step by step support, join the wait list here.  

Dr. Emma Jones shares what lies beneath the pivotal hard moments in her career.  From the fantasy of being the "everything to everyone" pediatric oncologist, through standing up to conventional thinking in medicine to a forced leave of absence, we examine what beliefs buoyed her through her career.  

You can find Dr. Jones on her website, LinkedIn, Instagram. 

"Would you be frustrated if someone else wrote this first?" This question posed to Dr. Jessi Gold encouraged her to finally start writing the book that was living inside of her.  

"There is an excellent [author's] program that starts tomorrow," was the "kick in the pants" Dr. Jonathan Fisher needed to transform decades of journalling into his novel.

This week's episode features two physicians who could no longer quiet the messages they wanted to share with the world - and became published authors.  They share how they chose their publishing path, the vulnerability of writing, and the paths that led them to authorship.  If you have ever considered writing, this may be the encouragement you need. 

You can find Dr. Jonathan Fisher on his website, LinkedIn, and Instagram. His book, Just One Heart - A Cardiologists Guide to Healing, Health, and Happiness is available for purchase.  His personal story is also shared on Episode 8 of this podcast.

You can find Dr. Jessi Gold on her website, Twitter, and Instagram. Her book, How Do You Feel - One Doctor's Search for Humanity in Medicine is available for presale and will be released October 8, 2024. 

If you are a physician who is considering career transition and wants tactical support in a community of physicians who get it, join my info list for What's Next.  

Dr. Shamita Trivedi, an endocrinologist, allowed the flow of her career from the typical track of academic medicine, to private practice, to holistic women's care.  Her career change was fueled by her desire for growth. She opened on an online yoga studio during the pandemic that now influences her clinical practice.  Dr. Trivedi shows that growth and pivoting creates career sustainability. 

You can find Dr. Trivedi on her website, at her yoga studio, or on Instagram. 

Dr. Erin King-Mullins is a Colorectal Surgeon, podcaster, and author.  When she was offered a pay cut in the midst of the pandemic, she decided to step out on her own.  With her young family, she built Atlanta's Colorectal Wellness Center - demonstrating that excellent surgical care can happen outside of traditional systems.

You can find Dr King-Mullins on her website, Facebook, YouTube, and Twitter. Her children's books are Mommy! I made a Boo Boo and Mommy Gets a Colonoscopy. She is the co-host of Gut Check, the official podcast of the American Society of Colon & Rectal Surgeons.

Dr Keira Barr's "mess became her mission" when chronic stress led to life threatening skin problems.  Her skin was signaling underlying dis-ease that finally leveled her into stillness. This oncodermatologist/dermatopathologist shares how she came to terms with her health and her career. 

We go deep with trauma-informed care, creating safety in the doctor-patient relationship, mirror-neurons and how the skin is an incredible messenger for internal illness. 

Dr. Barr now uses a trauma-informed integrative approach in her clinical practice.  As a psychodermatolgist, she looks below the surface of the skin to holistically care for her peri-menopausal patients.  

You can find Dr. Barr on her website, podcast, LinkedIn, and Instagram. 

 We hear from Dr. Mel Thacker as she is transitioning from her group ENT practice to a solo, direct care model of practice.  Always the non-conformist, she shares the "purpose high" that comes with deep belief that you are being pulled towards what you are meant to do and how she navigates the mixed emotions of this transition.  She shares her story to inspire listeners to not be limited by let the status quo.

Mel Thacker, MD, DipABLM is a double-board certified otolaryngologist and lifestyle medicine physician and a coach for surgeons. She is married with 2 young kids and lives in a suburb outside of Boston, MA.  

You can find Dr. Thacker on Instagram and her website. Her podcast, Surgeons with Purpose, is hosted on Spotify and iHeart.