Do all doctors need a medical spa?

I had a very interesting day speaking to visiting doctors at Surface.

It's quite common to receive requests for physicians to contact us for input. This generally comes in a number of forms. The 'send me your sales information' is one that I generally don't respond to. It connotes a lack of depth and understanding and I've found that most physicians who solicit this kind of info have not been investigating the market long enough to understand what they need. They're just shopping around and don't really understand what they're trying to do. (At least that's my impression.)

Then there are physicians who contact us in a way that shows that they've been investigating the market, possibly lurking for some time and reading in an attempt to make informed decisions. I always respond to these physicians since I've found them to be the type of doctors we're looking for.

I receive that type of question a lot; 'what type of doctor are you looking for?' My answer is always 'smart and motivated'.  Monday I met with two of these latter type of docs. (At least that's my current opinion.)

RB MD is a cardio thoracic surgeon who's been practicing for 20 years in a different state. His credential list is as long as my arm. He told me his average take home check for heart surgery and 60 days of post op care... is $1800. RB MD would like to have his life back. He'd like to spend some time with his wife. He'd like to have an income that wasn't dependant on others. In short, he thinks he'd like to have a cosmetic practice. I think he will and I think I'll help him.

KN MD is an associate professor in internal medicine and practices at a hospital. She's also taken a look at the medical landscape and decided that she doesn't like the lay of the land. She's wants to move into cosmetic medicine too.

Why don't these doctors buy a medical spa franchise? Possibly because they don't see what value they add. DermaDoc, a Dermacare owner, will be surprised to hear this but he's the happiest medical spa franchisee I've ever interacted with. He describes himself as merely frustrated. Most medical spa franchisees say something different.

So why are internists and surgeons so unhappy with regular medicine that they want to get out of it?

Doctors Without Dollars

"Removing hair from unmentionable parts of ladies in Westchester County is how my friend Jerry spends a good part of his week. Not that there's anything wrong with that, except Jerry (not his real name) is a cardiologist, trained at one of the finest medical programs in the country. Trained to save lives. His expertise is the complex and delicate management of congestive heart failure, but he gets paid a lot more to do a laser Brazilian."

Comments welcome.