Dr. Brian Blank grew up in the small town of Waterford, PA, delivering newspapers before leaving for the midwest to study broadcast journalism at the University of Missouri. He then spent the next several years working in cable news in both Atlanta and New York. In New York, he met his wife and father-in-law, a longtime primary care physician at the Cleveland Clinic. After many late-night conversations with him, he decided to switch careers to pursue family medicine. After stops in Boston and Costa Rica, he moved to Chapel Hill, NC, where he completed medical school at UNC. He then did my residency in family medicine down the street at Duke University Hospital.
In 2021, he opened Ember Modern Medicine, a practice he had dreamt about for more than a decade. By eliminating overpriced insurance restrictions, he can spend more time connecting with my patients and focusing on their health and wellbeing instead of rushing through 7-minute visits checking government boxes.
Dr. Blank and his wife Laura are now blessed with two beautiful daughters. In his free time, he enjoys competing in endurance sports. He’s run more than a dozen marathons, finished 2nd in a 50-mile ultramarathon, and barely survived an Ironman Triathlon. Lately, he’s been attending Swamp Rabbit CrossFit. In 2021, he started a running streak, attempting to run at least one mile every single day.
In this episode, Dr. Blank shares his story of how his love for family medicine drove him to change careers and how, after ten years, he has finally opened his clinic Ember Modern Medicine. He shares about his buildout, his staffing and so much more in today’s episode!