I recently conducted a workshop for medical residents transitioning to practice for the Professional Residents Association of British Columbia (PAR-BC). Having worked with doctors for over 15 years, I was familiar with many of the issues faced by new physicians, but I still ended up doing a lot of research to prepare for the presentation.

There is so much information available and it comes from so many sources.  The Canadian Medical Association does an amazing job and provides some comprehensive guides for physicians starting out. The information is provided from a national perspective, so it doesn’t address some of the more specific issues faced by British Columbia doctors. The BC Medical Association and the College of Physicians and Surgeons of BC also have important information you need to know. And then there are the government websites – Medical Services Plan (MSP), the Ministry of Health, and WorksafeBC. Not to mention other physician organizations and agencies.

It took me much, much longer than I had originally planned. Most doctors don’t have the time to research all of this information themselves.

Now that I had the material, what was I going to do with it? I would definitely use some of it for my presentation. But that wouldn’t help everyone. There were bound to be questions in areas that I hadn’t addressed, and probably some that I couldn’t answer right away. Much as I like to think so, I don’t know everything.

I would also be able to put the information up on my website, but that wouldn’t allow people to ask questions.

The best solution was to use a discussion forum. Facebook is great, but I prefer to keep business separate from personal. Google+ looks like it will be great, but it is still too new. I picked LinkedIn because it is well established, free to join, and used by business professionals throughout the world.

Information About the LinkedIn Group

Tax and Financial Planning for Medical Residents and New Doctors (Canada)

http://www.linkedin.com/groups?about=&gid=4165874

The above links will take you to the group. You can also search for the group within LinkedIn.

The purpose of this group is to provide a forum where Canadian medical residents and new doctors can find information and ask questions on the various tax, accounting and financial planning issues they face. Members can also share information and experiences.

Topics will include transitioning into practice, income tax tips, reasons to incorporate, buying into a practice, and many others.

The group is open, meaning that anyone can view it. You must be a LinkedIn member to join the group, and you need to join the group to post and ask questions. I encourage you to join. The best way for this group to become a valuable resource is through the questions and interactions of its members.

I hope I’ll see you there.