Over-the-road Doctor

I am a physician, board-certified in emergency medicine but also residency-trained in internal medicine. I am also in CDL school at the moment, and although I will admit that I suck at backing a combination vehicle I am not that terrible at shifting since I have driven a manual transmission for 28 years. Yes, I will admit, I do have some bad habits with regards to transitioning from my 6-speed diesel pickup to a 10-speed semi. Double clutching is, shall we say, different. Regardless, let's just say that this virus currently spreading around the globe has completely trashed my business plan as a doctor and I rapidly need to think of a new business plan. Here it is:

I drive to truck stops with a trailer converted to a medical office and you can just pop in for a visit. For my comfort, the trailer/office is equipped to do the emergency procedures I am used to performing. If you try to die on me, I try to save your life while waiting for an ambulance to get you to a hospital. Yes, expect a bill. No, it will be nowhere near what a hospital would charge. However, I can't drive and do CPR at the same time, so you very likely will still need a hospital. For your comfort, I can go wherever you as a community need me (within reason - state licenses to practice medicine are very expensive). As I am licensed in multiple states already, but as federal law further complicates things, let's just say for example that I can do some very basic lab tests (electrolytes, hemoglobin, kidney tests) and maybe some other tests, if necessary.

Would you even want to see a doctor who knows at least a little about trucking, owns a truck and trailer, and drives OTR? I'm not talking about getting your fed med card from me. I don't do that. I'm talking about routine or urgent issues including things like stitching and splinting.

Would you be interested in seeing such a doctor by telemedicine (so long as you are actually in a state where I am licensed)?

The big question is how much would you think such a service would be worth to you?

* LIKE (and following.)

My other half says yes... waiting for further replies here. A roadside doc w/a CDL sounds awesome, tbh!

Thanks, I'll watch for the seasoned drivers' replies, then!

~ Anne ~

Finding your patients in time of need would be difficult. It is an interesting concept.

How would I know you are nearby?

What is your advertising plan?

Legally would you be permitted to conduct business on private truck stop property since many say "no outside vendors"?

How far are you willing to drive to meet me?

How would the tele-doctor work? As a separate app or with Zoom? Many companies already use apps for virtual health care which also accept our medical insurance.

My suggestion might be to find a company willing to refer drivers to you or even base you at their terminal. I work at prime and we have a medical office, chiropractor and sleep lab in the terminal...as well as fitness trainers, nutritionists, and even accountants.

Good luck with your plans.

It's an interesting concept and I commend you for thinking out of..well, inside of the 53 foot box. I for one think you will lose your shorts in this endeavor. The logistics of being where your patients are at the exact time they are in need of emergency or urgent care is just a nightmare. There are already truckstops with medical clinics in their parking lots as well as urgent care clinics and hospitals in every city of every state we can pull into if the need arises. If I break a leg or have some other emergency I'm sure an ambulance will pick me up way sooner than you can get to me. You will still have the ELD time restrictions as you are still a commercial vehicle so if you run out of time do I wait till you've completed a reset? Telemedicine can easily be done with our family physician. Most people still have a home and take home time and can get the tests you mentioned while home. The costs involved with buying a tractor and a trailer then outfitting it for medical use would be astronomically high and I don't believe you'd ever recoup that expense alone much less actually make a salary. In my opinion you have a solution searching for a problem that doesn't exist. The only way you might get a little business is by actually offering a $79 dot med certification. Like they say on Shark Tank, I dont see this as a successful business and I don't see how I'd ever get my investment back so for those reasons...I'm out...and you should be also.

Not to mention how much money you would spend on other doctors trying to get your bleeding stopped, because you would just be hemorrhaging money.

The biggest thing that comes to mind for me is insurance, both yours and what would you accept from a perspective patient?

I'm retired military, thus having excellent plans for low costs available to me. In trucking, I'm an exception because I would say the majority of drivers do not have great coverage, and I would bet a large percentage have no coverage.

What I'm pointing out is the prices are going to be the main point for the patient. Too high and they will likely pass on the medical care, unless it were truly an emergency.

Dr Rudy, I hope you feel the negative vibes here. Not that anyone has anything against truck-driving physicians, but the practicality of it. Your experience as an ER doc would help you run the urgent care facility you plan to drive. Following up with patients would be impractical beyond telehealth visits. Also keep in mind there's a ton of paperwork involved with insurance billing and documentation. Do you plan to handle this yourself? I'll bet your largest case load would be in DOT physicals (worth about $100 each)

Finally, should you happen upon a roadside emergency, the local paramedics will look dimly on a stranger walking up and saying "I'm a physician."

Dr Rudy, stick with medicine. I do believe your learning and skills would be better employed full time in the medical field. At this time, COVID is creating a huge demand for medical personnel. After this settles down, I am sure you will find a place to help others. I know there are traveling nurses, I'm sure traveling physicians are a thing, too.

Sounds more like a t.v. show than a business plan. There are so many logistical hurdles involved in treating a mobile customer/patient pool. Medical emergencies are going to be fewer per capita in the driving population than the general population - that's what the medical certificate is supposed to screen for anyway.

I'm in Seattle today. If you were to setup in Laramie on Tuesday when I would actually be passing through Laramie, how would I know you would be there? How would we schedule an appointment? If something were bothering me, why wouldn't I just take care of it with my family doctor in Seattle before I left? Heck of lightning strike for me to experience a medical emergency while passing through Laramie and bump into you BEFORE I called an ambulance or steered my truck to a hospital.

From the practicing medicine in a truck perspective - If you thought commercial real estate was expensive to rent, try running a clinic in a truck. You'll have all the medical expenses AND around $1.38/mi in operating costs AND $1,000/wk in liability insurance for the truck. Are you going to have office staff on the truck to bill insurance, greet patients and all the non-medical stuff or pay them to operate from a fixed location? So, higher operating costs, difficulty meeting up with patients, insurance hassles and competition. Yes, there's tele-health and about a dozen other apps drivers can use for <$100/call if they have insurance but there's also these guys. Fixed locations in truck stops, Nurse Practitioners providing care for $40/month, no co-pay, no deductible.

Would I want to see a CDL doctor? No. Would I want to have a beer with you and hear your stories? Yes. Would I watch the t.v. show? YES! Stick with CDL-free medicine.