Alternative Sources of Income

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Iladelphia

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Hey everyone,

Just looking for suggestions. Young ophthalmologist here with a pretty heavy student loan burden that I'd like to pay down quicker. Wondering if anyone can recommend some alternative sources of income that can be gained by using this rather expensive and time-consuming education. Internists can moonlight, etc. What can we ophthalmologists do with our skill set? Cover other hospitals? Cover an optometrist/optical shop? Consult?

Just looking for thoughts - don't think this issue has ever been addressed here and I feel like it might be useful for some of us younger guys. Thanks!

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That's an interesting question. Lots of possible revenue streams outside of the clinic and OR. I've toyed around with a combination but nothing quite matches time spent building your practice. I would emphasize that over others initially. There are those that are particularly entrepreneurial who establish businesses outside of their medical practice, that's beyond the scope of your question I suspect but something to consider. Some options

1. Hospital call - many hopsitals are desperate for ophthalmologist to take call and will pay handsomely for it. As a practice builder it has limited impact beyond getting connected with other docs. The patient population is difficult to deal with and at some hospitals can be quite busy.
2. Consulting/speaking gigs - drug and surgical companies are always on the lookout for lecturers and consultants. Need to have some connections and a reputation but this can be quite lucrative.
3. Clinical reaseach - establishing clinical research as part of your practice can pay well. Need to have a large enough patient population to maintain and enroll in your own practice. Some clinical research institutions look for doctors as PIs and take care of the recruitment and overhead.
4. Other investments - lots of different investment options within the field that may or may not pan out. This is more of a long term strategy but surgery centers, start ups, etc may ask for an invistment in terms of time or money in exchange for a return down the road. Be on the lookout for these.

There's a lot more and I would love to hear other opinions but that's a good start.
 
By renting out my basement on Airbnb and Rent like a champion, I am able to make 15-20k additional income.
 
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White coat investor pretty much just tells you to save a lot of money and invest in retirement early. There are no hidden secrets in there. The whole concept of the book is live below your means as an attending for a while and when you're old you can enjoy life. I didn't think it was that good of a read
 
White coat investor pretty much just tells you to save a lot of money and invest in retirement early. There are no hidden secrets in there. The whole concept of the book is live below your means as an attending for a while and when you're old you can enjoy life. I didn't think it was that good of a read
The book isn't that great but the web sight is awesome. Tackles all sorts of finance and non finance questions pertinent to a physician. I highly recommend it.
 
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