Podcast Spotlight: Family Medicine Locum Tenens & Professional Microcorporations

📝 This Week’s Real-Life Lesson:

Podcast Spotlight: Family Medicine Locum Tenens & Professional Microcorporations

🎧 Listen here

I recently had the privilege of joining Dr. Mark Royer on his insightful podcast, Let’s Locums. The episode was titled Family Medicine Locum Tenens & Professional Microcorporations with Dr. Tod Stillson (SimpliMD) and aired March 17, 2025.

Our conversation covered the sweeping arc of my own journey as a family physician, entrepreneur, and founder of PEA-SimpliMD. We explored what it means to truly break free in today’s healthcare landscape—through locums, micro-business ownership, and building your own professional platform.

🎧 From the Exam Room to Entrepreneurship

I was recording from a quiet Airbnb on a cold Indiana morning, freshly back from a stint doing locums in Kansas. While many see locums as a temporary gig or travel hack, I see it differently—it’s a launchpad. Not just into new clinical settings, but into a new way of life.

We talked about how locums, when combined with the power of a professional micro-corporation, become more than a stopgap—they become the vehicle for control, tax optimization, and business development.

🔗 If you’re new to these concepts, I recommend grabbing our free resource:

📘 Why Every Doctor Needs A Virtual Business Structure

💼 The Business of Locums: Case Study of Control

Let’s take “Dr. Claire,” a composite of many PEA members I’ve coached. She transitioned from full-time W-2 employment to locum tenens and set up her own PC to operate as a 1099.

Instead of being boxed into an employer’s retirement plan, she set up her own Solo 401(k), saving over $50,000/year. Instead of depending on reimbursement for travel meals, she elected per diem allowances through her PC. And instead of handing over all control, she started building wealth.

Today, she’s pursuing job stacking across telehealth, rural ER coverage, and is planning a micro-clinic. Her story isn’t unique—it’s a path we lay out clearly in our free e-book: 📕 PEA’s Locum Tenens Guide for Physicians

🔑 Lessons from the Podcast

Here are four truths that surfaced during my conversation with Dr. Royer:

1. Locums is a Strategy, Not a Stopgap

Locums isn't "running away"—it's a strategic pivot. It offers geographic flexibility, diversified income streams, and a break from the dysfunction of corporate medicine. But without business strategy, it’s just a glorified gig.

That’s why I founded SimpliMD, now the Physician Entrepreneur Academy—because doctors don’t need MBAs, they need real-world tools.

🎓 Explore the Doctor, You Are A Business Course

2. Your PC (Professional Corporation) Is a Tool of Freedom

During the podcast, I outlined how I use my PC to manage income, pay myself through payroll, and allocate expenses—like travel and per diem meals—strategically. It’s not shady. It’s smart.

🧠 Want to understand the mindset that fuels this?

📝 Download my eBook Your ESCAPE from Corporate Medicine

3. Tech Can Empower You (Not Replace You)

We also discussed ChatRx—my latest startup that automates diagnosis and treatment of 30+ common infections asynchronously. It's AI-powered but physician-led. I believe as doctors we must learn how to manage AI, and not let AI manage us!

If you're building your own virtual-first clinical model, our course Creating a Practice Without Walls is your blueprint.

📱 Check it out here

4. You Don’t Have to Do This Alone

Dr. Royer and I talked about the power of community. He’s a PEA supporter himself, helping surgical locums find better contracts through Specialty Surgical Solutions. If you’re a surgeon, he’s your guy.

And if you’re ready to build your own support system, start here:

📬 Join our free PEA Explorer Membership

🧾 “Is This Deductible?” Sidebar

Working Locums in Kansas: Pizza + Per Diem = Smart Strategy

While I was in Kansas doing locums, I opted to take a per diem payment from my PC instead of reimbursement. The locums company didn’t provide a food stipend, so I used my personal credit card to buy a pizza from a local spot.

Was this the right way to manage it?

✅ Yes. When you elect per diem through your business, the IRS doesn’t care how you spend that money. You keep the difference between the per diem rate and your actual expenses. It’s a savvy way to retain more income—legally.

📘 Learn how with our Per Diem Expense Optimization Guide

📬 Join the Movement

“Entrepreneurship is the refusal to surrender your future to someone else’s system.”

Thousands of doctors are waking up and building micro-businesses that serve their lives—not the other way around. They’re forming PCs, job stacking, launching virtual-first clinics, and saying no to burnout.

🎯 Are you ready?

📬 Join the PEA Explorer Membership

🎁 Plus, grab our free e-book: 📕 What Does It Mean To Be a Long-Term Independent Contractor?