Practice Management

How to advance workforce development through research mentorship and evidence-based management

Physician
July 14, 2025

In the current era of rapid health care changes, a very effective tool for workforce development is research mentorship based on evidence-based principles. As the health care industry faces a worsening shortage of professionals, the need to cultivate talent, empower early-career clinicians, and guide them through structured research and professional development is becoming more urgent. Research mentorship offers a replicable and transformative framework for addressing the health workforce crisis.

Research mentorship …

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Civil discourse as a leadership competency: the case for curiosity in medicine

Physician
July 14, 2025

In the high-stakes, knowledge-driven world of medicine, we’re taught from day one to project an aura of certainty. From the anatomy lab to the hospital wards, the message is clear: know the answers, lead with confidence, and never let them see you sweat. But what if that fixation on “knowing” is holding us back? What if the very traits we’ve been trained to cultivate—the resolute certainty, the surgical precision, the …

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When a medical office sublease turns into a legal nightmare

Physician
July 13, 2025

An excerpt from The Doctor is Out—Justice vs Injustice in America.

In the hug of a crisp autumn morning, with the world adorned in the warm hues of changing leaves, the seed of an idea took root within me—an idea born from the necessity of expanding my medical practice to accommodate the growing needs of my patients.

Crossing the convoluted corridors of administrative tasks and logistical considerations, I found myself confronted …

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Why hospitals are quietly capping top doctors’ pay

Conditions
July 10, 2025

Are 10 percent (or 25 percent) of all the physicians in your specialty breaking the law?

Of course not! Who would think such a thing?

Your friendly neighborhood “nonprofit” hospital, that’s who!

I have been reviewing physician employment agreements for almost 40 years, and in the last few years I have noticed a spike in the number of agreements that “cap” physician salary. A shocking number of hospital employment agreements provide that the …

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How early meetings and after-hours events penalize physician-mothers

Physician
July 9, 2025

Medicine has long valorized the early riser – the physician who arrives before sunrise, who joins 7:30 a.m. meetings and stays for evening journal clubs, case conferences, and post-dinner networking events. These scheduling patterns have come to symbolize dedication, productivity, and professionalism. However, for many physicians, particularly those with caregiving responsibilities, these norms reflect more than tradition; they represent structural exclusion.

The architecture of medical professionalism was built on an outdated …

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Why financial planning is a critical tool for physician well-being [PODCAST]

Podcast
July 8, 2025
YouTube video

Subscribe to The Podcast by KevinMD. Watch on YouTube. Catch up on old episodes!

Certified financial planner Brian Case discusses the article, “Personal financial planning shouldn’t be a taboo subject.” They explore the often-overlooked link between financial stress and the crisis of physician burnout, turnover, and …

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Why evidence-based management may be an effective strategy for stronger health care leadership and equity

Physician
July 4, 2025

In the current complex health care landscape, health care leaders are frequently challenged to make management decisions that are effective but also equitable. Numerous leadership transitions are occurring in Canada’s health care systems because of leadership failures. In British Columbia, multiple health care leaders were replaced in the first half of 2025. David Eby, British Columbia’s Premier, declared, “The anxiety that I have is that the people who see the …

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Why health care leaders fail at execution—and how to fix it

Policy
July 4, 2025

Health care leaders don’t have a vision problem. We have an execution problem.

Over the last two decades, I’ve seen countless strategic plans crafted with care, insight, and bold ambition. Mission statements get refreshed. Core values are realigned. Retreats are held. Vision decks are created and shared from the C-suite to the frontlines. And yet — within weeks — most of those plans fade into the background.

The problem isn’t poor leadership …

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Healing the doctor-patient relationship by attacking administrative inefficiencies

Policy
July 3, 2025

I have a great doctor. I’ve enjoyed his approach to providing care so much that I was greatly distressed when, at my last visit, he told me he was thinking of retiring early. While I consider myself fortunate to have a positive and dependable relationship with my doctor, fewer people now relate to that sentiment than before.

Gallup recently reported that America’s trust in professionals has declined, with overall trust …

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5 blind spots that stall physician wealth

Finance
June 29, 2025

Many of the physicians we work with are highly disciplined, generous with their time, and deeply committed to their profession. They spend years in training, work demanding hours, and carry an enormous sense of responsibility. Yet even with strong incomes and responsible habits, many still feel uncertain about their long-term financial picture.

The problem is not how much they earn. It is that income alone is not a strategy.

Physicians face unique …

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Combating physician burnout with a coaching leadership style [PODCAST]

Podcast
June 27, 2025
YouTube video

Subscribe to The Podcast by KevinMD. Watch on YouTube. Catch up on old episodes!

Family physician and certified executive leadership coach Lisa Herbert discusses her article, “From burnout to breakthrough: How a coaching culture transforms health care.” Lisa shares her personal journey with physician burnout, a …

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The most overlooked skill in medicine: contract negotiation

Finance
June 26, 2025

As an early career physician, transitioning from residency or fellowship into attendinghood, or even just contemplating a job change, can feel both exciting and overwhelming. There’s the thrill of stepping into your first “real” job, finally earning a salary that reflects the years you’ve invested. But alongside that excitement often comes anxiety: About finding the right fit, navigating unfamiliar systems, and negotiating a contract you may not fully understand.

Amid all …

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What if medicine had an exit interview?

Conditions
June 20, 2025

They left quietly. Logged their last note. Disconnected their badge. Maybe cleared out a drawer, maybe not. And just like that, another clinician walked away from medicine. No exit interview. No debrief. No conversation about what led up to that final decision. Just silence.

In most professions, when someone resigns, leadership wants to know why. What worked? What didn’t? What could we do better next time? But in medicine? We barely …

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First impressions happen online—not in your exam room

Social media
June 16, 2025

If you’re a physician or practice owner, here’s a challenge: open a browser and Google yourself. Now ask a trusted friend or family member—ideally someone who fits your ideal patient profile—to do the same. What do they see?

Do you show up in the top three listings?

Are there recent reviews with 4+ stars?

Does your website look current—or like it hasn’t been touched since 2012?

For most patients, that quick glance is all …

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How locum tenens work helps physicians and APPs reclaim control

Policy
June 16, 2025

Burnout isn’t a weakness—it’s a warning sign.

I recently spoke with a nurse practitioner looking for a lifestyle change that could give her more balance without stepping away from medicine.

“I love caring for patients,” she told me, “but I don’t even recognize my life anymore. My schedule runs me, not the other way around.”

For her, locum tenens wasn’t a detour but a lifeline. Within months, she regained control of her time, …

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Mastering medical presentations: Elevating your impact

Physician
June 15, 2025

As health care professionals, we are constantly immersed in data, intricate details, and complex ideas. Whether presenting at grand rounds, sharing research at conferences, or explaining treatment plans to patients, your PowerPoint slides can either amplify your message or obscure it in a deluge of information.

Let’s be clear: Effective communication is not merely a desirable trait; it is a clinical necessity. Communication …

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Marketing as a clinician isn’t about selling. It’s about trust.

Physician
June 15, 2025

Most of us didn’t go into medicine thinking about branding or strategy. We went into it to care for people. That was always the goal.

If we want to reach more of the patients who need us, we have to look at how we’re showing up. If we want to build a practice that’s sustainable and aligned with who we are, it matters. It’s not about selling. It’s about connection.

That starts …

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4 traits every new attending physician needs to thrive

Conditions
June 13, 2025

When I conduct therapy for doctors after residency, I am supporting new attending physicians as they navigate one of the most intense and disorienting transitions of their careers. These early attendings often arrive feeling untethered. They’re rediscovering who they are, working through long-ignored anxiety, stepping into their authority, and trying to build lives that don’t begin and end with medicine.

When I talk about what makes a new attending “successful,” I’m …

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Why would any physician believe that the practice of medicine will become less abusive for them in the future?

Physician
June 9, 2025

The perpetuation of the increasing abuse of physicians across our nation has reached a level now that is essentially unrepairable. The Medical-Industrial-Economic Complex (Deep State of Medicine) has been the aggressive predator of the medical profession for decades. It is not by chance that the planning for the takeover of health care and the medical profession came into being decades ago.

Older physicians have seen and experienced all the tactics that …

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Navigating fair market value as an independent or locum tenens physician [PODCAST]

Podcast
June 5, 2025
YouTube video

Subscribe to The Podcast by KevinMD. Watch on YouTube. Catch up on old episodes!

Health care attorney Dennis Hursh discusses his article, “What independent and locum tenens doctors need to know about fair market value.” Dennis explains why understanding fair market value (FMV) is crucial for …

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