San Diego, CA. ― Amid a complex healthcare industry plagued by red tape, high (often nontransparent) costs, and interactions that leave patients feeling defeated and exhausted, Clarence Lee Jr., MD, believes he has a potent solution.
“Medicine is typically an employment model, and I intend to take the profession of medicine back for the physician and allow us to fix all of the problems private equity and business influence has caused in the practice of medicine,” Dr. Lee said.
He launched his flagship urgent care facility, Exhort Health, in San Marcos, California, in February, where he aims to provide cost-effective, patient-focused care that leaves patients feeling empowered.
“One of the core values of this organization is encouragement,” Dr. Lee added. “Instead of coming into the doctor’s office and leaving drained, we want you to leave encouraged. … it’s, ‘uplift the patient as soon as they come in the door.’”
If transforming the way healthcare is practiced sounds like swimming upstream, Dr. Lee is no stranger to persisting in the face of adversity. His dream of becoming a doctor was nearly upended by a steady stream of rejection letters from medical schools — until just the right opportunity presented itself. And today, he’s leading the charge to return physician ownership to healthcare and “fix every problem medicine has.”
About Dr. Clarence Lee Jr.
Dr. Lee is a physician-entrepreneur, nationally celebrated author, international speaker, and the President and CEO of Exhort Health, a multi-specialty healthcare startup whose vision is to change everything about healthcare.
A former student-athlete, Dr. Lee holds a degree in Biology (B.S.) from University of the Incarnate Word, and degrees in Medicine (M.D.) and Business (M.B.A.) from Drexel University. Also a decorated war veteran, Dr. Lee served in the United States Air Force for 10 years with several assignments, his last being a flight surgeon flying the T-38 and U-2 airframes in one the most elite squadrons in the USAF.
Dr. Lee is the author of the inspirational memoir Well, My Mom Says… as well as his latest book Persist. He is a columnist for several publications, and his work has been featured in Live Happy Magazine, Black Fitness Today and Essence Magazine, to name a few. He regularly appears as an on-air TV health expert and has been featured in segments on ABC, CBS and FOX television stations.
Recently, Dr. Lee was named Top 40 under 40 by the Sacramento Business Journal and Drexel University. He has been highlighted as one of the top healthcare entrepreneurs to know by Becker’s Hospital Review, one of the top Black entrepreneurs to follow by Yahoo! Finance, and is also a recent recipient of the Black Enterprise Modern Man award.
Dr. Lee is a devoted husband and father. He lives in Southern California and loves spending time with his wife and five children.
To learn more, please visit https://exhorthealth.com/ or https://www.clarenceleejr.com/, or follow him on Twitter (@drclarenceleejr), Instagram (@drclarenceleejr) or Facebook (Dr.ClarenceLeeJr).
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Reviews, photos, links to previous interviews and Q&As are available upon request.