Start planning your well-thought-out retirement program early, perhaps a decade in advance. Do not just “retire” at a specific date without a well-developed plan. Do not underestimate that a significant portion of a physician’s sense of self-worth is the physician-patient relationship; it’s what makes us a “doctor.” Consider fading out of clinical practice gradually, because it is very difficult for most physicians to suddenly and completely cease patient interactions. Gradually reducing clinical shifts while ramping up potential new considerations, or a just gradual increase in desired nonclinical activities, will smooth your transition.

Consider your best-loved personal interests beyond clinical practice, and investigate alternative future activities both within and outside of medicine. There are only so many days you can sit on a beach, read a book, play golf, travel, etc., and continuing medical and nonmedical intellectual pursuits will substantially maintain your physician-developed sense of self-respect and enhance your retirement enjoyment. With a well-developed and gradually implemented plan, you’ll be surprised at how enjoyably active your retirement from clinical practice can become!

—David E. Wilcox, MD, FACEP
Medical director consultant
South Glastonbury, Connecticut

Early in my career, a mentor encouraged me to read and to and to reflect upon the poem, “The Road Not Taken” by Robert Frost. Just as Frost’s traveler did, “I kept the first for another day.” I encourage colleagues not to lose sight of the other road and to ask themselves frequently, “What would I have studied if I had not chosen medicine? What mysteries of life would I like to understand?” When one often reflects on such questions, it will be easy to identify an opportunity to choose “the other path” in retirement.

— Susan Nedza, MD, MBA, FACEP
Candidate, Masters in Liberal Arts
University of Chicago

Retirement is not about stopping anything! It is about pursuing activities you enjoy, including those work activities you enjoy most. So sharpen your focus to make room for interests you’ve long deferred. Be more physically active than you had time for previously. Take care of yourself to stay healthy. Keep in touch, or reconnect, with those you love. If you’ve planned your finances, live that financial plan and enjoy the freedom of not having to work solely to pay bills. Achieve real work-life balance and make your trade-offs wisely. Only so many hours exist in each busy retirement day, and only so many days remain in each retirement life. Be genuinely grateful for every one!