38: Your Skills are Bigger than Just Medicine: Finding Career Possibilities Beyond Clinical Practice
Your Skills Are Bigger Than Just Medicine: Finding Career Possibilities Beyond Clinical Practice
What if you could use the skills you developed as a physician in a completely different career?
In this episode of Navigating Possibility, I’m joined by Dr. Swati Shah, an OBGYN physician whose career has taken her through clinical practice, public health, locum tenens, OB hospitalist medicine, the pharmaceutical industry, and entrepreneurship.
Dr. Shah shares her candid career journey and what she has learned about physician career transitions, nonclinical careers for physicians, networking, transferable skills, and finding possibilities beyond traditional clinical practice.
Her story is a powerful reminder that your medical degree doesn't have to define the only way you can contribute. The skills you've developed as a physician can be valuable in many different settings - and sometimes you don't recognize those skills until you step outside the clinical environment.
We talk about how Dr. Shah transitioned from practicing OBGYN into the pharmaceutical industry as a medical science liaison (MSL) and how relationships she built years earlier ultimately helped open that door.
We also explore why physicians often underestimate their own skills and experience when considering a career change. Running a clinical team, managing a schedule, participating in committees, conducting research, teaching, public speaking, coordinating projects, and advocating for patients are all skills that can translate into careers outside of medicine.
And perhaps most importantly, we talk about giving yourself permission to slow down before deciding what's next.
If you're a physician experiencing burnout, questioning your career, considering a nonclinical career, or simply wondering what else might be possible, this conversation is a reminder that you have more options - and more transferable skills - than you may realize.
In this episode, you'll hear about:
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Dr. Swati Shah's journey from OBGYN practice to public health, locum tenens, OB hospitalist medicine, and the pharmaceutical industry
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How Hurricane Katrina influenced her career path
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What a medical science liaison actually does and how physicians can transition into pharmaceutical industry roles
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The role networking played in Dr. Shah's career transition
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Why seemingly insignificant professional connections can create opportunities years later
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How to identify your transferable skills as a physician
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Why physicians frequently underestimate their leadership and management experience
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How clinical responsibilities can translate into project management, team leadership, organizational management, research, and critical thinking skills
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Why volunteer work and community involvement can demonstrate leadership
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How women physicians may hold themselves back when they don't meet every requirement listed in a job description
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The importance of networking even when you're not actively looking for a new career
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Why taking time away from the constant pressure of medicine can help you figure out what you actually want
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How physician burnout can be a signal to reassess your career and your priorities
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Exploring nonclinical career options for physicians
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How Plans Connect helps healthcare and life sciences professionals connect and grow their careers
Your medical career has given you more skills than you think
One of my favorite parts of this conversation is the way Swati breaks down what physicians actually do every day.
If you're an anesthesiologist who manages the OR board, that's organizational and project management.
If you manage the call schedule, that's time management and team coordination.
If you participate in evaluating new technology or devices, you may have experience with cost analysis and decision-making.
If you've conducted research, you have research and analytical skills.
If you've led a clinical team, you have leadership experience.
And if you've organized a community event, coached your child's team, volunteered, or taken on leadership responsibilities outside of medicine - you may have even more skills than you realize.
The challenge isn't necessarily acquiring new skills.
Sometimes it's learning how to recognize, name, and communicate the skills you already have.
You don't have to know what's next
Career transitions don't always happen because you have a five-year plan.
Sometimes they happen because you realize that the career you've built no longer fits the person you've become.
Sometimes you need to make changes within medicine.
Sometimes you need to find a different clinical environment.
And sometimes you discover that your skills and interests could take you somewhere completely different.
You don't have to know the answer immediately.
As Swati reminds us, taking some downtime can be an important part of figuring out what comes next - especially after years of high-stress work, sleep deprivation, or burnout.
Your medical training isn't wasted if you choose a different path.
You have already built an incredible set of skills. The next question is where you want to use them.
About Dr. Swati Shah
Dr. Swati Shah is an OBGYN physician, healthcare consultant, entrepreneur, and travel advisor. Her career has included clinical medicine, public health, locum tenens, OB hospitalist medicine, and more than five years working in the pharmaceutical industry as a medical science liaison.
Through Plans Connect, Swati helps physicians and other healthcare and life sciences professionals recognize their transferable skills, build their professional presence, strengthen their networks, and explore career possibilities.
She also hosts networking events designed to connect people across healthcare and the life sciences, and is the host of Mid Month Meeting of the Minds, her monthly You Tube podcast series.
Connect with Dr. Swati Shah
Learn more about Dr. Shah, Plans Connect, and upcoming networking opportunities through her professional platforms.
Website: https://www.plansconnect.org
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@plansconnect
Ready to explore what's possible for your career?
If you're a woman physician who is burned out, questioning your current role, or wondering whether there's another way to build a career you actually enjoy, you don't have to figure it out alone.
Sometimes the answer isn't to quit.
Sometimes it's to negotiate.
Sometimes it's to make a change within your current role.
And sometimes it really is time to go.
Coaching can help you get clear on what's actually driving your dissatisfaction, identify your options, and make a thoughtful decision about what comes next.
Learn more at christinaadamsmd.com.
Schedule a coaching consultation here.
