Connect with Dr. Amy Fogelman

Website: https://www.highrockexperts.com

High Rock Academy: Medical expert witness training and education

Connect with Bryan Jepson, MD, CFP®

Website: https://www.bryanjepson.com

The Second Shift Podcast: https://www.2ndshiftpodcast.com

Financial Planning: https://www.targetedwealthsolutions.com

About This Episode

What if the skills you need for your next career are the very skills you've spent decades developing?

After 20 years practicing internal medicine, Dr. Amy Fogelman found herself burned out, anxious, and struggling to imagine life outside clinical medicine. It took three simple words from her husband — "You can stop" — to help her recognize that leaving medicine was an option.

But what would she do next?

Instead of pursuing another degree, Amy took six months to explore possibilities, connect with mentors, and discover the value of skills she already possessed. Today, she's the founder of High Rock Experts and High Rock Academy, connecting attorneys with qualified medical experts and teaching physicians how to succeed in medical-legal consulting.

In this episode of The Second Shift, Amy and Bryan explore physician identity, the emotional challenges of career transitions, and why developing interests outside clinical practice may actually protect against burnout.

Amy believes physicians have superpowers — critical thinking, problem-solving, communication, and relationship-building skills that translate into countless opportunities beyond the exam room.

They also discuss the practical side of medical expert witness work, including how to get started, earning potential, and why it can be intellectually rewarding even for physicians who continue practicing medicine.

Amy's story reminds us that changing careers doesn't mean starting over. Your experience isn't wasted. It may be exactly what prepares you for what's next.

In This Episode

00:00 – Introduction: A physician's hidden superpowers

04:32 – Amy's journey into medicine and expert witness work

07:16 – Imposter syndrome and recognizing your expertise

11:49 – Burnout, perfectionism, and loss of control

15:00 – "You can stop": Recognizing the need for change

17:26 – Taking six months to explore new possibilities

20:18 – Entrepreneurship and building High Rock Experts

23:17 – How burnout affects the people we love

27:08 – Physician identity and the fear of leaving medicine

29:27 – Why professional variety can prevent burnout

33:19 – Ethics and credibility in medical expert witness work

38:18 – Expert witness compensation and opportunities

43:13 – Becoming an entrepreneur without a business degree

49:44 – Redefining identity and finding flexibility

53:06 – What Amy misses about clinical medicine

56:18 – What's next for Amy?

57:00 – Defining wealth through relationships, not achievements

59:42 – Bryan's five closing takeaways

Hashtags

#TheSecondShift #PhysicianCareerTransition #PhysicianBurnout #PhysicianEntrepreneur #MedicalExpertWitness #LifeAfterMedicine #CareerReinvention #PhysicianIdentity