29 Jul 2023

Ulrich Nitsche: From Surgeon To Tüv Süd, And How To Combine Emergency Medicine With An Office Job

Ulrich is one of those very rare physicians who ended up leaving the hospital after spending a considerable amount of time in it. After studying medicine in Austria, he worked and qualified as a surgeon in Munich, where he also did research and completed his habilitation. While he still was (and is) very passionate about surgery, he decided to change his career by leaving the hospital and starting to work as a clinical reviewer at Tüv Süd. He’s been there for some time now, and nowadays he works as a department manager there for a team of doctors like him.

I think Ulrich’s story is interesting because there simply aren’t many physicians like him who decide to leave the hospital at such a “late” stage - most people I know leave after medical school or after one or two years of working. Further, Ulrich’s job at Tüv Süd is also not something which I’ve heard of so far - the most common jobs we’ve heard of on this podcast were about software development or working at startups.

While he now works at Tüv Süd, he still works as an emergency physician from time to time. That means that he drives around in an ambulance with a team of paramedics. I think that’s really cool!

If you’re also in the hospital, working long shifts and considering making a change, Ulrich’s story could be very interesting for you. Enjoy!

Ulrich’s Biography

Ulrich Nitsche is a medical doctor, a surgeon, researcher and clinical reviewer at Tüv Süd, where he’s also a department manager. He studied medicine in Innsbruck (Austria) and went on to work as a surgeon at the University Hospital of the Technical University in Munich, where he also did research. He did his doctorate thesis, PhD and habilitation in Munich. He also finished his specialization to become a surgeon in Munich.

He went on to work at Tüv Süd as a clinical reviewer three years ago and is now the department manager of the clinical center of excellence there. While working at Tüv Süd, he still works as an emergency physician from time to time, that means he is dispatched in ambulances with paramedics.

Things we talked about

  • Why he chose to become a surgeon
  • How life is working as a surgeon: Seeing great improvement in patients, but also long shifts and very little free time
  • How living 30-40 minutes from the hospital meant it was sometimes easier for him to not come home and sleep at the hospital instead
  • What caused his decision to switch to an “office job” at Tüv Süd, and how the transition from operating theatre to office job felt for him
  • Why he decided against other job options in consulting and the pharmaceutical industry
  • What a typical workday for him looks like and what the hell a “clinical reviewer” does
  • Differences working in the industry vs. in hospitals: Less strict hierarchy, more flexible work hours
  • How he ended up still working as an emergency physician while working at Tüv Süd

Listen to the Episode