Welcome to The Motivated M.D!

This marks the first official post of The Motivated M.D.

A few acknowledgements

Welcome, and thank you, for taking the time to visit my website.  As I write to you I am currently sitting down for yet another moonlighting shift.  I have thought, for countless hours, about how best to share my thoughts and emotions. 

Even now, as I sit and stalk the emergency department tracking shell, I cannot shake my reflection on this past year (2020).  Where do I begin…

A brief introduction

To start, welcome! I am a thirty-something year old pulmonary and critical care physician currently practicing in the southeastern United States.  I am completing my final year of fellowship training and spend countless hours moonlighting as a hospitalist. 

Much like the primary audience of this post, I feel utterly overwhelmed as a young physician.  As much as I continue to defyingly cling to my altruism and this “white knight” notion of myself as a modern physician, I feel nothing but taken advantage of. 

See, much like so many of my fellow physicians, I have demanded more of myself.  I have not only undergone the grueling trudge through medical school and residency; I have not only pushed myself toward a specialty with hopes of boosting both my professional enjoyment as well as my income; but had continued further to demand self-education on personal finance, investing and supplemental income, all the while juggling to maintain my medical competency.

My grievance

Here is my frustration… 

I truly believe that society has no idea what life is like for physicians (even before COVID), especially young ones.  The average graduating medical student has approximately $250,000-$300,000 of debt.  That is well above the average cost of a home in modern America.  That is exponentially more debt that the average American, all the while making pennies on the dollar during residency. 

My debt

When my wife and I graduated medical school, we had accumulated approximately $670,000 worth of debt between the two of us. 

Let that sink in for a moment.

Neither of us ever went on deferment or forbearance, and our average federal student debt interest rate ranged 6-8%.  Let’s do that math for a moment.  $670,000 at ~7% (0.07) = $46,900.  As in, that student debt, just to have the privilege to practice medicine, accumulates $46,900 a year on top of the current principal.  That is approximately $3,908 a month.   Our student debt accumulates more money in a month than my states median household monthly income (after taxes). 

And let us not forget that we must do between 3-7 years of residency where we make just barely over minimum wage if you consider an 80-100-hour work week.    

My plan

So yes, much like you, it has been a journey, for lack of a better phrase. 

I have decided, like many others, to share my thoughts, stories, ambitions, and tribulations with you all here at The Motivated M.D.  I intend to reap the benefits of these brief posts, if nothing more than their therapeutic effect on me.  By documenting my path for the world to see, I hope to interact with so many of you traversing this same perilous road. But lastly, as the title displays, I want to motivate!  I feel there is far too much information out there for the average physician, telling them all the things they are not doing, and not enough about the great things they are.  So, cheers, may you enjoy the readings you find here.  May they inspire you, empathize with you, humanize you.  Whatever they do, know that I too am out here duking it out as well.  Fight hard my friends! And most of all…

Stay motivated!

The Motivated M.D.

If you liked this article, make sure to check out how my wife and I tackle our $670,000 medical student debt! Also, make sure to follow us on Twitter, and Instagram!

If you have a similar experience with your medical education debt, or debt in general, let me know in the comments section below. I would love to hear from you!

Standard Disclaimer: None of the information on this website is meant as individualized financial or medical advice.  These posts may contain affiliate links.