The Matchmaker: Chrystene Nguyen, MD, MPH, DipABLM

jodyhanks
Feb 4, 2024
2 min read

The CE experience for this Podcast is powered by CMEfy – click here to reflect and earn credits: https://earnc.me/ptQ6loDr.

Chrystene Nguyen is a double board-certified physician in Southern California who practices Family and Lifestyle Medicine. She believes that a major part of optimal health includes having supportive relationships and positive community and social connections.

MD Coaches, LLC provides leadership and executive coaching for physicians by physicians to overcome burnout, transition throughout your career, develop as a leader or meet your individual goals. Remember, you are not in this alone. Reach out to us today!

This Episode is brought to you today by Eagle Financial Group.

Eagle Financial Group is here to help you understand your numbers to make wise decisions.From fractional CFO services to accounting, bookkeeping, and payroll, Eagle financial group is your partner to ensure that your practice keeps on serving your patients, and gives you more time to spend with your family and friends.

It’s time that you overcome your obstacles, and get control of your financial life today. Give Eagle Financial Group a call at 719-755-0043, drop us an email at

clientservices@eaglefsg.com, or visit us on line at eaglefsg.com

We are a proud sponsor of the MD Coaches family of podcasts.

Dr. Nguyen is the founder of White Coat Romance, a dating app for healthcare professionals and students in the USA/Canada with its unique licensing verification process and community engagement feature. She is the Co-Host of the “Love, Scrubs & Stories” Podcast with Dr. Colin Zhu, where guests join them to chat about dating and relationship topics from the perspective of healthcare professionals.

She has recently expanded into another exciting venture with White Coat Mingle, with in-person social networking events for like-minded professionals with Master’s and Doctorate degrees across all industries. In her leisure time, Dr. Nguyen enjoys practicing the aerial arts and can’t get enough of anything matcha.

Dr. Nguyen’s Prescription for Success:

Number 1: Be passionate about your purpose.

Number 2: Understand your community.

Number 3: Don’t fear the first step, because that gets in the way of so many things.

Connect with Dr. Nguyen:

Dr. Nguyen on LinkedIn

Dr. Nguyen on Facebook

White Coat Romance on the Apple App Store, Google Play, or on the web at whitecoatromance.com

Notable quotes from Dr. Nguyen’s interview:

I think people were craving in-person connections, human connections.

It's been very exciting to see all these different matches, whether it’s through the dating app, or actually even the Facebook group as well.

Sometimes it feels like they think we’re robots, you know? But like everybody else, we have needs, we have emotions, we have desires, we have wants. And at the end of the day, what we all want, like everybody else, is we want that person in our life, a person to do life with, ultimately.

It was a really amazing space where we could come together, provide support, [create] a lot of amazing friendships.

Access the Show Transcript Here

177: The Matchmaker: Chrystene Nguyen, MD, MPH, DipABLM

Dr. Christine Nguyen: From refugee to physician and entrepreneur, she discusses work-life balance and healthcare entrepreneurship. Highlights include the White Coat Romance app, White Coat Mingle platform, and Love, Scrubs, and Stories podcast.

2024, Dr. Randy CookRx for Success Podcast

Produced by Clawson Solutions Group (www.csolgroup.com)

Generated Shownotes

Chapters

0:00:00 Introduction to Eagle Financial Group 0:00:20 Urgent Call: Dr. Cook summoned to Operating Room.0:00:38 Introduction to Prescription for Success podcast 0:02:23 Early Life in Vietnam and Migration to the United States 0:04:10 Transition into an English-speaking World and Retaining Vietnamese Language 0:06:38 Parents’ Career Transition and Entrepreneurial Ventures 0:10:01 Transition from Civil Engineering to Medicine 0:11:31 Introduction: Eagle Financial Group sponsorship 0:13:05 Lifestyle of Young Physicians and the Impact of COVID 0:16:25 Creation of the White Coat Romance Facebook Group 0:18:18 Expansion to the White Coat Romance Dating App 0:20:06 Excitement about the White Coat Romance community and success stories 0:22:33 Launching White Coat Mingle and Expanding to Other Cities 0:30:56 The Challenge of Balancing Work and Patient Interests 0:34:10 Three Prescriptions for Success 0:36:53 Show Appreciation and Call to Action 0:37:50 Sponsorship Announcement: Eagle Financial Group

Long Summary

In this episode of the Prescription for Success podcast, we are joined by Dr. Christine Nguyen, a board-certified family medicine and lifestyle medicine physician, and a successful entrepreneur. Dr. Nguyen shares her inspiring journey as a Vietnamese refugee who came to the United States at a young age and discusses her experience adapting to American culture and learning English.

Reflecting on her upbringing, Dr. Nguyen talks about her family’s business, consisting of a mini-mart on top of an auto body shop, and how she grew up helping her parents. Initially studying civil engineering in college, she rebelled against her parents’ desire for her to pursue a career in medicine. However, through volunteer work, she discovered her passion for medicine and eventually changed her career path. Dr. Nguyen emphasizes the importance of pursuing medicine for oneself rather than others.

The conversation then shifts towards Dr. Nguyen’s postgraduate training in internal medicine and family medicine, where she observed a lack of work-life balance among young physicians. This realization led her on an unexpected entrepreneurial journey, sparked by the COVID-19 pandemic. Dr. Nguyen acknowledges the role of social media in her entrepreneurial pursuits, something she had previously shown little interest in.

Throughout the podcast, Dr. Nguyen shares personal anecdotes about working in healthcare during the pandemic and how it affected her personal relationships. To address the challenges faced by healthcare professionals, she created the White Coat Romance Facebook group as a virtual support and community space. Later, she developed the White Coat Romance dating app, which aims to provide healthcare professionals with a platform to connect romantically. Dr. Nguyen discusses the process of vetting members for safety and the challenges she encountered while launching the app. She expresses excitement about the app’s success and the number of matches and marriages it has facilitated.

Another positive outcome of the White Coat Romance community is the formation of blended families, despite the tragedies of COVID. This inspired the creation of White Coat Mingle, a social networking platform for like-minded professionals with master’s and doctorate degrees. The podcast, Love, Scrubs, and Stories, was also launched to amplify the voices of healthcare professionals and showcase their human side.

Despite the busyness of managing multiple projects alongside her medical practice, Dr. Nguyen recognizes the worth of her endeavors. While she still enjoys practicing as a physician, she has reduced her hours to part-time and focused on urgent care. Dr. Nguyen explains her ultimate goal of serving others and contributing to the community in a different way, particularly through lifestyle medicine. She advocates for a healthcare system that prioritizes prevention and reverses chronic medical conditions through lifestyle changes.

Towards the end of the conversation, Dr. Nguyen shares three key prescriptions for success as an entrepreneur. She emphasizes the importance of a clear purpose, understanding the needs of the community, and conquering the fear of starting. By embracing uncertainty and taking action, beautiful and life-changing opportunities can be created.

The episode concludes with the host thanking Dr. Nguyen for sharing her wisdom and promoting her social media presence, as well as the White Coat Romance dating app and Love, Scrubs, and Stories podcast. The host encourages listeners to leave ratings and reviews, become Patreon members, and explore the companion podcast. Special thanks are given to the producer, promotions manager, and the creator of the theme music, with sponsorship mentioned.

Brief Summary

In this episode, we’re joined by Dr. Christine Nguyen, a refugee turned physician and entrepreneur. She shares her journey of adapting to American culture, her unexpected path to entrepreneurship, and her mission to improve work-life balance for healthcare professionals. We discuss the White Coat Romance dating app, the White Coat Mingle networking platform, and the Love, Scrubs, and Stories podcast. Dr. Nguyen emphasizes the importance of pursuing medicine for oneself and offers three prescriptions for entrepreneurial success. Tune in for her inspiring insights!

Transcript

Introduction to Eagle Financial Group

[0:00] Today’s episode is being brought to you by Eagle Financial Group.From fractional CIO to tax prep, and everything in between, Eagle Financial Group can help.Find them on the web at eaglefsg.com.

[0:15] Music.

Urgent Call: Dr. Cook summoned to Operating Room.

[0:20] Paging Dr. Cook. Paging Dr. Cook.Dr. Cook, you’re wanted in the OR. Dr. Cook, you’re wanted in the OR.

[0:28] Music.

Introduction to Prescription for Success podcast

[0:38] Welcome to the Prescription for Success podcast with your host, Dr. Randy Cook.Hello, everyone, and welcome to Prescription for Success. I’m Dr.Randy Cook, your host for the podcast, which is a production of MD Coaches, providing leadership and executive coaching for physicians by physicians.To overcome burnout, transition your career, develop as a leader or whatever your goal might be, visit MD Coaches on the web at mymdcoaches.com because you’re not in this alone.And don’t forget that CME credit is available when you listen with us.Just look for CMFI in the show notes to learn how.My guest today has board certifications in both family medicine and lifestyle medicine.She’s also a successful entrepreneur and has recently launched a new dating app that specifically targets medical professionals.So let’s hear Dr. Christine Nguyen tell her story.

[1:47] Music.

[1:52] We’re going to have some fun today. I’m having a conversation with Dr.Christine Nguyen out in sunny California who has some really interesting things to tell us about in terms of adventures with social media that she’s going to tell us about.So, Christine, thanks so much for being with us today. I’m really excited to have you here. Well, thank you so much for having me. It’s such an honor to…Be a guest on your podcast. You’re very kind. Well, as we always do, we like to begin at the beginning.

Early Life in Vietnam and Migration to the United States

[2:23] And interestingly, your beginning was actually on another continent.So tell us a little bit about the earliest part of your life.Yeah. So I was born in Vietnam and I came to the United States when I was about six years old and I was part of the boat wave for Vietnamese refugees. RPGs.And so, thankfully, you know, my very large family, we’re talking like a family with eight children, we made it to the United States.And at that time, you know, the family was smaller and, you know, a couple of my siblings came after the fact.But, you know, I’m very just thankful and grateful for the life that I have and just being part of this American dream.

[3:11] Yeah. And this was, and I apologize for the interruption, but this was about how long after the end of the war?Oh, my gosh. It’s been so long ago. It was, gosh, I can’t say exactly, but it was probably like, yeah, I’m going to have to really dig deep on like doing the history lesson here.Well, I apologize for not having done the research on it myself.But I know, you know, of course, at the moment that the war ended, there was a scramble for people, particularly who were trying to escape the South.But it’s my understanding that later on, there was another wave of migration.I was just kind of curious as to where all that fit. Yeah, you’re absolutely right.Yeah, there were different ways for sure. And I was part of the wave of the boat people. And so my family ended up in Malaysia, and it took about a year for us to finally make it to the United States.Our life began here, and, you know, all the hopes and dreams that my parents had for us became realized.

Transition into an English-speaking World and Retaining Vietnamese Language

[4:10] And so I’m always appreciative of that. And so, you know, I never, you know, or at least I try my best. I forget sometimes to, like, take things for granted.So your first language was actually Vietnamese. Yes.Yeah, it was. Yeah. I started kindergarten here.

[4:25] And when you got to this country, you didn’t speak a word of English? Was that the way it was?Well, they tried to teach us a little bit when we were in Malaysia because we were there for a whole year. Oh, I see. We actually did have education.And my father, he was a principal of an all-women’s high school in Vietnam.And so he was a teacher for us, along with other teachers who helped teach us.Well, that’s a lucky thing for you. Yeah, thankfully.

[4:53] But it’s always been fascinating to me that people, when they’re very young, seem to acquire languages much earlier.And I actually had a guest, a previous guest of mine, was born in Cuba, grew up speaking Spanish in New York, and was sent to first grade without any attempted instruction in English.And yet she did very well. Well, so back to you, I want to get the focus back on you, that transition into an English-speaking world.Do you recall finding it challenging or difficult or threatening or what was it like for you?Yeah, absolutely, for sure. But then again, that was like so long ago.And basically, we were all under the ESL, the English as a Second Language program.

[5:37] And like you mentioned, as children, we have the ability to pick up language a lot quicker. Actually, we have the ability to pick up a lot of skills a lot quicker as children.And so, thankfully, we’re able to sort of, you know, be part of the American culture in a very quick amount of time.And if anything, I think it, after a while, I think it actually frustrated my parents because we ended up just speaking English at home a lot to one another, as in my siblings.And um and so it was only to our parents or our you know our relatives when you know there were family get-togethers where the vietnamese was spoken because um i think maybe we just got excited and you know just being in school and having friends and and so if anything yeah that was something that i act i actually had to like work on was retaining my vietnamese language That’s interesting.

[6:32] Yeah. And did your father continue in his career as a teacher, or did he move into something else?

Parents’ Career Transition and Entrepreneurial Ventures

[6:38] Yeah. And so obviously it’s very different when you come here, and he ended up just starting all over again, like most of the refugees.And he initially worked as an employee in an auto body shop that he ultimately ended up buying.

[6:58] The business. Wow. Yeah, it’s really amazing. And my mom, you know, like a lot of the refugee women, she, you know, was sewing clothes.And then ultimately, you know, and I think this, not just you asking me this question kind of got me thinking about my trajectory, that my parents ended up actually ended up buying like a little mini mart on top of the auto body shop. Wow.Yeah. And so that was their business when I was growing up. So during the day, my mom would run like the little mini mart and my dad would be at the auto body shop and then in the evening he would come and join her and so you know they obviously worked really hard to support you know a large family of eight children and I was there helping them as well you know when I could at the mini mart.And so in this fascinating transition into a completely different culture and acquiring new language and new skills and things of that nature.I’m wondering at what point in your early years you began to think about a career in medicine?So medicine was something that, you know, being that I’m Vietnamese and my parents, you know, and the way they view medicine and being a physician was probably like the highest honor that any Vietnamese or Asian family could ever have for their children.And so this was something that I actually rebelled against. Oh, did you really?

[8:26] Yeah, because this is something that I was just like literally like rolling my eyes all the time, whatever they talked about it.So they were giving you the, you should go to medical school and you were giving them the, wait a minute, this is my decision.Yeah, and it was like the guilt trip I felt like, you know, like that, you know, like we, we brought you here for a reason. And so it’s funny, again, just how life happens.And so I think it was because being young and in my teenage years and my early 20s at that time, just naturally I want to just rebel because that’s what they wanted for me.

[9:03] And so I actually started my undergraduate studies at UCLA as a civil engineer major. No kidding.Yes, I did. That didn’t last long, though.Because I was good in math in high school, and I grew up in Santa Ana, which is a community where very low socioeconomic status was where I grew up.And it’s not like the students around here weren’t smart or didn’t have intelligence or ambition, but I think it was just the unfortunate nature of the situation where they weren’t given enough resources and support.And so, you know, I was very thankful that for my parents, like they worked really hard.And so it was very much drilled in me that basically like they do their part and we need to do our part, you know?And so, I was very focused on my studies.

Transition from Civil Engineering to Medicine

[10:01] And so, I excelled. And I actually did very well. And in high school, I was actually co-validatorian.And so, when I went to college and I was like, this is not going to be a problem.But we’re talking about the creme de la creme, so to speak, at UCLA.

[10:16] And when I started taking these math classes, I started getting Bs.And I was very upset by that. Like, I don’t get Bs. it was just that competitiveness in me you know um but then i was like why am i doing this you know it was because i wanted to rebel and then i started to um do some volunteer work and then realize that you know what this is something that i wanted to do that medicine was actually very fascinating and it was totally in line of like you know how i see myself and so it all all worked out really well.Because at the end of the day, you know, as much as I want to say, the parents gave me a very big nudge, you know, that I’m very thankful for them that they did that and just helped me to sort of be able to recognize the true path and my true calling in life.I bet that made them happy.Yeah, then they were Yeah, and I needed but I needed to do it for me because there were so many situations that I’ve heard about where, you know, some physicians did did it for their parents, for other people.And they ended up very happy, unhappy.And, and you know, that at the end of the day, this is, you can’t do this for anyone else but yourself.

Introduction: Eagle Financial Group sponsorship

[11:31] Today’s episode is brought to you by Eagle Financial Group.Eagle Financial Group is here to help you understand your numbers and to make wise decisions.Whether it’s fractional CFO services, accounting, bookkeeping, payroll, or tax strategies and preparation.Eagle Financial Group is your partner to ensure that your practice keeps on serving your patients and gives you more time to spend with your family and friends.It’s time that you overcome your obstacles and get control of your financial life today.Give Eagle Financial Group a call at 719-755-0043.Drop us an email at clientservicesateaglefsg.com or visit us online at eaglefsg.com.We are a proud sponsor of the MD Coaches family of podcasts.I want to go ahead and move us into where you are now.And I know that you had a number of different practice situations in internal medicine, I guess, or family medicine.That’s actually where you did your postgraduate training.

[12:47] It looks like you had a number of different opportunities there, sort of moved around a little bit that before you happened onto something that really fascinated you in a different way, which is, how should I put this?

Lifestyle of Young Physicians and the Impact of COVID

[13:05] It sounds like you noticed something about the lifestyle of young physicians that was lacking in one way or another. So why don’t you pick up the story from there?Yeah. So, gosh, you know, none of this was ever planned. Like, I just never anticipate any of this.And, you know, when you had talked about me in the beginning and talked about social media, and if you asked a lot of my friends, like, I was someone who was never really into social media.Like, I barely even posted in social media.

[13:41] Yeah, yeah. And that was, yeah, several years ago. And now I’m, you know, like, all over the place. It’s kind of unusual for your age demographic. Yeah.

[13:50] Yeah, and so really, you know, what we’re getting at is like all this came about and, you know, my entrepreneurial journey sort of started was really because of COVID, you know, and fortunately when COVID happened.

[14:05] Boy, that changed a lot of lives, didn’t it? Certainly, yes.The whole world was turned upside down.We all recognize the fragility of life. We really, I think, really had to like really figure out and really, you know, figure out what is truly important to us, to each one of us.And at the end of the day, it was the relationships.It was the social connections. It was the community.And so when that happened, you know, we were in quarantine in 2020.And at that time I had switched from doing primary care to urgent care like literally like the the year before and so I was working in this setting with high risk for exposure for COVID and I purposely isolated myself from my family and after a while when things started opening up up, and some people started hanging out, a lot of my friends didn’t feel comfortable hanging around me.And I understood, because of my high risk for- Because of your work environment?Yes, high risk for COVID exposure. And I joke about having the COVID cooties and so forth.

[15:22] And so naturally, the friends that were most comfortable spending time with me were the friends who do what I do.Friends who were in healthcare. And so, you know, these communities started forming on Facebook, and a lot of us were connecting virtually, because we just needed some kind of support and community.And so I decided to form the White Coat Romance Facebook group.And this was a Facebook group that was for, you know, it was just only for a number of, you know, high level healthcare professional degrees, including physicians.

[15:58] Dentists, pharmacists, optometrists, podiatrists, and veterinarians.You know, at that time, I started with a larger community, but over time, I had decided to kind of scale it back down and reduce it to a smaller community, because, you know, there were a lot of other professionals that were interested in joining, but, you know, I only have, unfortunately, due to my limitations and so much bandwidth, with that I decided to keep this to become a smaller community.

Creation of the White Coat Romance Facebook Group

[16:25] And it was a really amazing space where we could come together, provide support, a lot of amazing friendships, forums.We even had some romantic, actually a good number of romantic connections.I would do all sorts of fun events. We would do Zoom events of various types.And then after a while, we actually started hanging out in real life.And where I’m at in Southern California, I was able to plan a number events in the area.And so it was just really, just really amazing just to be able to finally meet, you know, all these new friends.And so I apologize for the interruption, but you’ve really fascinated me here.You apparently vetted this thing very carefully.

[17:11] I did, yes. And very sharply. And I would like to, I want some details.I mean, what did you have to do to get into this group?Did you have to submit your licenses and photographs and things of this nature? How did you do it?Yeah, and certainly, like, safety is a concern. I wanted this to be a safe space for us.And so for the Facebook group, there were a couple questions that you had to answer in order to join the community.And that includes, you know, like something like your NPI or your license number and just a few questions. Wow.Yeah. And, you know, your specialty and, and yeah, and I’m pretty like tough on that, you know, that, you know, for me, it wasn’t having like a big, large community.It’s so different from the usual Facebook happening where you’re trying to get it to be as big as it can possibly be.So congrats to you on that. But go ahead with the story, and I apologize for the interruption.Yeah, no, it’s good. And so I wanted a community that was vetted because I wanted to create something different, you know?

Expansion to the White Coat Romance Dating App

[18:18] Because really what I’m saying is all of this really was born out of a need, you know?And from there, I was getting a lot of, you know, healthcare professionals that were interested and wanting to be part of this white coat romance community.But, you know, I was limited in my ability and what I can manage.And, you know, plus I was working, I’m still working as a physician.

[18:38] And so I, and then also there were actually a lot of people that actually wanted me to be like a matchmaker and would ask me about, you know, this person and that person, and they have various interests and, you know, everyone has different interests and, you know, understandably.And so I decided to expand this community and with the help of developer, you know, developed the white coat romance dating app and the um the dating app actually took quite a while to uh to actually launch because i don’t know what i’m doing and i’m like learning along the way and so it didn’t launch until actually february of this year in the united states and then i expanded to canada at the end of march and i’m thinking that’s a fairly complicated project Did you have to connect with software developers and developers?Things of this nature to be able to put it together? Yeah, absolutely.So initially, you know, my brother-in-law, who has an IT background, was helping me with this for a little while.

[19:38] But, you know, COVID certainly played a role in, you know, all this, whether it was with him or the developer or somebody that I’m currently with, because, you know, the waves of COVID really affected the project as well.Yeah. And then, you know, he and I recognized that, you know, we need a team of people to be able to, you know, to launch something of this scale.And so that’s when, you know, I brought in the developer and we were able to like move forward.

Excitement about the White Coat Romance community and success stories

[20:06] And so I’m really excited because the White Coat Romance dating app has a much larger community.

[20:11] So it also includes masters as well as doctorate degrees, as well as like PhD friends.So pretty much, you know, if you’re a professional who’s in healthcare or health related fields, as well as students who are pursuing these degrees.

[20:28] That this is, you know, part of the community that I’ve built.And so it’s been very exciting to, to see like all these different matches, you know, whether it’s, you know, through the dating app, or actually even the Facebook group as well.Because we’re actually going from the Facebook group, we’re going on the fourth marriage now.

[20:46] Super exciting, as well as another couple has a baby, and they basically had a blended family with a baby as well.So it just really warms my heart. It makes me really happy that despite all the tragedies of COVID, that this was truly our silver lining.Yeah, I bet that really is gratifying for you.And tell me a little bit more now about how this morphed into White Coat Mingle and what’s the difference?

[21:14] Yeah. And so White Coat Mingle, again, you know, like really like I think, you know, as I’m just deeply involved in White Coat Romance and, you know, and all the different like subgroups.We also have a lot of subgroups as well, especially our SoCal subgroup that’s really quite strong. And that, you know, I, you know, I’m constantly talking to a lot of members of the community and trying to understand their needs and their pain points.And, and ultimately, I think people wanted to, people were craving like in-person connections, human connections.And we were basically in quarantine for so long so that now that we’re you know have the opportunity to live our life again that people wanted to meet even more professionals and so and i also have a lot of friends as well that i think are completely amazing and so i decided to form another sister group called white coat mingle and so white coat mingle is you know essentially it’s an exclusive exclusive platform for social networking across you know all industries and it’s still a niche audience meaning that it’s for like-minded professionals with master’s and doctorate degrees but it’s for a much larger community and we just had our first launch event about.

Launching White Coat Mingle and Expanding to Other Cities

[22:33] Two and a half weeks ago was a huge success it was so much fun and i’m in the process of planning planning more events currently it’s you know just in you know southern california where i’m at right now but i’m really hoping to be able to expand it to other big cities if i can if there’s interest and if i can get the support and the help to plan in other big cities so i’m very excited about this this new endeavor i bet you’re gonna find right away that there is uh.

[23:03] A bigger interest than you might have imagined, because it just really seems like a brilliant idea.And so in addition to all of those things, you’re actually producing your own podcast to help publicize this. You want to tell us about that?Yeah. So this actually was also, you know, another thing. And I love the name of this.Thank you so much. And it wasn’t planned at all.And so, So, you know, I’m very thankful to, you know, to get to know a lot of the members of the White Coat Romance community.And one of those members is now, you know, a really good friend and is co-host of this podcast that we have now that you mentioned. It’s called Love, Scrubs, and Stories.And he lives in the local area, is another physician. Shout out to Dr.Colin Zhu, my co-host. Amazing.And so, you know, he and I, he’s, you know, an entrepreneur himself and is doing amazing work.And because we’re entrepreneurs and just trying to understand this journey and provide support to one another that we’re always just you know we chat every now and then and throw ideas to one another and so he actually like one day just happened to like you know hey you know we should have a podcast and it would be fun to have like a banter and at the same time you know in the facebook group like we talk about a lot of different topics obviously surrounding you know Dating and relationships and romance.

[24:29] Someone had mentioned that there’s just a lot of stories to be told among this amazing community.Indeed. So, yeah, when Colin initially mentioned it, I’m like, oh, we have so much going on, not right now.And I ultimately circled back to him and said, remember what you said to me? Let’s do it.And I got really excited. He was really excited.And so we launched this project.Podcasts, you know, beginning of July, we’re now going almost, you know, the 19th, 20th episode.

[25:02] And so we have guests, whether they’re from the white coat romance community, or from the larger community of professionals, or also even non healthcare guests and guests expert as well, that can provide us some insight and education to this community.And basically, we just talk about All things that’s related to dating and relationships from the perspective of healthcare professionals.And I think that, you know, we wanted to amplify the voices of healthcare professionals and also to bring back the human aspect of who we are and that we have the same desires as everyone else.And so I think a lot of times, you know, patients and other people may view, you know, I don’t know, sometimes it gets the feeling like they feel, it feels like they think we’re like robots, you know?

[25:51] But like everybody else, we have needs, we have emotions, we have desires, we have wants.And at the end of the day, what we all want, like everybody else, is we want that person in our life, person to do life with, ultimately.Yeah, you have really hit on something that I think has probably been missing from the larger healthcare population.Community for since its beginning. And that is that we’ve been kind of isolated.People think we’re somehow different and that we don’t feel and think and experience in the way that any normal human being would.So what a discovery for you and what a fabulous way to approach it.I am curious. I have to say, you have so many things going on here and you did briefly allude to it just a few minutes ago.Do you find that you’re challenged in being able to continue to get out there and practice medicine? Oh, gosh, absolutely.Yeah. And so this is a struggle for me because, you know, I think I have this is something I tend to get ahead of myself, not new at all.

[27:00] You know, it’s interesting when you had talked about my family and stuff.And what I didn’t mention was I remember like growing up thinking like I didn’t want to be like my parents.I’m I’m embarrassed to say that in a sense of their entrepreneurial pursuits and businesses.Because this is like, you know, like growing up, I was so young and I was like, this is so much work, you know, like, why are they doing this?And, you know, and now I understand.And I guess it’s in me, you know, the entrepreneur genes.And here I am, like, I just never thought I’d be here in this place.But it’s certainly a struggle and a challenge. And, you know, I still very much like practicing as a physician and I do it, but I certainly have had to like cut back to part-time practicing and, you know, as an urgent care physician.Yeah. And so it’s something that, you know, I’m figuring out day by day, you know, what point, you know, and, you know, people have often asked me like, you know, will you ever give up being a physician?And I don’t, right now I’m going to say no to that, but, you know, who knows where everything is going to take me down the road.

[28:04] And where all this will go, because I’m very excited and I think at the end of the day, like, what it is that I really want is that, essentially, like, we’re talking about serving.

[28:14] Patients serving others right and i could be serving this community just in a different aspect right because i know the day like we often forget that optimal health like as i mentioned includes having like positive relationships and social connections and community you you’re in a territory right now that i’d really like for you to uh enlarge on and um i think you mentioned that you did some additional study and additional training in lifestyle medicine, which is something that we’d certainly not heard of the time back when the earth was cooling and I was finishing my training. Nobody had heard of lifestyle medicine.But talk a little bit about why that’s important and how you got interested.Again, this really all came out of COVID. I actually didn’t even know lifestyle medicine existed.It sounds kind of, I don’t know if I want to say a little woo-woo.When you first hear about it, when you don’t understand anything about But I thankfully joined a community, a Leverage and Growth Accelerator, which I attribute a lot of where my growth and mindset shift came from. And this all happened because of COVID.And there were a number of physicians in that community that were board certified in lifestyle medicine.And it really piqued my interest, you know, because certainly, as I mentioned, I was very, that, you know, I felt very strongly about preventive medicine.And so when I started learning about it, I was like, this really falls in line of something that I would like to do because essentially lifestyle medicine.

[29:43] We’re really just going back to the basics of medicine that a lot of us forget in this day and age.A lot of it is to help educate patients and focus on the major pillars of medicine, which is optimal diet, predominantly plant-based, also eliminating any exposure to toxic substances, maximizing our sleep, getting adequate exercise, reducing our stress, as well as having positive community and social connections.A mentor of mine from a long time ago was fond of saying, we don’t actually have a health care system in the U.S., we have a disease care system. And it sounds like…

[30:30] What you’re focusing on in lifestyle is exactly that. Let’s have a healthcare system. Am I correct?Yeah. And the goal of lifestyle medicine is to prevent and to reverse largely a lot of the chronic medical conditions such as diabetes and hypertension.And a lot of that could be prevented and reversed with lifestyle measures.And so nowadays, it just feels like there’s a pill for for every ill.

The Challenge of Balancing Work and Patient Interests

[30:56] And we forget, and I understand part of it is certainly, you know, I think as physicians, like, it’s really challenging the work that we do.And we’re limited on time.And also, you know, also our patients as well, and sort of like where their interests lie. And, but really, we can help patients work towards that.And, you know, certainly, this is not something that can happen overnight.But if we can focus on that, that I feel like and focus on the long term, you know, healthcare plan that we’re all would be in a much better place. I bet you’re right.Christine, I have really enjoyed this conversation, and I bet we could literally go on and on for hours and hours, but chances are we might lose some listeners here and there.So what I’m going to do at this point is get out of your way, and let’s do what we came here for, and that is to hear from you and you alone.So I’m going to close my mic, and audience, Dr.Christine Nguyen is going to give us her personal prescriptions for success. Yeah.So thank you so much for this question. You know, I’ve really given this a lot of thought.And I would say the top three things that I can think of that has really helped me and certainly my prescription for success is starting with number one, I say, feel your journey with passion and purpose.So starting your, you know, say entrepreneur journey, your adventure is like setting sail on an exciting romantic journey.

[32:15] It all begins with a burning passion for your vision and a crystal clear sense of purpose. So your passion, I would say it’s the spark that fuels your motivation, while your purpose serve as your guiding North Star.So embrace the passion and this.

[32:30] You know, let it drive every step that you take. And this purpose will give your entrepreneur proceeds profound and meaningful direction in making this journey all the more fulfilling. So that’s my number one.Number two, I would say is understand your community.The heartbeat of any successful venture lies in like understanding the needs and the pain points of your community to deliver value to solve their real problems.And it’s important that you listen, you learn, You seek feedback as well as grow with the audience and continue to expand the knowledge and just surround yourself with a strong network of individuals who not only provide valuable advice, but also will help support your growth.And then lastly, I would say conquer the fear of starting.Just take that first step. As physicians, we’re often wired to analyze and research endlessly and fear the unknown.But success doesn’t come from standing still. it’s really born out of action.I say don’t get bogged down from the how right now, but instead focus on the what and the why.And by taking that initial step, you know, it makes it easier to take the next step and gives you the courage to move forward.The ideas will evolve, and you’ll learn along the way, you won’t have all the answers, you know, at the outset, but you know.

[33:54] That’s Just keep moving forward, and each step will get a little bit easier.Ultimately, embrace the uncertainty.Seize every opportunity, and I feel like you’ll create something beautiful and life-changing.

Three Prescriptions for Success

[34:10] And those are my three prescriptions for success. Wow.That is really powerful. Be passionate about your purpose.Understand your community. And I love that last one.Don’t fear the first step, because that gets in the way of so many things.Christine, this has been a lot of fun.I am overwhelmed with the wisdom of such a young person, and I applaud you for what you’ve done and wish you great success in where you’re headed.Before we go, I want to give you an opportunity to tell our audience where you can be found and where the apps can be found and anything else that you’d like to share.So go right ahead. Oh, thank you so much, Randy, for your very kind words.

[34:56] Yeah, it really touches me to hear all that. I’ve really thoroughly enjoyed our conversation.You’re so warm and it’s so easy to have this conversation with you.And I think you really helped me bring out a lot of the things that I perhaps may have bottled up.And so I appreciate that. Thank you so much. And so thank you so much.And so, yes, you can find me on social media.I don’t know, annoyingly or not, depending on how you feel about it everywhere nowadays.Days and that’s really i guess that’s the other part of success is that you have to really put yourself out there so you can certainly find me christine when my name on all the major social media channels i’m on facebook a lot as well as instagram also on linkedin i’ve kind of dabbled into tiktok a little bit and twitter um as far as the white coat romance dating app if you’re single, healthcare, health-related professional with a master’s or doctorate degree, or a student, please, you can find us on the App Store, as well as Google Play.

[36:01] You can also visit our website at whitecoatromance.com. And the social media handles are all the same as White Coat Romance.If you’re in the local area in Southern California currently, come join White Coat Mingle events. fans.They’re a lot of fun. And last but not least, we’d love it if you can also tune in into the podcast, Love, Scrubs, and Stories that I co-host with Dr. Colin Zhu.So thank you so much for giving me this opportunity.I’m very thankful to be able to share my story.And thank you again, Randy, and to the Rx for Success podcast family.Well, thank you so much, Christine, for being with with us on Rx for Success.You have been a charming guest, and I have enjoyed every minute of it. Thanks again.

Show Appreciation and Call to Action

[36:53] Thank you so much for listening with us today. If you enjoyed the show, you can help us reach more listeners by leaving a rating and a review, especially on Spotify or Apple Podcasts.And if your app doesn’t have that option, just leave us an email or a voicemail through SpeakPipe at www.rxforsuccesspodcast.com.You can also help by becoming a Patreon member.That link is in the show notes. And we hope you’ll also follow our companion podcast, Life-Changing Moments with Dr. Dale Waxman.Special thanks to our producer, Craig Clausen, our promotions manager, Mariana Rodabaugh, and to Ryan Jones, who created and performs our theme music.And remember, be sure to fill your prescription for success with my next episode.

[37:45] Music.

Sponsorship Announcement: Eagle Financial Group

[37:50] Episode. Today’s episode was brought to you by Eagle Financial Group.From fractional CIO to tax prep and everything in between, Eagle Financial Group can help.Find them on the web at eaglefsg.com.