So much more at Escape the Clinic Masterclass with Katie Bean, PA-C
And please listen to her podcast: Escape the Clinic
What happens when the career you've worked so hard for starts taking more than it gives? Katie Bean, a physician assistant with years of experience in emergency medicine, found herself dreading her shifts, missing precious family moments, and wondering if this was all there was to her medical career. Her story challenges us to consider alternative paths within healthcare that honor both our passion for medicine and our need for fulfillment.
This raw, honest conversation explores Katie's journey from correctional medicine to emergency departments, through burnout, personal tragedy, and ultimately to entrepreneurship. After losing her sister—a recent PA graduate—in a car accident, Katie faced a profound realization: life is too short to spend decades doing work that leaves you feeling empty. Instead of continuing to fight against burnout, she created Escape the Clinic, a platform that helps healthcare professionals build businesses aligned with their passions while creating financial freedom and reclaiming their time.
Katie delivers powerful insights about recognizing burnout (it's not if but when for most clinicians), the importance of knowing yourself, and how your medical expertise can translate into opportunities beyond traditional practice. She emphasizes that her journey doesn't diminish the value of the PA profession—in fact, it's precisely her medical background that enabled her entrepreneurial success. For pre-health students, her message is encouraging: pursue medicine if it calls to you, but know that your degree opens doors beyond the clinic walls.
Whether you're experiencing burnout, curious about alternative career paths, or simply want to understand the evolving landscape of healthcare careers, this episode offers both practical guidance and permission to reimagine success on your own terms. After all, as Katie reminds us, "There is something so special about creating something from nothing"—whether that's healing a patient or building a business that helps other healers thrive.
Virtual shadowing is an important tool to use when planning your medical career. At Shadow Me Next! we want to provide you with the resources you need to find your role in healthcare and secure your place in medicine.
Check out our pre-health resources. Great for pre-med, pre-PA, pre-nursing, pre-therapy students or anyone else with an upcoming interview!
Mock Interviews: shadowmenext.com/mock-interviews
Personal Statement Review: shadowmenext.com/personal-statement
Free Downloads: shadowmenext.com/free-downloads
Want to request a guest? Shoot me an email: ashley@shadowmenext.com
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Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Ashley (00:00):
Hello and welcome to Shadow Me Next, a podcast where
I take you into and behind thescenes of the medical world to
provide you with a deeperunderstanding of the human side
of medicine.
I'm Ashley, a physicianassistant, medical editor,
clinical preceptor and thecreator of Shadow Me Next.
It is my pleasure to introduceyou to incredible members of the
(00:22):
healthcare field and uncovertheir unique stories, the joys
and challenges they face andwhat drives them in their
careers.
It's access you want andstories you need, whether you're
a pre-health student or simplycurious about the healthcare
field.
I invite you to join me as wetake a conversational and
personal look into the lives andminds of leaders in medicine.
(00:43):
I don't want you to miss asingle one of these
conversations, so make sure thatyou subscribe to this podcast,
which will automatically notifyyou when new episodes are
dropped, and follow us onInstagram and Facebook at Shadow
Me Next, where we will reviewhighlights from this
conversation and where I'll giveyou sneak previews of our
upcoming guests.
(01:04):
Welcome to Shadow Me Next.
Today, I have the pleasure ofintroducing you to Katie Bean, a
physician assistant with adoctor of medical science degree
from Lincoln MemorialUniversity.
She has clinical experience incorrections and emergency
medicine and is also a dedicatedPA mentor.
She co-founded the Pre-PAClinic in order to guide
(01:28):
aspiring PAs through theirapplication process, helping
them develop confidence andrefine the skills they needed to
enter PA school.
But Katie's story extendsbeyond PA mentorship and
traditional clinical practice.
After years in emergencymedicine, she faced burnout,
waking up, dreading her shifts,missing precious moments with
(01:50):
her family and realizing thecareer she once loved, no longer
aligned with the life that shewanted.
Rather than resigning herselfto exhaustion, she took a bold
step into entrepreneurship andcreated Escape the Clinic, a
platform empowering healthcareprofessionals to build
businesses that align with theirpassions, create financial
(02:12):
freedom for themselves andreclaim their precious time.
In this episode, katie sharesher journey from burnout to
purpose.
We explore the realities ofmedicine beyond patient care,
the importance of knowingyourself in order to prevent
burnout.
Explore the realities ofmedicine beyond patient care,
the importance of knowingyourself in order to prevent
burnout and the many waysclinicians can pivot without
abandoning their profession.
(02:33):
If you're a pre-health studentquestioning your path, a
healthcare professional feelingstuck, or a person simply
curious about what otheropportunities await PAs a person
simply curious about what otheropportunities await PAs this
episode is for you.
Katie's story is not just aboutchange.
It's about taking control ofyour future, finding joy in your
work and knowing that you arenever limited to just one path
(02:56):
in life.
Please keep in mind that thecontent of this podcast is
intended for informational andentertainment purposes only and
should not be considered asprofessional medical advice.
The views and opinionsexpressed in this podcast are
those of the host and guests anddo not necessarily reflect the
official policy or position ofany other agency, organization,
(03:18):
employer or company.
This is Shadow Me Next withKatie Bean.
Hey, katie, thank you so muchfor joining me at shadow me next
.
I have been looking forward tothis conversation since you and
I first met online.
Katie (03:31):
Oh, I can't wait and, ashley, thank you so much for
having me.
I love your podcast.
I love everything that you'redoing.
It's so valuable, so thank youfor having me here.
It's an honor an honor.
Ashley (03:45):
Thanks, katie.
It's been a lot of fun, andmainly it's been fun because I
get to talk to incredible peoplelike you clinicians and people
who have just really taken theskills that they have innately
and also the skills that they'velearned throughout all this
schooling, and have used them injust incredible, incredible
ways, and I think one of theways that you're using your
skills is super unique andsomething that a lot of people
are going to be reallyinterested to hear about.
(04:05):
So let's start first.
I was going to actually startwith you going to PA school, but
let's start first with whatyou're doing right now, because
that is what everybody's here tohear about, and I'd love just a
little teaser on that before wereally dive into it later.
Katie (04:20):
Yeah, sure, so I am a PA by trade and I also went back
and got my doctor of medicalscience degree and we will
probably dive into this a littlebit later but about seven years
after being a PA, I had a lotof burnout and then COVID
happened and a few other lifecircumstances that completely
changed my life and from that Istarted a online business that
(04:44):
blew my world open and itchanged my life so much that I
have a second business now, alsoonline, where I teach providers
how to start and grow their ownonline business with what they
already know, basicallypackaging up what they already
love and do and putting it outinto the world so they can have
their own online business.
(05:04):
That gives them freedom andtime to create their own
schedule, to step back fromclinic or leave clinic
completely, if they wanted tojust to give them an option of
making more money and havingmore freedom.
Ashley (05:17):
Part of the reason why I started shadow me next is
because we all have these dreams, and part of our dream is also
this element of fear Like whatif I make?
What if I have made the wrongdecision, what if I'm making the
wrong decision?
And the part, the point ofShadami next, is try to help
students realize there there aremore elements of medicine other
than just being a PA, otherthan just being a nurse, other
(05:39):
than just being a physician.
And that's step one.
But I think what you do, youare offering this step two right
.
What if, ultimately, this isn'tworking for me in this period
of my life?
And I've worked so hard, whatdo I do now?
And you have given people sucha peace with that, with that
fear, I think, and and it'sgoing to be fantastic I cannot
(06:00):
wait to hear about it.
But let's back up and start atthe beginning Now.
Tell me about what initiallydrew you into medicine.
Why did you want to be a PA inthe first place?
Katie (06:09):
Yeah, and before I share that, let me hit on something
you just said.
I would love to piggyback onthat.
You know, in our culture, in oursociety we are.
You know, we are taught that weneed to choose a career at the
age of 18 or 20 or whatever, andthat should be what we do for
all of our days, the rest of ourlife, until we retire, which is
(06:30):
50 or whatever years, and itdoesn't take into account that,
oh, your circumstances change,maybe your interests and your
passions change, and so I thinkit's such a disservice in our
society to think that, you know,we should do the same thing and
not be able to ever pivot.
Now, as a PA, we are so wellplaced to be able to have
(06:51):
lateral mobility and flexibility, which is amazing, because if
you do want to change, you cando that as a PA, which is one of
the reasons I love our career.
But I also want your listenersto know that you do not have to
be pigeonholed, even though weare told from day one to choose
a major, choose a career for allof time, that you can pivot and
change.
And then to get back to yourquestion what drew me to
(07:14):
medicine?
I really wanted to have arewarding career where I helped
others.
I am faith-based and God hasalways pulled me to the health
and medicine arena.
I adore medicine.
I love anatomy and physiology.
I think our bodies areabsolutely fascinating, how we
heal and how we don't heal, allof the things.
(07:36):
I think it's super special and,just you know, it's just all
provoking, honestly.
And so I went into medicinebecause I truly love medicine, I
love patients, I wanted arewarding career and I also
wanted a career that would allowme to travel.
I am super passionate abouttraveling.
I've been all over the worldand I love doing mission work.
(07:56):
I've done medical missions inCambodia and Morocco and China
and all over the place, and Ireally love the PA profession
for the flexibility and formedicine.
Ashley (08:09):
Finding a career where you can take all of the passions
that you've created in yourlife and kind of fit it into one
thing that also helps people.
It's incredible.
I'm so glad to hear that, katie, looking back, because you
mentioned burnout earlier and Ithink burnout is such an
interesting thing to talk about,because burnout looks different
for different people, right?
So I'm interested to hear aboutwhen did you first realize
(08:33):
perhaps this feeling that I'mfeeling is not normal?
Perhaps this is actually whatburnout is, what everybody's
talking about.
Before we hear how Katierecognized burnout in her own
career, I'd like to talk about asegment on our show called
Quality Questions.
This is where I highlight athought-provoking question that
(08:54):
a medical professional hasreceived in the past that
challenges us to reflect moredeeply on our careers, on
patient care or on personalgrowth.
While Katie and I didn'tdiscuss a quality question
during our conversation, shereminded me of one that I was
asked in an interview as apracticing PA how do you
recognize signs of burnout inyourself?
(09:17):
It's such an important questionbecause burnout can creep in
gradually and recognizing itearly is key to making
meaningful changes.
So if you're a student or a newgrad, or even a seasoned
clinician.
Take a moment to ask yourselfwhat are my early warning signs
of burnout and how will Irespond when I notice them?
Keep in mind that there's moreinterview prep, such as mock
(09:40):
interviews and personalstatement review, over on
shadowmenextcom.
There, you'll find amazingresources to help you as you
prepare to answer your ownquality questions.
Katie (09:51):
Yeah.
So I started out actually as aPA for 14, 15 years ago and when
I first started out I worked incorrectional medicine, so I
worked at a prison system, whichwas absolutely amazing.
It was an incredible missionfield.
I saw just really neat medicinethat you typically don't get to
see in the general population,which was really cool.
(10:12):
After about a year, year and ahalf of that, I switched over to
emergency medicine, where Ispent the bulk of my career, and
emergency medicine wasinitially really fun.
It was exciting, it wasdifferent.
But then there was a lot ofchanges that occurred around my
like six, seven year mark,administratively wise.
That made medicine not funanymore, meaning like patient
(10:32):
times, patient satisfactions.
Instead of it being truly aboutthe patient.
It was more like a cattle drivelet's get them in and out, you
know inpatient or discharged,whatever it was and it wasn't
fun anymore.
It became like not fun at alland that that burden, the time
constraints, the push them inand out.
(10:53):
That was like the initial startof my burnout and what that
looked like was I was tired.
When I woke up in the morning Idreaded going into work.
I wasn't excited anymore, andthat is not me.
I am usually a very go-getter,so excited I live life to the
fullest, especially now that Ihave my own online business and
(11:16):
that my life isn't dictated bymedicine and a medical schedule,
clinic schedule.
But it started out as waking upand not being super excited to
go into my day.
It started with dreading theworkday, dreading what I was
going into that day.
Pulling up, I remember at theworst I would cry going into
work, wanting to be with my kids.
(11:37):
I wanted to be with my family,and things also changed.
When I first started out Ididn't have a family, and then I
had a family, and in theemergency department it's shift
work and so it's long hours,typically 12-hour shifts.
Typically you've got days andnights and I started missing
everything, and one of mybiggest regrets in life is that
(11:58):
I missed so much of my kids'life.
I missed everything.
I missed recitals and holidaysand practices, the simple joy of
picking your kids up fromschool or surprising them on
their lunch break, and so that'swhen I really knew that there
was a disconnect is like hey,something's not right here.
Medicine has changed too muchand instead of like this amazing
(12:19):
work-life balance that I waspromised, it was kind of a
wake-up call.
Now, that being said, a lot ofthat was my own doing.
A lot of that was because Ididn't know any other way.
I loved emergency medicine ohmy gosh, do I need to change to
family medicine and deal withdiabetes and hypertension all
day long?
And so it was also a personalchoice and I take full
(12:40):
responsibility for that.
But burnout, to answer yourquestion, that's a long answer
to answer.
Burnout looked for me like notbeing really excited about my
day and our, in my opinion, ourlife on earth is so short here.
We're put here for a purpose,for a reason to use our gifts to
help others to live at ourfullest, and I don't want to
(13:03):
dread 50 years of my life.
I want to live every singlesecond to the fullest, excited
and just happy to be alive.
Ashley (13:14):
Absolutely Two points to that, katie, that I think you
brought up that were reallyimportant.
And the first one is I justapplaud you how well you know
yourself, and I think in orderfor us to recognize burnout, we
have to also realize what reallymatters.
Right, and maybe it takesactually writing those things
down, because I think a lot oftimes we do feel this sense of
(13:35):
frustration or anger aboutapproaching our job and perhaps
we're not entirely sure whywe're feeling that.
And a lot of people might saywhat do you mean?
You miss picking up your kids?
You wanted to wait in that godawful car line for them to come
out and just tell you that theydid nothing at school all day,
which is what my kids alwaystell me and the answer is yes,
that's still time spent and thatis something that is meaningful
(13:58):
and valuable to us.
So I'm really glad that youmentioned that, because part of
burnout, part of recognizingburnout, is knowing yourself and
knowing what makes you tick andrealizing that there's a
disconnect with that.
The second thing that youbrought up was realizing that
perhaps this career that youchose wasn't what was promised,
(14:20):
and I think admirably.
I think a lot of us have reallybig dreams about changing the
system of medicine right now,and that needs to happen, I
think.
I think there's a lot that isunfortunate about medicine
systematically, about the quotequote business of medicine,
(14:40):
which is it's driven byinsurance and it's driven a lot
by IT and data collection andthings like that.
So I think there's a lot ofreally admirable efforts going
towards changing medicinesystematically, but I think
sometimes, when you are at apoint where it is just not
working for you and yourrelationship with it is broken,
the way that we change medicineis by just stepping into a
(15:03):
different role, right, and Ithink it's just amazing that you
were able to do that and you'reable to show that there are
alternate ways of approachingthis problem other than just
sitting in it trying to fix itor perhaps looking to somebody
else to fix it.
Take it into your own hands,right.
Katie (15:19):
Thank you.
I really appreciate that.
I really that was very kind andI it's not just me like anyone
can do what I've done Anybody.
It is so easy.
And I think that that's one ofthe obstacles that holds so many
PAs and providers back fromdoing something like this is
they think well, you know, howam I actually going to replace
(15:39):
my income?
How am I going to make money sothat I can step back from
clinic and help with thisburnout?
What would I even do?
What is my thing?
And we get so caught up in theroutine of life and the
day-to-day that so many of thepeople that I actually work with
they're like Katie I don't evenknow what I like to do anymore
if I have free time.
I don't even know what I liketo do anymore If I have free
time.
I don't even know what mypassions are.
(16:00):
I have no idea what my thingcould be and once you overcome
that and you get to the otherside of that which is so easy,
because it really is just aboutsitting with yourself, knowing
yourself, knowing that there's adisconnect, and having the
courage and the belief inyourself and in the potential
that's available for you to takeit to the next step.
There is another way.
(16:20):
If you're burned out, if you'reexhausted, if you know that
something needs to change butyou don't know how to do it,
there is a whole new world outthere and it's so easy.
You don't have to have anybusiness experience.
You don't have to have a hugefollowing.
It doesn't take a ton of time.
Ashley (16:43):
All of those things are misconceptions that are not true
, that hold so many of myclients back, the people that I
work with back, and it's justnot true.
That's incredible.
You are right, but I think nothaving the guidance and not
having somebody to go before youand say you can do this,
believe it or not, it ispossible.
I think it's just.
It is such a gift.
What you do is such a gift, butI'm sure it didn't always feel
like a super big gift.
I'm sure at the beginning itwas quite scary when you first
had the idea for Escape theClinic.
(17:04):
Where did that come from?
And what first steps did youtake to say you know what?
This is not just something thatneeds to be in my head, this
needs to be kind of out in theworld.
I need to run with this.
What did that look like?
Katie (17:15):
Yeah.
So I think this will make themost sense if I kind of just
tell you about my story reallyquick.
So started out as a PA, workedcorrectional medicine, worked
emergency medicine, and thenalso spent a large portion of my
time working full time in theER as well as full time at a PA
program and so reviewingapplications, doing the whole PA
school admissions thing.
And right before COVID hit, Iwas like you know, I have got to
(17:38):
get out of the ER, I've got toget free.
And it became so painful Iwould do anything to get out of
clinic.
And so I initially thought I'mgoing to open up a medical spa
because I started dabbling inaesthetics.
It was super fun.
It was not the ER and I thoughtthat that's where I was going
to be happy.
And I kept getting hit with allthis resistance to opening up a
med spa.
(17:58):
And for those of you who arefaith-based, you know that this
is God saying no go the otherdirection.
I kept pushing and kept pushing,ignoring that voice, and thank
goodness that God said no,because right when my husband
and I were like kind of reallygoing through the finances of it
, covid happened, and I don'thave to tell anyone here that
starting a med school at theheight of the pandemic would
(18:21):
have been devastating, and soCOVID happened.
I knew I wanted to still dosomething business-wise and I
had all of this experienceworking at a PA school.
So a colleague of mine who hasa very similar background as I
do we started coaching pre-PAsto get into PA school super
competitive and our businesstook off Well.
(18:42):
At the same time, there were afew kind of really
life-transforming things thathappened.
One I was laid off from one ofmy positions because of starting
this business.
And then I was also furloughedfrom the ER, and so my identity
had always been misplaced.
(19:03):
It was my identity was as a PA,and so when you lose that, when
that is like taken from youabruptly, I did not know what to
do with myself and I it was sohard, just like what you said
was it was scary, it was hard,it was terrifying.
It was terrifying and I, trulylike, had lost myself, who I was
, to my core, because of, youknow, from day one of PA school,
(19:27):
getting into PA school, like itwas PA medicine, PA patient
care, medicine, medicine,medicine.
And I had lost who I was.
I had lost my true passions andmy calling.
And yes, at that point of mylife, that all happened for a
reason.
I was called to medicine, forsure, but it's funny how God
will use you in different waysand change your path.
(19:47):
So, in any case, also at thesame time I'm furloughed, I'm
laid off.
I've started this business.
The business, fortunately, wasdoing great and I loved it.
I was having so much fun.
There's nothing better thanhelping somebody else's dreams
come true, whether that's in myfirst business with pre-PAs or
with Escape the Clinic, andhelping providers make their
first sales and then their nextsales and realize, oh my gosh,
(20:10):
look at this world that has justopened up to me.
But at the same time I lost mylittle sister who had just
graduated PA school.
I actually taught her, I washer professor and she had just
graduated PA school.
A few months out she was in acar accident and didn't make it.
And to say, it always hits youat the weirdest time.
(20:31):
Sorry To say that that wasdevastating and tragic is an
understatement.
And I knew from that point youknow that abruptness, that loss
that I could never go back tothe life that I, that I had
before.
I could never go back todreading waking up every day, I
um and going into work.
(20:51):
I could never go back to to thezombie that I was as a PA,
where it was all about shovingpatients into these time slots,
getting them in and out, andthat was it.
I was done and I made thedecision that I was going to
surrender totally to God and toquit fighting Him and to quit
(21:12):
telling Him no, I want to dothis actually.
And so from all of that, thefirst business took off.
And then, when I saw what thatdid for my life and I realized
you know that there's so muchpain that people are going
through, so much pain that PAsare going through, nurse
practitioners, providers ingeneral are going through
feeling like they're stuck, thatthey can't be with their kids,
(21:34):
they can't be present, theycan't stay home with them, they
can't leave because they have noother income to replace it with
.
They are stuck day in and dayout with a schedule that there
is another way.
I could not sit on that and letother providers go through that
same suffering and discomfortand unease and know that there's
something wrong and wake upevery day dreading going into
work when I know and have proventhat look, this is what you
(22:00):
have that you can take, that'spossible for your life, that
your potential that you know somany people seem to lose over
time.
Ashley (22:10):
It's amazing, the things that make us brave.
Sometimes, In the moment,there's absolutely no way that
that is going to do anythingexcept absolutely tear us down,
and I'm thinking about so manyexamples.
You just said, so many examplesof things people have told me
recently in past episodes Losinga family member, specifically a
(22:33):
sister unbelievable, that youfeel like you'll never overcome
that.
Losing your job, not havingyour job anymore when it wasn't
your decision perhaps I spokewith somebody else failing your
board exams it really feelsinsurmountable sometimes.
And then you take two moresteps forward and you realize
you are in good hands.
(22:53):
The Lord has you.
Take two more steps forward andyou realize you are in good
hands.
The Lord has you and whatyou're doing is just showing
bravery every single day.
And that is what you have doneand I'm so grateful for it.
First of all, because of whatit has led you to right and
Escape.
The Clinic has incredible valuefor people who might need to
look towards that bravery.
(23:13):
I can be brave too.
People who might need to looktowards that bravery.
I can be brave too.
Haiti did it.
She knows how to do it.
Let me do it too.
So what would you tell aclinician?
It doesn't necessarily have tobe PA, but what would you tell a
clinician who's sitting therethinking, oh, this sounds like
something I might do.
Katie (23:28):
Yeah.
So I have a free masterclassthat helps you kind of
rediscover your thing, whatlights you up, what you're
passionate about and how you canserve others, and it also shows
you how to start building alist of people who will buy that
thing from you and get youridea out into the world.
So I have a free masterclassand I can definitely give that
(23:50):
to you to put in the episodenotes if you'd like.
And then I also have an Escapethe Clinic course that walks you
through the whole shebang fromdiscovering your thing to
building a list of future superfans, to making your first sales
, packaging up what your thingis, what you do now, what's
super valuable, putting it outinto the world, all the techie
stuff that goes along with it,all the logistical stuff that
(24:12):
goes around along with that.
So I have an entire course thatis specifically for providers
to open their own onlinebusiness.
Ashley (24:20):
What would be the first step that somebody in that
position would do?
Just jump in, start writingthings down.
Katie (24:25):
Yeah, definitely go through the masterclass and in
that masterclass you will alsobe able to go through it it's
about an hour long and then booka free zoom call with me to
hear about your ideas.
It is literally my favoritething ever to meet you guys and
hear about your ideas and whatyou could create and put into
the world.
There is something so specialabout creating something from
(24:46):
nothing, which is basically whatyou're doing with an online
business, and once you, I'm soexcited.
I get so jazzed up about this,because once you have your thing
, you get so lit up that youcan't quit thinking about it.
You get so excited about it andand it's it just.
It's the best ever.
So the first step masterclassbook that call with me totally
(25:07):
free, and I want to hear yourideas.
Ashley (25:09):
You're right the.
There is so much beauty in anew idea and there is so much
excitement in a new idea andthere is so much excitement in a
new idea and I think holdingonto that is fun.
But what is so much moreenjoyable is sharing that with
somebody who will be equallyexcited and, if possible, who
will start pouring ideas intoyour project, if it is, into
(25:32):
your plans, into your passion,which is exactly what you do
project if it is into into yourplans, into your passion, which
is exactly what you do.
Katie (25:40):
Do you hit on something so key?
It doesn't matter if you areworking for one person or there
are 3000 people in your audience, it doesn't matter.
You serve the one, you helpthem and it is the best.
I mean you make it about thatperson, because truly business
comes down at its foundation.
Business is about helpingothers overcome something and
serving with radical empathy.
That's what it's about.
And when you make one otherperson, a thousand other people,
(26:04):
it doesn't really matter whatthe number is.
If you make them the hero ofthe story, if you make it about
them, you have guaranteed yourbusiness success.
Ashley (26:14):
That was.
That was mind blowing.
I mean, that was just such anearth shattering thought.
That was mind-blowing.
I mean, that was just such anearth-shattering thought.
That was incredible.
Before we wrap up, the peoplelistening to this podcast are
largely pre-health students, andmaybe they are people who are
experiencing healthcarethemselves right now, whether
they are in medicine or perhapsa patient.
For those people who arelooking towards medicine and
(26:36):
they're thinking well, gosh,Ashley and Katie have just, you
know, they've mentioned a lot ofstrife that they have felt
working in medicine right now, Iwould just like to, first of
all, I just want to say that theposition that you are in right
now hugely successful businessowner is because you are a PA,
it's because you worked as a PA,professor, I think it is.
(26:57):
It is because of the degreethat you got.
So what would you tell thosestudents?
How would you, how would youencourage them to pursue this,
this career in medicine, Even ifyou know, even if there are
flaws in medicine itself?
Katie (27:11):
Yeah, I'm so glad you asked that.
So, first off itself, yeah, I'mso glad you asked that.
So, first off, I never want tocome across as like ungrateful
for my career or any ingratitude.
I think that my life has takenthe direction because God has
his own purpose for that and sothat is kind of you know why my
life has played out the way ithas.
But being a PA, I love ourprofession.
(27:33):
I love our career.
I'm totally biased, but it isliterally the best career in the
entire world, even if, you know, still working in clinic.
If I were still working inclinic and I didn't own a
business, I would still feelfulfilled in some way.
And really it is not the PApart, it is not the patient care
, it is not the medicine.
All of that is amazing and Iwould probably still be there if
(27:55):
it wasn't for theadministrative part of it, the
red tape, the burdens of ourhealthcare system.
Ashley (28:02):
Right.
Katie (28:03):
And so I just want to be transparent about that One.
If you are on the PA track, Idon't want to dissuade you by my
experiences of burnout.
Now will you experience burnout?
Yes, I think every providerexperiences burnout.
It's not if it's going tohappen, it's just when, but you
can prepare for that now.
You can prepare for that byknowing yourself really well,
(28:23):
knowing you know about yourwork-life balance and how, and
your family if you want to haveone, your preferences, all that
sort of stuff.
But also becoming a PA gives yousuch an incredible education,
such a valuable education, that,even if you did go into clinic
and you only wanted to work afew days a month, having an
(28:43):
online business, being able topack up the knowledge that you
give to your patients everysingle day and deliver it in
only the way that you candeliver it because you're you
and nobody else is that is stillan option for you, that is
still a route for you, and so Idon't want to come down on the
PA career.
I love my profession, I lovebeing a PA, but God has taken me
(29:04):
in another route, and that isto help others who have burnout,
who want to be home with theirkids, who want to travel the
world, who want to make moremoney, who don't want to be
limited or hit a ceiling when itcomes to their income or when
it comes to the days they canwork and all of that sort of
thing.
So for them I say, pa, amazing,you're on the right track, it's
the best ever.
But also know that there isanother side of medicine that
(29:28):
isn't talked about quite as muchas a PA and to anticipate that
it's going to happen, but alsoknow how to respond to it.
And then, if you find yourselfburnout and needing an escape
route, know that I'm herewaiting for you to hear your
ideas.
Ashley (29:44):
Fabulous, fabulous.
And this is Katie, with Escapethe Clinic.
You have a podcast as well,which I have so enjoyed
listening to, and your guestsare just incredible and so
inspiring, and everything thatyou've spoken about just makes
me so hopeful for not justmedicine but, more importantly,
the people in medicine, right,it's incredible.
So, katie, tell us about wherewe can find out more information
(30:05):
about all of these amazinggifts that you offer.
Katie (30:08):
Yeah, escape the Clinic podcast on any podcast listening
platform that you're on.
And, ashley, I can't wait tohave your podcast episode up and
going soon.
I can't wait, it's gonna be sogood.
So you guys will have to comeand listen to Ashley's story.
If you wanna email me, it'skatie at escape the cliniccom.
That's Katie with an IE andInstagram at escape the clinic.
(30:30):
Facebook.
Escape the clinic LinkedIn.
Katie Bean like a green bean.
So come hang out, it'll be fun.
Ashley (30:39):
Fantastic.
Katie, thank you so much fortaking the time to hang out with
us on shadow me next and totell your story so honestly and
so beautifully, for taking thatfear that you experienced and
just putting trust in the Lordand allowing it to become
something brave, and becomesomething that has just improved
the lives of so many people,and we'll continue to do so, I
(31:00):
think so.
Thank you for all you do andthanks for being here with us
today.
Katie (31:03):
Right back at you.
Ashley, You're amazing.
Thank you so much for this andit's an honor to be here and I
love what you're doing so much.
Ashley (31:10):
Thank you so very much for listening to this episode of
Shadow Me Next.
If you liked this episode or ifyou think it could be useful
for a friend, please subscribeand invite them to join us next
Monday, as always.
If you have any questions, letme know on Facebook or Instagram
Access.
You want stories you need?
You're always invited to ShadowMe Next.
Hello and welcome to Shadow Me Next, a podcast where
I take you into and behind thescenes of the medical world to
provide you with a deeperunderstanding of the human side
of medicine.
I'm Ashley, a physicianassistant, medical editor,
clinical preceptor and thecreator of Shadow Me Next.
It is my pleasure to introduceyou to incredible members of the
(00:22):
healthcare field and uncovertheir unique stories, the joys
and challenges they face andwhat drives them in their
careers.
It's access you want andstories you need, whether you're
a pre-health student or simplycurious about the healthcare
field.
I invite you to join me as wetake a conversational and
personal look into the lives andminds of leaders in medicine.
(00:43):
I don't want you to miss asingle one of these
conversations, so make sure thatyou subscribe to this podcast,
which will automatically notifyyou when new episodes are
dropped, and follow us onInstagram and Facebook at Shadow
Me Next, where we will reviewhighlights from this
conversation and where I'll giveyou sneak previews of our
upcoming guests.
(01:04):
Welcome to Shadow Me Next.
Today, I have the pleasure ofintroducing you to Katie Bean, a
physician assistant with adoctor of medical science degree
from Lincoln MemorialUniversity.
She has clinical experience incorrections and emergency
medicine and is also a dedicatedPA mentor.
She co-founded the Pre-PAClinic in order to guide
(01:28):
aspiring PAs through theirapplication process, helping
them develop confidence andrefine the skills they needed to
enter PA school.
But Katie's story extendsbeyond PA mentorship and
traditional clinical practice.
After years in emergencymedicine, she faced burnout,
waking up, dreading her shifts,missing precious moments with
(01:50):
her family and realizing thecareer she once loved, no longer
aligned with the life that shewanted.
Rather than resigning herselfto exhaustion, she took a bold
step into entrepreneurship andcreated Escape the Clinic, a
platform empowering healthcareprofessionals to build
businesses that align with theirpassions, create financial
(02:12):
freedom for themselves andreclaim their precious time.
In this episode, katie sharesher journey from burnout to
purpose.
We explore the realities ofmedicine beyond patient care,
the importance of knowingyourself in order to prevent
burnout.
Explore the realities ofmedicine beyond patient care,
the importance of knowingyourself in order to prevent
burnout and the many waysclinicians can pivot without
abandoning their profession.
(02:33):
If you're a pre-health studentquestioning your path, a
healthcare professional feelingstuck, or a person simply
curious about what otheropportunities await PAs a person
simply curious about what otheropportunities await PAs this
episode is for you.
Katie's story is not just aboutchange.
It's about taking control ofyour future, finding joy in your
work and knowing that you arenever limited to just one path
(02:56):
in life.
Please keep in mind that thecontent of this podcast is
intended for informational andentertainment purposes only and
should not be considered asprofessional medical advice.
The views and opinionsexpressed in this podcast are
those of the host and guests anddo not necessarily reflect the
official policy or position ofany other agency, organization,
(03:18):
employer or company.
This is Shadow Me Next withKatie Bean.
Hey, katie, thank you so muchfor joining me at shadow me next
.
I have been looking forward tothis conversation since you and
I first met online.
Katie (03:31):
Oh, I can't wait and, ashley, thank you so much for
having me.
I love your podcast.
I love everything that you'redoing.
It's so valuable, so thank youfor having me here.
It's an honor an honor.
Ashley (03:45):
Thanks, katie.
It's been a lot of fun, andmainly it's been fun because I
get to talk to incredible peoplelike you clinicians and people
who have just really taken theskills that they have innately
and also the skills that they'velearned throughout all this
schooling, and have used them injust incredible, incredible
ways, and I think one of theways that you're using your
skills is super unique andsomething that a lot of people
are going to be reallyinterested to hear about.
(04:05):
So let's start first.
I was going to actually startwith you going to PA school, but
let's start first with whatyou're doing right now, because
that is what everybody's here tohear about, and I'd love just a
little teaser on that before wereally dive into it later.
Katie (04:20):
Yeah, sure, so I am a PA by trade and I also went back
and got my doctor of medicalscience degree and we will
probably dive into this a littlebit later but about seven years
after being a PA, I had a lotof burnout and then COVID
happened and a few other lifecircumstances that completely
changed my life and from that Istarted a online business that
(04:44):
blew my world open and itchanged my life so much that I
have a second business now, alsoonline, where I teach providers
how to start and grow their ownonline business with what they
already know, basicallypackaging up what they already
love and do and putting it outinto the world so they can have
their own online business.
(05:04):
That gives them freedom andtime to create their own
schedule, to step back fromclinic or leave clinic
completely, if they wanted tojust to give them an option of
making more money and havingmore freedom.
Ashley (05:17):
Part of the reason why I started shadow me next is
because we all have these dreams, and part of our dream is also
this element of fear Like whatif I make?
What if I have made the wrongdecision, what if I'm making the
wrong decision?
And the part, the point ofShadami next, is try to help
students realize there there aremore elements of medicine other
than just being a PA, otherthan just being a nurse, other
(05:39):
than just being a physician.
And that's step one.
But I think what you do, youare offering this step two right
.
What if, ultimately, this isn'tworking for me in this period
of my life?
And I've worked so hard, whatdo I do now?
And you have given people sucha peace with that, with that
fear, I think, and and it'sgoing to be fantastic I cannot
(06:00):
wait to hear about it.
But let's back up and start atthe beginning Now.
Tell me about what initiallydrew you into medicine.
Why did you want to be a PA inthe first place?
Katie (06:09):
Yeah, and before I share that, let me hit on something
you just said.
I would love to piggyback onthat.
You know, in our culture, in oursociety we are.
You know, we are taught that weneed to choose a career at the
age of 18 or 20 or whatever, andthat should be what we do for
all of our days, the rest of ourlife, until we retire, which is
(06:30):
50 or whatever years, and itdoesn't take into account that,
oh, your circumstances change,maybe your interests and your
passions change, and so I thinkit's such a disservice in our
society to think that, you know,we should do the same thing and
not be able to ever pivot.
Now, as a PA, we are so wellplaced to be able to have
(06:51):
lateral mobility and flexibility, which is amazing, because if
you do want to change, you cando that as a PA, which is one of
the reasons I love our career.
But I also want your listenersto know that you do not have to
be pigeonholed, even though weare told from day one to choose
a major, choose a career for allof time, that you can pivot and
change.
And then to get back to yourquestion what drew me to
(07:14):
medicine?
I really wanted to have arewarding career where I helped
others.
I am faith-based and God hasalways pulled me to the health
and medicine arena.
I adore medicine.
I love anatomy and physiology.
I think our bodies areabsolutely fascinating, how we
heal and how we don't heal, allof the things.
(07:36):
I think it's super special and,just you know, it's just all
provoking, honestly.
And so I went into medicinebecause I truly love medicine, I
love patients, I wanted arewarding career and I also
wanted a career that would allowme to travel.
I am super passionate abouttraveling.
I've been all over the worldand I love doing mission work.
(07:56):
I've done medical missions inCambodia and Morocco and China
and all over the place, and Ireally love the PA profession
for the flexibility and formedicine.
Ashley (08:09):
Finding a career where you can take all of the passions
that you've created in yourlife and kind of fit it into one
thing that also helps people.
It's incredible.
I'm so glad to hear that, katie, looking back, because you
mentioned burnout earlier and Ithink burnout is such an
interesting thing to talk about,because burnout looks different
for different people, right?
So I'm interested to hear aboutwhen did you first realize
(08:33):
perhaps this feeling that I'mfeeling is not normal?
Perhaps this is actually whatburnout is, what everybody's
talking about.
Before we hear how Katierecognized burnout in her own
career, I'd like to talk about asegment on our show called
Quality Questions.
This is where I highlight athought-provoking question that
(08:54):
a medical professional hasreceived in the past that
challenges us to reflect moredeeply on our careers, on
patient care or on personalgrowth.
While Katie and I didn'tdiscuss a quality question
during our conversation, shereminded me of one that I was
asked in an interview as apracticing PA how do you
recognize signs of burnout inyourself?
(09:17):
It's such an important questionbecause burnout can creep in
gradually and recognizing itearly is key to making
meaningful changes.
So if you're a student or a newgrad, or even a seasoned
clinician.
Take a moment to ask yourselfwhat are my early warning signs
of burnout and how will Irespond when I notice them?
Keep in mind that there's moreinterview prep, such as mock
(09:40):
interviews and personalstatement review, over on
shadowmenextcom.
There, you'll find amazingresources to help you as you
prepare to answer your ownquality questions.
Katie (09:51):
Yeah.
So I started out actually as aPA for 14, 15 years ago and when
I first started out I worked incorrectional medicine, so I
worked at a prison system, whichwas absolutely amazing.
It was an incredible missionfield.
I saw just really neat medicinethat you typically don't get to
see in the general population,which was really cool.
(10:12):
After about a year, year and ahalf of that, I switched over to
emergency medicine, where Ispent the bulk of my career, and
emergency medicine wasinitially really fun.
It was exciting, it wasdifferent.
But then there was a lot ofchanges that occurred around my
like six, seven year mark,administratively wise.
That made medicine not funanymore, meaning like patient
(10:32):
times, patient satisfactions.
Instead of it being truly aboutthe patient.
It was more like a cattle drivelet's get them in and out, you
know inpatient or discharged,whatever it was and it wasn't
fun anymore.
It became like not fun at alland that that burden, the time
constraints, the push them inand out.
(10:53):
That was like the initial startof my burnout and what that
looked like was I was tired.
When I woke up in the morning Idreaded going into work.
I wasn't excited anymore, andthat is not me.
I am usually a very go-getter,so excited I live life to the
fullest, especially now that Ihave my own online business and
(11:16):
that my life isn't dictated bymedicine and a medical schedule,
clinic schedule.
But it started out as waking upand not being super excited to
go into my day.
It started with dreading theworkday, dreading what I was
going into that day.
Pulling up, I remember at theworst I would cry going into
work, wanting to be with my kids.
(11:37):
I wanted to be with my family,and things also changed.
When I first started out Ididn't have a family, and then I
had a family, and in theemergency department it's shift
work and so it's long hours,typically 12-hour shifts.
Typically you've got days andnights and I started missing
everything, and one of mybiggest regrets in life is that
(11:58):
I missed so much of my kids'life.
I missed everything.
I missed recitals and holidaysand practices, the simple joy of
picking your kids up fromschool or surprising them on
their lunch break, and so that'swhen I really knew that there
was a disconnect is like hey,something's not right here.
Medicine has changed too muchand instead of like this amazing
(12:19):
work-life balance that I waspromised, it was kind of a
wake-up call.
Now, that being said, a lot ofthat was my own doing.
A lot of that was because Ididn't know any other way.
I loved emergency medicine ohmy gosh, do I need to change to
family medicine and deal withdiabetes and hypertension all
day long?
And so it was also a personalchoice and I take full
(12:40):
responsibility for that.
But burnout, to answer yourquestion, that's a long answer
to answer.
Burnout looked for me like notbeing really excited about my
day and our, in my opinion, ourlife on earth is so short here.
We're put here for a purpose,for a reason to use our gifts to
help others to live at ourfullest, and I don't want to
(13:03):
dread 50 years of my life.
I want to live every singlesecond to the fullest, excited
and just happy to be alive.
Ashley (13:14):
Absolutely Two points to that, katie, that I think you
brought up that were reallyimportant.
And the first one is I justapplaud you how well you know
yourself, and I think in orderfor us to recognize burnout, we
have to also realize what reallymatters.
Right, and maybe it takesactually writing those things
down, because I think a lot oftimes we do feel this sense of
(13:35):
frustration or anger aboutapproaching our job and perhaps
we're not entirely sure whywe're feeling that.
And a lot of people might saywhat do you mean?
You miss picking up your kids?
You wanted to wait in that godawful car line for them to come
out and just tell you that theydid nothing at school all day,
which is what my kids alwaystell me and the answer is yes,
that's still time spent and thatis something that is meaningful
(13:58):
and valuable to us.
So I'm really glad that youmentioned that, because part of
burnout, part of recognizingburnout, is knowing yourself and
knowing what makes you tick andrealizing that there's a
disconnect with that.
The second thing that youbrought up was realizing that
perhaps this career that youchose wasn't what was promised,
(14:20):
and I think admirably.
I think a lot of us have reallybig dreams about changing the
system of medicine right now,and that needs to happen, I
think.
I think there's a lot that isunfortunate about medicine
systematically, about the quotequote business of medicine,
(14:40):
which is it's driven byinsurance and it's driven a lot
by IT and data collection andthings like that.
So I think there's a lot ofreally admirable efforts going
towards changing medicinesystematically, but I think
sometimes, when you are at apoint where it is just not
working for you and yourrelationship with it is broken,
the way that we change medicineis by just stepping into a
(15:03):
different role, right, and Ithink it's just amazing that you
were able to do that and you'reable to show that there are
alternate ways of approachingthis problem other than just
sitting in it trying to fix itor perhaps looking to somebody
else to fix it.
Take it into your own hands,right.
Katie (15:19):
Thank you.
I really appreciate that.
I really that was very kind andI it's not just me like anyone
can do what I've done Anybody.
It is so easy.
And I think that that's one ofthe obstacles that holds so many
PAs and providers back fromdoing something like this is
they think well, you know, howam I actually going to replace
(15:39):
my income?
How am I going to make money sothat I can step back from
clinic and help with thisburnout?
What would I even do?
What is my thing?
And we get so caught up in theroutine of life and the
day-to-day that so many of thepeople that I actually work with
they're like Katie I don't evenknow what I like to do anymore
if I have free time.
I don't even know what I liketo do anymore If I have free
time.
I don't even know what mypassions are.
(16:00):
I have no idea what my thingcould be and once you overcome
that and you get to the otherside of that which is so easy,
because it really is just aboutsitting with yourself, knowing
yourself, knowing that there's adisconnect, and having the
courage and the belief inyourself and in the potential
that's available for you to takeit to the next step.
There is another way.
(16:20):
If you're burned out, if you'reexhausted, if you know that
something needs to change butyou don't know how to do it,
there is a whole new world outthere and it's so easy.
You don't have to have anybusiness experience.
You don't have to have a hugefollowing.
It doesn't take a ton of time.
Ashley (16:43):
All of those things are misconceptions that are not true
, that hold so many of myclients back, the people that I
work with back, and it's justnot true.
That's incredible.
You are right, but I think nothaving the guidance and not
having somebody to go before youand say you can do this,
believe it or not, it ispossible.
I think it's just.
It is such a gift.
What you do is such a gift, butI'm sure it didn't always feel
like a super big gift.
I'm sure at the beginning itwas quite scary when you first
had the idea for Escape theClinic.
(17:04):
Where did that come from?
And what first steps did youtake to say you know what?
This is not just something thatneeds to be in my head, this
needs to be kind of out in theworld.
I need to run with this.
What did that look like?
Katie (17:15):
Yeah.
So I think this will make themost sense if I kind of just
tell you about my story reallyquick.
So started out as a PA, workedcorrectional medicine, worked
emergency medicine, and thenalso spent a large portion of my
time working full time in theER as well as full time at a PA
program and so reviewingapplications, doing the whole PA
school admissions thing.
And right before COVID hit, Iwas like you know, I have got to
(17:38):
get out of the ER, I've got toget free.
And it became so painful Iwould do anything to get out of
clinic.
And so I initially thought I'mgoing to open up a medical spa
because I started dabbling inaesthetics.
It was super fun.
It was not the ER and I thoughtthat that's where I was going
to be happy.
And I kept getting hit with allthis resistance to opening up a
med spa.
(17:58):
And for those of you who arefaith-based, you know that this
is God saying no go the otherdirection.
I kept pushing and kept pushing,ignoring that voice, and thank
goodness that God said no,because right when my husband
and I were like kind of reallygoing through the finances of it
, covid happened, and I don'thave to tell anyone here that
starting a med school at theheight of the pandemic would
(18:21):
have been devastating, and soCOVID happened.
I knew I wanted to still dosomething business-wise and I
had all of this experienceworking at a PA school.
So a colleague of mine who hasa very similar background as I
do we started coaching pre-PAsto get into PA school super
competitive and our businesstook off Well.
(18:42):
At the same time, there were afew kind of really
life-transforming things thathappened.
One I was laid off from one ofmy positions because of starting
this business.
And then I was also furloughedfrom the ER, and so my identity
had always been misplaced.
(19:03):
It was my identity was as a PA,and so when you lose that, when
that is like taken from youabruptly, I did not know what to
do with myself and I it was sohard, just like what you said
was it was scary, it was hard,it was terrifying.
It was terrifying and I, trulylike, had lost myself, who I was
, to my core, because of, youknow, from day one of PA school,
(19:27):
getting into PA school, like itwas PA medicine, PA patient
care, medicine, medicine,medicine.
And I had lost who I was.
I had lost my true passions andmy calling.
And yes, at that point of mylife, that all happened for a
reason.
I was called to medicine, forsure, but it's funny how God
will use you in different waysand change your path.
(19:47):
So, in any case, also at thesame time I'm furloughed, I'm
laid off.
I've started this business.
The business, fortunately, wasdoing great and I loved it.
I was having so much fun.
There's nothing better thanhelping somebody else's dreams
come true, whether that's in myfirst business with pre-PAs or
with Escape the Clinic, andhelping providers make their
first sales and then their nextsales and realize, oh my gosh,
(20:10):
look at this world that has justopened up to me.
But at the same time I lost mylittle sister who had just
graduated PA school.
I actually taught her, I washer professor and she had just
graduated PA school.
A few months out she was in acar accident and didn't make it.
And to say, it always hits youat the weirdest time.
(20:31):
Sorry To say that that wasdevastating and tragic is an
understatement.
And I knew from that point youknow that abruptness, that loss
that I could never go back tothe life that I, that I had
before.
I could never go back todreading waking up every day, I
um and going into work.
(20:51):
I could never go back to to thezombie that I was as a PA,
where it was all about shovingpatients into these time slots,
getting them in and out, andthat was it.
I was done and I made thedecision that I was going to
surrender totally to God and toquit fighting Him and to quit
(21:12):
telling Him no, I want to dothis actually.
And so from all of that, thefirst business took off.
And then, when I saw what thatdid for my life and I realized
you know that there's so muchpain that people are going
through, so much pain that PAsare going through, nurse
practitioners, providers ingeneral are going through
feeling like they're stuck, thatthey can't be with their kids,
(21:34):
they can't be present, theycan't stay home with them, they
can't leave because they have noother income to replace it with
.
They are stuck day in and dayout with a schedule that there
is another way.
I could not sit on that and letother providers go through that
same suffering and discomfortand unease and know that there's
something wrong and wake upevery day dreading going into
work when I know and have proventhat look, this is what you
(22:00):
have that you can take, that'spossible for your life, that
your potential that you know somany people seem to lose over
time.
Ashley (22:10):
It's amazing, the things that make us brave.
Sometimes, In the moment,there's absolutely no way that
that is going to do anythingexcept absolutely tear us down,
and I'm thinking about so manyexamples.
You just said, so many examplesof things people have told me
recently in past episodes Losinga family member, specifically a
(22:33):
sister unbelievable, that youfeel like you'll never overcome
that.
Losing your job, not havingyour job anymore when it wasn't
your decision perhaps I spokewith somebody else failing your
board exams it really feelsinsurmountable sometimes.
And then you take two moresteps forward and you realize
you are in good hands.
(22:53):
The Lord has you.
Take two more steps forward andyou realize you are in good
hands.
The Lord has you and whatyou're doing is just showing
bravery every single day.
And that is what you have doneand I'm so grateful for it.
First of all, because of whatit has led you to right and
Escape.
The Clinic has incredible valuefor people who might need to
look towards that bravery.
(23:13):
I can be brave too.
People who might need to looktowards that bravery.
I can be brave too.
Haiti did it.
She knows how to do it.
Let me do it too.
So what would you tell aclinician?
It doesn't necessarily have tobe PA, but what would you tell a
clinician who's sitting therethinking, oh, this sounds like
something I might do.
Katie (23:28):
Yeah.
So I have a free masterclassthat helps you kind of
rediscover your thing, whatlights you up, what you're
passionate about and how you canserve others, and it also shows
you how to start building alist of people who will buy that
thing from you and get youridea out into the world.
So I have a free masterclassand I can definitely give that
(23:50):
to you to put in the episodenotes if you'd like.
And then I also have an Escapethe Clinic course that walks you
through the whole shebang fromdiscovering your thing to
building a list of future superfans, to making your first sales
, packaging up what your thingis, what you do now, what's
super valuable, putting it outinto the world, all the techie
stuff that goes along with it,all the logistical stuff that
(24:12):
goes around along with that.
So I have an entire course thatis specifically for providers
to open their own onlinebusiness.
Ashley (24:20):
What would be the first step that somebody in that
position would do?
Just jump in, start writingthings down.
Katie (24:25):
Yeah, definitely go through the masterclass and in
that masterclass you will alsobe able to go through it it's
about an hour long and then booka free zoom call with me to
hear about your ideas.
It is literally my favoritething ever to meet you guys and
hear about your ideas and whatyou could create and put into
the world.
There is something so specialabout creating something from
(24:46):
nothing, which is basically whatyou're doing with an online
business, and once you, I'm soexcited.
I get so jazzed up about this,because once you have your thing
, you get so lit up that youcan't quit thinking about it.
You get so excited about it andand it's it just.
It's the best ever.
So the first step masterclassbook that call with me totally
(25:07):
free, and I want to hear yourideas.
Ashley (25:09):
You're right the.
There is so much beauty in anew idea and there is so much
excitement in a new idea andthere is so much excitement in a
new idea and I think holdingonto that is fun.
But what is so much moreenjoyable is sharing that with
somebody who will be equallyexcited and, if possible, who
will start pouring ideas intoyour project, if it is, into
(25:32):
your plans, into your passion,which is exactly what you do
project if it is into into yourplans, into your passion, which
is exactly what you do.
Katie (25:40):
Do you hit on something so key?
It doesn't matter if you areworking for one person or there
are 3000 people in your audience, it doesn't matter.
You serve the one, you helpthem and it is the best.
I mean you make it about thatperson, because truly business
comes down at its foundation.
Business is about helpingothers overcome something and
serving with radical empathy.
That's what it's about.
And when you make one otherperson, a thousand other people,
(26:04):
it doesn't really matter whatthe number is.
If you make them the hero ofthe story, if you make it about
them, you have guaranteed yourbusiness success.
Ashley (26:14):
That was.
That was mind blowing.
I mean, that was just such anearth shattering thought.
That was mind-blowing.
I mean, that was just such anearth-shattering thought.
That was incredible.
Before we wrap up, the peoplelistening to this podcast are
largely pre-health students, andmaybe they are people who are
experiencing healthcarethemselves right now, whether
they are in medicine or perhapsa patient.
For those people who arelooking towards medicine and
(26:36):
they're thinking well, gosh,Ashley and Katie have just, you
know, they've mentioned a lot ofstrife that they have felt
working in medicine right now, Iwould just like to, first of
all, I just want to say that theposition that you are in right
now hugely successful businessowner is because you are a PA,
it's because you worked as a PA,professor, I think it is.
(26:57):
It is because of the degreethat you got.
So what would you tell thosestudents?
How would you, how would youencourage them to pursue this,
this career in medicine, Even ifyou know, even if there are
flaws in medicine itself?
Katie (27:11):
Yeah, I'm so glad you asked that.
So, first off itself, yeah, I'mso glad you asked that.
So, first off, I never want tocome across as like ungrateful
for my career or any ingratitude.
I think that my life has takenthe direction because God has
his own purpose for that and sothat is kind of you know why my
life has played out the way ithas.
But being a PA, I love ourprofession.
(27:33):
I love our career.
I'm totally biased, but it isliterally the best career in the
entire world, even if, you know, still working in clinic.
If I were still working inclinic and I didn't own a
business, I would still feelfulfilled in some way.
And really it is not the PApart, it is not the patient care
, it is not the medicine.
All of that is amazing and Iwould probably still be there if
(27:55):
it wasn't for theadministrative part of it, the
red tape, the burdens of ourhealthcare system.
Ashley (28:02):
Right.
Katie (28:03):
And so I just want to be transparent about that One.
If you are on the PA track, Idon't want to dissuade you by my
experiences of burnout.
Now will you experience burnout?
Yes, I think every providerexperiences burnout.
It's not if it's going tohappen, it's just when, but you
can prepare for that now.
You can prepare for that byknowing yourself really well,
(28:23):
knowing you know about yourwork-life balance and how, and
your family if you want to haveone, your preferences, all that
sort of stuff.
But also becoming a PA gives yousuch an incredible education,
such a valuable education, that,even if you did go into clinic
and you only wanted to work afew days a month, having an
(28:43):
online business, being able topack up the knowledge that you
give to your patients everysingle day and deliver it in
only the way that you candeliver it because you're you
and nobody else is that is stillan option for you, that is
still a route for you, and so Idon't want to come down on the
PA career.
I love my profession, I lovebeing a PA, but God has taken me
(29:04):
in another route, and that isto help others who have burnout,
who want to be home with theirkids, who want to travel the
world, who want to make moremoney, who don't want to be
limited or hit a ceiling when itcomes to their income or when
it comes to the days they canwork and all of that sort of
thing.
So for them I say, pa, amazing,you're on the right track, it's
the best ever.
But also know that there isanother side of medicine that
(29:28):
isn't talked about quite as muchas a PA and to anticipate that
it's going to happen, but alsoknow how to respond to it.
And then, if you find yourselfburnout and needing an escape
route, know that I'm herewaiting for you to hear your
ideas.
Ashley (29:44):
Fabulous, fabulous.
And this is Katie, with Escapethe Clinic.
You have a podcast as well,which I have so enjoyed
listening to, and your guestsare just incredible and so
inspiring, and everything thatyou've spoken about just makes
me so hopeful for not justmedicine but, more importantly,
the people in medicine, right,it's incredible.
So, katie, tell us about wherewe can find out more information
(30:05):
about all of these amazinggifts that you offer.
Katie (30:08):
Yeah, escape the Clinic podcast on any podcast listening
platform that you're on.
And, ashley, I can't wait tohave your podcast episode up and
going soon.
I can't wait, it's gonna be sogood.
So you guys will have to comeand listen to Ashley's story.
If you wanna email me, it'skatie at escape the cliniccom.
That's Katie with an IE andInstagram at escape the clinic.
(30:30):
Facebook.
Escape the clinic LinkedIn.
Katie Bean like a green bean.
So come hang out, it'll be fun.
Ashley (30:39):
Fantastic.
Katie, thank you so much fortaking the time to hang out with
us on shadow me next and totell your story so honestly and
so beautifully, for taking thatfear that you experienced and
just putting trust in the Lordand allowing it to become
something brave, and becomesomething that has just improved
the lives of so many people,and we'll continue to do so, I
(31:00):
think so.
Thank you for all you do andthanks for being here with us
today.
Katie (31:03):
Right back at you.
Ashley, You're amazing.
Thank you so much for this andit's an honor to be here and I
love what you're doing so much.
Ashley (31:10):
Thank you so very much for listening to this episode of
Shadow Me Next.
If you liked this episode or ifyou think it could be useful
for a friend, please subscribeand invite them to join us next
Monday, as always.
If you have any questions, letme know on Facebook or Instagram
Access.
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You're always invited to ShadowMe Next.
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