We recently connected with Tiffany Di Pietro and have shared our conversation below.

Hi Tiffany, thanks for joining us today. We’d love to hear the backstory of how you established your own practice.

I always knew that I wanted to be in private practice, and I was never interested in working for someone else. I wanted to practice medicine much like some people would refer to as the “old days”- when physicians spent more than 5 minutes with their patients and knew each of them personally.

Setting up a private practice right out of medical residency is not an easy task- mainly because no one knows who you are or how you practice. I first registered myself on websites that patients go to when looking for a doctor and made sure I was visible on google as well. In medicine, while word of mouth will not build your practice quickly, it does build loyalty, which is the biggest asset you can have as a physician in private practice.

Retrospectively, I think I would just trust the process a bit more. Building a successful practice takes time and it is quite an exponential growth curve. If you are good to your patients, available and communicative and truly treat them as you would your family, you will succeed!

Great, appreciate you sharing that with us. Before we ask you to share more of your insights, can you take a moment to introduce yourself and how you got to where you are today to our readers

I am a quadruple board-certified cardiologist and internal medicine physician. I have a boutique office in Fort Lauderdale where I have a concierge medicine program and cardiology practice as well. I communicate directly with my patients, offer 24/7 availability via email or my cell phone, same or next day appointments and best of all for most patients- no wait times. I pride myself on knowing each of my patients as individuals and in my office and they are treated like family.

My office is warm and welcoming. It was actually an old house that was renovated into an office. When you walk in, your are greeted by a nice scent, custom artwork and greenery. We only have 2 exam rooms, both with natural lighting and plants. I do not hang medical information on walls and I hide any medical equipment out of sight. Creating a stress and worry-free environment was very important to me when I opened my office. Coming in with a major concern is stressful enough- patients do not need to be reminded of any awful medical conditions by reading posters on walls before seeing me!

My focus and passion is the prevention of disease. I much prefer a proactive rather than reactive approach to medicine. I educate my patients on the importance of stress management, nutrition and fitness, in addition to traditional medicine.

Training and knowledge matter of course, but beyond that what do you think matters most in terms of succeeding in your field?

Enjoying what you do! I genuinely enjoy being a physician. I probably enjoy it more than others because I created the career I wanted. I take personal time for myself on Fridays and make time in my calendar to take my son to karate and have lunch dates with my husband. In my office, I created a calm space and I hired the right employees (and treat them well).

Most importantly, I found happiness in my personal life which has spilled over into my professional life. Patients want to see a physician who is also happy and healthy. They want to feel calm. They need a physician who will reassure them and be optimistic. I think it is very hard to be the physician that a patient would want to see if you are not truly happy outside of your career as well.

If you could go back, would you choose the same profession, specialty, etc.?

One thousand percent. I honestly could not think of any other specialty that would make me feel as fulfilled as cardiology does. Cardiovascular disease is the number one killer of men and women in this country. If I can educate my patients and help to prevent heart attacks and strokes by being proactive, then I can honestly say I have succeeded in the most important way a physician could.

Contact Info:

• Website: www.MedicineandCardiology.com
• Instagram: @DrTiffanyDiPietro
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/DrTiffanyDiPietro/
• Twitter: @HeartDrTiffany
• Youtube: @DrTiffanyDiPietro