Here it is — complete and ready to copy:
Subject: The first step. (Most physicians skip this entirely.)
Preview text: I didn't even know what DPC meant. Here's where I started.
The first thing I did before seeing my very first cash-pay telemedicine patient.
It wasn't hiring a lawyer. It wasn't setting up an LLC. It wasn't even getting licensed.
It was finding my people.
I stumbled into a Facebook group for physicians interested in Direct Primary Care — and honestly, I didn't even know what DPC meant at the time. I just knew I was tired of practicing medicine the way I had been, and I started searching for anyone who felt the same way.
I found them.
That community led me to a podcast called My DPC Story. I started listening. Episode after episode of physicians who had walked away from insurance — and built something better on the other side.
Then I heard Episode 112 — Dr. Nicole Harkin, a preventive cardiologist who built Whole Heart Cardiology, a cash-pay telemedicine practice seeing patients across multiple states- I will always be thankful to this community, and Dr Harkin remains an example!
This was the episode that made me believe it was possible for a specialist like me.
Not because of DPC — but because of two things I had never considered before:
① A specialist doing this. It showed me that the model wasn't just for primary care — it was possible for someone like me and that I did not have to start investing in a physical location.
② Direct Specialty Care. I didn't know that term existed. DPC — Direct Primary Care — had a cousin: DSC, Direct Specialty Care. A cash-pay, direct relationship model built for specialists. For endocrinologists. For me, maybe for you too!
I immediately Googled cash-pay telemedicine endocrinology in New York and Florida — the two states where I was already licensed.
I found almost nobody doing it.
That scared me. And it excited me.
I reached out to the few practices I found. Nobody answered.
That silence told me everything I needed to know.
⚡ THIS WEEK'S PRACTICAL TIP
Finding your community isn't just scrolling online. Here's exactly what worked for me — and what I wish I had known sooner:
🎧 WHAT WORKED FOR ME 👉 Episode 112 — Dr. Nicole Harkin, Whole Heart Cardiology — if you're a specialist wondering if this model is possible for you, start here
🤝 WHAT I OFFER YOU 👉 Join our Facebook group — 250+ physicians navigating this exact journey. Ask anything. Someone has been there.
💡 WHAT I WISH I KNEW 👉 Go to a DPC conference — in person, during contemplation. I'm attending my first DPC Summit in July 2026. I've heard from physicians who went while still on the fence — it gave them a network, real conversations, and a clear picture of where and how to start. Don't wait until you have it figured out to show up.
🎁 NEXT EMAIL: The moment I decided I was actually ready — and the very first concrete thing I did after that decision.
— Dr. Maria Bernal Endocrinologist | Cash-Pay Telemedicine Physician Founder, The Cash-Pay MD cashpaymd.co