In state after state, physicians are walking out of their offices, and out of operating and emergency rooms. According to Lorne E. Weeks, MD, "Physicians have ever-decreasing control in the face of persistent responsibility and liability. It's an unnerving combo that has many healthcare practitioners running for the exits-or at least looking for ways to put out the fires before they're consumed."

A practicing orthopedic surgeon until November 1999, Weeks is the co-founder of "ThePhysicianCareerNetwork,"™ an industry-leading program providing physicians with strategic resources and a confidential sounding board for their careers. "We help physicians to optimize existing practices, to air career frustrations, to seek new career direction, or to transition into non-clinical jobs," Weeks says.

MDs who step inside The Physician Career Network's virtual office at www.careerlab.com/physician.htm are greeted by a tongue-in-cheek banner: "Tell us where it hurts. We can help." Asked where it hurts, doctors are given four choices: career, finances, legal issues, or medical practice. If they choose "Career," for example, they see a list of frequently asked questions like, "Can we keep our work CONFIDENTIAL ("Yes"), and "Do you have a structured program?" ("Yes, but it's not canned.") They also see testimonials: "This is exactly what I've been looking for;" and news stories on career transition, alternative careers, and recovering after being fired.

The site features a confidential "Sounding Board" which allows physicians to describe their situation, and many physicians are remarkably candid: "I had a terrible experience with clinical medicine; I do not love it nor does it arouse any passion," one resident said. A physician executive wrote, "I would like to stop, take a deep breath, and reflect on the choices before me."

On nearly every page, readers are asked, "What would you like to do? Undergo a Career Biopsy, ™ or take your Spouse's Temperature? ™ The Career Biopsy and Spouse's Temperature are online questionnaires that produce detailed reports of career, financial, legal, and practice fitness. There is no charge for these reports.

• Doctors seeking information about The Physician Career Network may contact
  Bill Frank at 303-790-0505 x225 wsfrank@careerlab.com

Our doubts are traitors,
And make us lose the good we oft might win
By fearing to attempt.
—Shakespeare, "Measure By Measure"