Not everyone is brave enough to start a practice straight out of residency, much less to do so in Fairbanks, Alaska. But that didn’t stop Dr. Kara Hartl. She opened her practice with the goal of raising the bar and maintaining the Ivory Tower concept of practicing medicine and providing the highest standard of care to her patients. By providing top-notch medicine, her practice evolved into a multi-specialty medical center that was serving the needs of her community. This medical center ultimately brought life to what is now known as Troy Medical, named for a dear patient of hers who was suffering from multiple conditions outside of Dr. Kara’s field of expertise without access to a specialist. What can you do when you don’t have access to specialty health care in small or rural areas? Dr. Kara has revolutionized practice medicine with Troy Medical by offering specialists virtually to her patients by leveraging technology. Troy Medical operates by bringing fractional doctors and virtual medicine to the infrastructure of medical facilities using technology and medical imaging to provide the patient exam.  These facilities are unique in that they have a small footprint, allowing them to keep a relatively small overhead. With a staff of one person that has boots on the ground, they can refer patients to local services such as imaging, infusions, and labs while helping patients navigate technology and interpret medical diagnoses. She has locations in Fairbanks, AK, and Austin, TX, and looking to expand nationwide to continue to revolutionize healthcare in rural communities.  Tune in today to hear more about how Dr. Kara is meeting patients where they are while raising the bar of medical care. If you know of a community that could benefit from one of Troy Medical’s locations, reach out to Dr. Kara and help make medicine better for people everywhere!  “It is so much fun to practice medicine in an area where they desperately need you.” Dr. Kara Hartl Connect with Dr. Hartl: Troy Medical Dr. Kara Hartl 2 WAYS TO GET INCREDIBLE HELP AT A LOW-COST!!! Buy my Kindle Book,Doctor Me First, on Amazon Come sit with me in the Badass Collective Slack Group.

When we think of trucking, Yoga isn’t usually one of the first things that comes to mind. Hope Zvara is working to change that, one trucker at a time! Hope spent 20 years teaching yoga and functional movement to those who were in pain, and after meeting the right person at the right time, she pivoted into Mother Trucker Yoga, helping truck drivers treat their daily pains and maintain their health with the daily practice of yoga and wellness. Truck drivers are fighting an uphill battle when it comes to maintaining their health. It’s difficult to follow the standard rules of weight loss or fitness when you are driving several days out of every month. While they have limited resources to live a healthy lifestyle, it is not impossible. It can be done with help, and that is the passion that Hope has to help truck drivers everywhere achieve.  With the work that Hope is doing in the trucking community, people who have never thought of themselves as fit or healthy are starting to find love for themselves. With daily practices and small adjustments to habits, truckers can care for their bodies, allowing them to finally perceive themselves as healthy. Hope is bringing actionable exercises to the trucking industry that truckers can practice even while driving. With little adjustments to posture, small and intentional movements, and awareness around emotional triggers can benefit their long-term health in stability muscles, circulation and lymphatic systems, and overall mental health.  Sometimes we find ourselves pursuing ideas that others think are crazy, but there is a need for them in our community. I am here to give you that nudge and push you toward that crazy idea because you never know how many people you can help.  Tune in to this episode to hear more about how Hope’s crazy idea changed the lives of so many people. Surround yourself with people who think like you, and don’t talk yourself out of leaning into the weird that you bring to this world. Following your crazy dreams allows you to bring that spark into the world that only you can bring.  “Sometimes those crazy ideas lead to the most rewarding experiences possible.” Hope Zvara Connect with Hope: Mother Trucker Yoga LinkedIn 2 WAYS TO GET INCREDIBLE HELP AT A LOW-COST!!! Buy my Kindle Book,Doctor Me First, on Amazon Come sit with me in the Badass Collective Slack Group.  

Growing up as a lover of science, Dr. Kathy Zhang found herself on the road to medical school as a young adult. Starting her career as a hospitalist for four years, she quickly realized that the expedited culture of the patient experience was not how she envisioned serving her patients as a young girl.  While deep in the throws of burnout as a hospitalist, Kathy found her way into a fellowship that was more in line with her calling and how she wanted to serve her patients. What was initially a quick way out turned into a transition away from her burnout. She now splits her time between inpatient care and her own coaching and podcast business, but she got there through therapy and coaching. Having experienced the change that physicians can gain through coaching, she had the overwhelming desire to share it with everyone she could. Her passion lies in helping other physicians find their way back to the driver’s seat of their own lives and how to navigate their struggles in a way that feels true to them. Using some amazing tools such as EFT (Emotional Freedom Technique) tapping, hypnosis, and Neuro-Linguistic Programming (NLP), we can peel back the layers of conditioning that we’ve been stuck in for years to get back to the light in our lives. These modalities help us realize that we’re not broken, and there is a way out of the thought patterns that keep us rooted in burnout. By defining your own worth and providing yourself with the self-care you deserve, you can show up as the physician that you have always wanted to be while enforcing the boundaries that are necessary to keep you healthy. Tune in to this episode to hear more about Kathy’s journey and how she’s helping physicians everywhere navigate their path out of burnout.  “When we are exhibiting the same symptoms that we are treating our patients for, maybe it’s time to take a step back.” Dr. Kathy Zhang Connect with Dr. Kathy Zhang: The Purpose Filter Podcast Facebook | Instagram 2 WAYS TO GET INCREDIBLE HELP AT A LOW-COST!!! Buy my Kindle Book,Doctor Me First, on Amazon Come sit with me in the Badass Collective Slack Group.

When we are pushed into burnout by a career in healthcare that demands more than we are physically able to continue providing, we have to find our own way out. There is no specific formula for getting you out of burnout because the answer varies from person to person. I spoke with Dr. Laurie Boge who shared her experience with burnout and how she found her way out through following what was in alignment with what she wanted in her life. After beginning her career in medicine, she discovered very early that she was not cut out for the typical physician life and wanted something that would provide her the flexibility to work on her own terms. For her, that looked like emergency medicine. Ultimately, even with the added flexibility that she found in emergency medicine, she found herself in burnout, leaving her with the option of working less as her only relief. Unfortunately, working less isn’t always an option that you can afford in the early years of a career as a physician. Through years of trial and error and following what felt to be in alignment with her goals, she found her way to the VA Hospital of Miami, providing her with the work pace that allowed her to provide optimal care for her patients. Through her years of finding balance, she gave birth to Greencloud Apparel, a scrubs company that provides chic and comfy scrubs for women who want to promote health and harmony in the medical industry.  Her message speaks to those of us who are in burnout and looking for our way out. You have to keep searching and keep striving for an environment where you can thrive. You have to find the path that is best for you to create the life that you desire. If that involves medicine, great! If not, that’s also great! So tune into this episode to see what paving your way out of burnout might look like and how you can apply it to your situation. Keep your chin up, keep being a badass, and head on over to Greencloud Apparel for their blowout sale and find a pair of kickass scrubs! Connect with Dr. Boge GreenCloud Apparel Instagram | Facebook | Twitter | Pinterest 2 WAYS TO GET INCREDIBLE HELP AT A LOW-COST!!! Buy my Kindle Book,Doctor Me First, on Amazon Come sit with me in the Badass Collective Slack Group.

It’s no secret that the main driving force behind the burnout we face as healthcare providers comes directly at the hands of the broken healthcare system. Shifting away from proper patient care and leaning heavily on tasks, lists, and analytics, the system sets us up for failure and puts us right on the path to feeling burned out, helpless, and devoid of the passion that brought us to healthcare in the first place.  In this episode, I chat with Catie Harris, who has worn all the hats that you can find under the nursing umbrella, and we touch on the burnout that nurses face and how it is different from the burnout that doctors experience - but equally as detrimental to our patients.  With the shift in the hospital system that continues to adopt a more corporate face and strip responsibility from their nurses, we are seeing a trend upwards in early burnout. Many nurses are starting straight in the face of burnout only a few years into their careers, pushing them to explore other avenues, such as going to grad school to transition to the role of a nurse practitioner.  While this may be just what the doctor ordered for some nurses, others are still struggling to find their place, even with a myriad of degrees hanging on the wall. Catie and I talk about how so many nurses out there are starting to explore the ways that they can make a difference and share their knowledge and expertise outside of the crushing walls of the hospital.  Listen in today to hear more about the opportunities that exist out there for nurses to escape the burnout of the hospital system while still pursuing the passion that they have for helping their patients. “Nothing was going to change in my lifespan working in the hospital.” Catie Harris [00:26] Welcome to the show, Catie Harris! [01:36] Catie’s background and her journey from nursing to mentoring. [04:48] The big problem with the RN role and why it's causing the waves of early nurse burnout. [08:29] Nurses need to feel empowered to care for their patients in the best way they can. [11:27] A look at burnout from the perspective of a nurse. [15:56] The beginning of Catie’s exposure to the world of nursing outside of the hospital.  [18:19] We can’t change the system. We have to focus on ourselves first. [21:01] Ways that we can stop enabling the system and put power back in our hands as healthcare workers. [24:28] Nurses stay in their roles at their hospitals because of the culture and comradery.  [26:32] Catie’s podcast and its focus on Nurses who create a business of the hospital. [29:33] How doctors can help advocate for their nurses and the patients that they serve.  Connect with Catie: The NursePreneur Podcast LinkedIn | Facebook | Twitter | Instagram 2 WAYS TO GET INCREDIBLE HELP AT A LOW-COST!!! Buy my Kindle Book,Doctor Me First, on Amazon Come sit with me in the Badass Collective Slack Group.

If there is anything we know as physicians, it is that relationships are hard. Our practices and patients demand so much of our mental space and processing abilities that we often struggle to find the time and the energy to connect and communicate with our partners in the way they need us to. The connection we share with our partners is one of the most critical components of our ability to stay grounded and present in our relationship. Maintaining this connection takes constant work and effort and the ability to adapt how you communicate with each other as you grow and change throughout life. I got to chat with repeat guests Dr. Jeep and Vanessa Naum about some of the ways we can stay connected and adapt our communication styles to accommodate how our partners think and process feelings and information. Ultimately it all boils down to empathy and understanding and accepting your partner for who they are, their strengths and weaknesses, and how you can continue to grow both independently and together. You won’t want to miss this episode, even if you’re not a physician or married to one. There are so many amazing nuggets of awesome relationship wisdom that apply to all couples from all walks of life. I have yet to see a relationship that wouldn’t benefit from a deeper connection, and I know this advice can help you just like it has helped so many other couples.  Join us today as we decode the complexity of relationships and lay out some actionable advice on how you can work on connecting with your partner and fostering a healthier and happier relationship. “We are growing every day, and the marriage has to grow as well.” Dr. Naum In this episode: [00:26] Welcome back to the show, Dr. Jeep and Vanessa Naum! [03:04] Dr. Jeep and Vanessa’s background and how they help physician relationships. [04:53] How to stay connected with your partner through difficult times and changing times. [08:54] What to do when you feel that your connection with your partner is becoming frayed.  [10:43] Finding new ways to connect with your partner as you go through life together. [13:39] Using The Love Huddle when you need to be heard by your partner. [16:57] The key to developing empathy with your partner is having your feelings understood by them. [22:03] Accepting how our partners have changed as we’ve aged and meeting them where they are. [26:12] Parting words of advice from Dr. Jeep and Vanessa. [27:29] Connect with Dr. Jeep and Vanessa on their website! Links and Resources What’s Forever For?: A Physician's Guide For Everlasting Love and Success in Marriage by Dr. George Jeep Naum Connect with Dr. Jeep and Vanessa Naum: Best Friends Again  LinkedIn | Facebook | Twitter 2 WAYS TO GET INCREDIBLE HELP AT A LOW-COST!!! Buy my Kindle Book,Doctor Me First, on Amazon Come sit with me in the Badass Collective Slack Group.