Independent Physician Spotlight: Dr. Christian Monsalve

New feature! We put out a call to celebrate independent physicians and the response was incredible. So we’re featuring a doctor who’s decided to go (or remain!) independent despite all the odds to restore their autonomy and provide better patient care. This week, meet Christian Monsalve, who’s the founder and medical director of his own practice Verigrate Health. You can connect further with Christian on LinkedIn.

1. Christian, give us a little background on you and your practice. I was a philosophy major who discerned a vocation to medicine, in part, due to the study of bioethics. During residency, I founded Verigrate Health, which offers functional psychiatry and psychotherapy for adults and adolescents seeking root-cause treatments for anxiety, ADHD, depression, and compulsive behaviors. All patients receive comprehensive lab testing that informs judicious treatment selection including psychotherapy, exercise, nutrition, supplements, and pharmacotherapy (when appropriate). For some patients, this involves helping them taper off medications in order to minimize dependency. We currently serves patients across California, Florida, New Jersey, New York, and Texas via telemedicine in English and Spanish.

2. What do you see as the biggest challenges to physicians going (or staying) independent? The economic requirements. It is difficult to decline a full-time employed position with guaranteed compensation right out of training when the alternative of starting and maintaining a new medical practice involves significant time and effort.

Many young physicians carry substantial financial obligations that might disincentivize them from building on their own. Fortunately, I've been able to mentor every medical student and trainee who has contacted me regarding independent practice. In order to build my practice, I worked extra moonlighting shifts for several years during residency in order to save up for the startup and licensing costs. Every decision regarding the growth of the practice is intentional in order to expand clinical services across the country at a sustainable pace that maintains the mission of clinical excellence, alleviation of suffering, and respect for human dignity.

3. What are the biggest benefits for going independent? You can practice how, in good conscience, you want to practice. You are able to spend more time with each individual patient. In addition, you free up time for other rewarding duties such as family and serving where there is a need. For me, some of that involves volunteering for Spanish-speaking immigrants, expectant mothers, and religious organizations.

4. What's your advice to anyone who's thinking about making the leap or deciding what path to take straight out of training? Moonlight and save funds for your practice. Apply for multiple state licenses (if you plan to offer services in multiple states) several months prior to completing training. Create a private practice elective in your training program and invite physicians from across the country to speak virtually on how they successfully built their practices. My colleagues and I were able to learn from dozens of successful individuals who had already taken that leap. You'll be surprised at the generosity of others in mentoring young physicians.

5. Are there any resources you can recommend to help physicians who are considering this path? There are too many to list. Some include DPC Frontier, Association of American Physicians and Surgeons, Dr. Philip Eskew, and Dr. Josh Umbehr among many others. During your commute, you can listen to additional free resources such as the podcast White Coat Investor or the YouTube channel HealthPreneur.

6. How can other physicians who are inspired support you? First, I'm happy to mentor (for free, of course) physicians in training who are considering independent practice. Should colleagues determine Verigrate Health is a good fit for collaborating on care for their patients, they are welcome to visit https://www.verigrate.com, set up a meeting, or email contact@verigrate.com.

Connect with Christian on LinkedIn and learn more about his practice here. Are you an independent physician and also interested in being featured? Get in touch! (contact@offcall.com)