You're seeing more patients than ever… but somehow delivering less care. 

The visits are shorter, the admin is endless, and the pressure to produce more never really lets up. 

Over time, it can start to feel like corporate medicine is extracting everything it can from you: your time, your energy, and your expertise.

After hearing this pattern repeatedly, I had a bit of an "aha" moment from my clean energy days: corporate medicine runs like a fossil fuel system. 

High output. Centralized control. Short-term gain. And hidden long-term costs.

In medicine, those costs show up as burnout, turnover, and the painful gap between the care clinicians want to give and the care the system allows.

So the question becomes:

What would it look like to build something different? Something sustainable?

The fossil fuel problem in medicine

Before working with clinicians, I spent more than 12 years in the clean technology sector.

I worked with startups, often coming out of universities, that were trying to bring new technologies to market. 

Cleaner energy, better water systems, smarter cities… more sustainable ways of doing things.

The work was fascinating, and it taught me a lot about what happens when a system is built around extraction.

Fossil fuel systems tend to have a few things in common.

They are built around high output, where more is always better. They prioritize short-term gain over long-term health. They are centralized, with control held at the top and very little autonomy at the local level.

And they carry hidden costs that often do not show up until much later.

Sound familiar?

The more I work with clinicians who are leaving corporate medicine, the harder it is to ignore the parallels.

More patients.. more RVUs… more charting… more pressure to keep the system moving.

Productivity is measured by volume, not by the quality of care delivered. Insurance companies make bets on long-term outcomes while doing everything possible to delay short-term payouts. And clinicians left absorbing the hidden costs: burnout, turnover, and what's increasingly being called moral injury - the deep discomfort of knowing you could do better by your patients, but not being allowed to. 

The message from the system is clear:

You are a resource to be extracted.

What a sustainable clinic looks like

When I worked in clean tech, the goal was not just to criticize the fossil fuel industry. The goal was to show that a different model was possible.

One that was cleaner, more efficient, more resilient, and better for everyone in the long run.

I think the same is true in medicine.

A sustainable clinic is not just a clinic that helps you avoid burnout. It is a clinic that actively restores you.

It is regenerative rather than depleting. It gives decision-making power back to the people who matter most: the clinician and the patient. It thinks long-term, not just about today’s schedule or this month’s revenue, but about what is genuinely best for everyone involved.

And it values efficiency with intention, not just speed. Because there is a big difference between a clinic that runs efficiently and a clinic that simply rushes everyone through.

Think about what it would mean to have 30 minutes with a patient instead of 10. To explain the full picture. To have the conversation that leads to real understanding. To practice medicine in a way that feels aligned with why you chose this career in the first place.

That is not a fantasy. For clinicians who build independent practices, that can become a normal part of the week.

The three components of a sustainable business

My philosophy is that you cannot design a sustainable business model until you get three things clear first:

1. Clear values

Without clear values, it is hard to know what to prioritize. It is also hard to define success.

Your values become the foundation for almost every decision you make. They shape your schedule, your boundaries, your patient experience, your pricing, your hiring, and the kind of business you actually want to run.

They also help you stay grounded when things get hard.

And they will get hard sometimes, because running a business is still running a business.

2. A clear mission

Once you know your values, you need a mission.

Not a vague mission statement that sounds nice on a website. A real mission.

Who do you want to serve? What kind of care do you want to provide? What problem are you especially well-equipped to solve?

This is where specialization can be so powerful.

For example, just because you trained as a rheumatologist does not mean you have to see every type of rheumatology case. Maybe there is a specific group of patients you are most passionate about helping. Maybe you have extra training, research experience, or a personal interest in one area.

That can become part of your mission. And once your mission is clear, your clinic immediately becomes more focused, because you are no longer trying to be everything to everyone.

3. Renewable energy: yours

This is the piece people often overlook. 

When I talk about renewable energy in the context of a clinic, I mean your energy.

What kind of work genuinely energises you? Which patients do you love seeing? What types of appointments leave you feeling like, “Yes, this is why I do this”?

And just as importantly, what drains you?

Your business model has to take your energy seriously. Because running a clinic is not a sprint, it’s a marathon. And you cannot sustain a marathon on fuel that runs out by Thursday.

A sustainable clinic is not only about what patients need. It is also about what you need in order to keep showing up with clarity, patience, and genuine care.

Why the Order Matters

Most people jump straight to the business model. What payment structure should I use? Should I go direct care? Membership or pay-per-visit? Insurance or cash-pay?

Those are important questions, but they're the wrong place to start.

When your revenue model doesn't align with your values, your mission, and your energy, you end up with what I call a leaky business. 

You're losing energy in places you can't see, you're leaving money on the table, and you're making decisions reactively instead of strategically.

But when you get those three components right first? Everything else starts to fall into place. Your schedule almost designs itself. Your boundaries become obvious. And the right business model becomes clear — not because someone told you what works, but because you know what works for you.

You Don't Have to Keep Running on Empty

There is a version of this career that still looks like the reason you chose it.

Longer visits. Patients who feel genuinely cared for. Work that gives energy back instead of taking it.

That's not idealism. That's what a sustainable clinic feels like in practice.

You get to ask yourself: where is your energy being drained? And what would it look like to rebuild something where your energy is restored?

If you're not sure where to start, I offer a free one-hour discovery call where we can think through what that might look like for you specifically.

Reach out at [email protected] and start seeing what’s possible.