TriageMD
Preparing Physicians for Financial Success

How much better can a physician’s financial success be if she acquires a base of financial knowledge before she begins practice? That question is one of the main drivers of TriageMD, a specialized focus on physician wealth by Radnor, PA-based firm TGS Financial Advisors. “We asked: What if we could catch them before they make the many consequential financial decisions facing early-career physicians?” says Audrey Libois, financial advisor with TGS.

One of the ways TriageMD answers these questions is by working with Program Directors to bring financial knowhow to residents and fellows. TriageMD workshops teach the key concepts of building walkaway wealth: the power of an intentional money mindset, the importance of properly sequenced cash flows, and core principles of saving and investing. The goal of every TriageMD workshop is to help physicians target their best financial trajectories as early in their careers as possible, even before they may be ready for a relationship with a wealth management firm.

Walking with Physicians in their Financial Journeys

As soon as they transition to practice, physicians get plenty of attention from real estate agents wanting to sell them expensive homes and insurance agents promoting the costliest life insurance policies. TriageMD offers physicians the context and guidance they need to make informed financial decisions, and an advocate on their side of the table bound by a fiduciary responsibility to put their interests— and only their interests—first. TriageMD Foundations is the firm’s flagship planning package for new physicians who are motivated to establish a comprehensive strategy for lifetime financial success.

With their extremely demanding careers, physicians can easily lose sight of their financial goals and step off the path to financial freedom. Established physicians often come to TGS seeking remedies for missteps that have stunted their financial growth and created negative ripple effects, especially in regards to not having saved enough for retirement. TGS advisors are well-versed in physician-specific strategies that can improve retirement outcomes.

Financial Decision-Making and the Power of Context

TGS Financial Advisors was founded in 1990, and physicians and other high-net-worth individuals have been part of their client base from the beginning. The firm provides comprehensive financial planning and investment advisory services and works closely with CPAs and estate attorneys.

The financial experts at TGS Financial Advisors, all CFP® certified, keep their focus on the long-term health of their clients’ portfolios. They use financial projections with real-world context to illuminate how the choices physicians make today will affect their futures in 10 or 20 years. These what-if scenarios are a standard planning tool at TGS that help make abstract decisions quantifiable and allow physicians to see through their emotions around a rent-or-buy decision, for example, with a neutral, run-the-numbers approach. Recalling one young physician couple’s reaction to their what-if projections, Libois notes “It was incredibly powerful for them to realize they didn’t have to rush into a home purchase—that they could take the time to decide where they truly wanted to live.”

Improving Optionality is the Ultimate Financial Goal

One main goal of TGS and TriageMD is to help physicians manage their finances in a way that allows them to keep their patients and their loved ones— not their money issues—top of mind. Physicians lead stressful lives and TGS advisors are well aware of the demands on them after working with countless physicians over decades. “Whether it’s a student, resident, or an established physician, we understand the financial needs that come at different stages of a physician’s career,” says Libois.

TGS Financial Advisors cares deeply about the physicians they serve. Through its TriageMD lens, the firm is all about bringing data-driven clarity into physicians’ financial lives, along with the increased confidence and peace of mind that are natural by-products of fully-informed financial decisions.

One of the best rewards for TGS advisors is raising the bar on the choices physicians have, such as choosing how and when to retire. With their earned experience and wealth management expertise, TGS advisors will continue to enjoy helping physicians build secure, option-rich futures.