Doctors doing Startups

[MedicineMan99]

So I'd like a little advice. I've always been an entrepreneur with lots of business ideas. I recently finished residency and I have started working with a new telehealth startup. I was brought on as CMO and partner. We have been working like crazy for the past 6 months to get it off the ground and we hope to start seeing patients some time next month. Of course, I've been paid $0 since the start of this project. In startups, nothing is guaranteed. If it goes as planned, it could be a multi-million dollar venture, or it could just fail big. I'm prepared for both possibilities.

I have noticed that not earning an income takes a big psychological toll on me. It makes me depressed to be an attending physician, working so hard, sacrificing so much, all while making $0 with no benefits. Don't get me wrong, I am not the type to ever work for somebody else and I love my freedom, but I just need to start earning.

I'm looking for ideas on how I can make money on the side. Keep it mind it's difficult to do locum tenens because I live in a major city. Also, my city has more doctors per capita than anywhere else in the USA. It's also very hard to get a job at an Urgent Care here because there is so much competition. Also, they make you commit to at least 3 shifts per week. I'd have to drive at least 90 minutes away in order to get any locum tenens gig that pays somewhat reasonably. I also signed up to do independent medical consults but no gigs have come my way yet.

What else can I do? I've thought about consulting but I don't even know how to get started doing that. I can't do any telemedicine because that would be a conflict of interest.

I'd appreciate any input you have! Thank you!

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[ivyleaguemba]

Hopefully it'll be a short sprint (less than 6-8 months) before your start-up starts pulling in revenue and can start paying you. In the start-up world, anything more than 1 year is an eon and I'd start worrying whether the company's founders/leadership team has their heads screwed on straight. Entrepreneurship requires assuming some risk, but unless you've got 1 year of living expenses set aside, they really should be paying you at least a literal living wage. Good start-ups that are well-funded and well-planned do. If you really needed the money, a base salary could be written into your contract in addition to equity.

You've got 2 major directions: healthcare or consulting. If you network with private practice owners, you might be able to get them to take you on for just 2-3 days a week for an agreed upon hourly wage - kind of like dental associates. Alternatively, if you don't mind stepping down a notch and assuming NP or PA work, you might be able to get a medical center to let you job share for less than half time or work exclusively weeknights or weekends when you're not working on your start-up.

Alternatively, you'll need to network like crazy with project managers at all the major consulting firms. If they need extra hands on a project they overbooked with a client, they could give you temp roles for the duration of the project, usually 6-12 weeks. If you don't know anybody in the industry, you'll need to cold-call and be ready with your elevator pitch. You'll have better luck with firms specializing in the healthcare/pharma/biotech industries. Do a little digging before you contact them.

Good luck!