When Sophia Rahman, MD, opened her own practice in 2019, she had plenty of questions but wasn’t sure where to find the answers. How do physicians set up billing? How do you establish human resources policies? She turned to the Texas Medical Association's Knowledge Center and found what she needed.
When the Plano primary care physician needed to recruit colleagues and build a network of specialists, she leaned on the Practice Start-up Toolkit, available exclusively to TMA members. When she ran into insurance payment headaches – arguably the top trouble spot for physicians in private practice – TMA’s Physician Payment Resource Center offered her a wealth of knowledge.
Now, Dr. Rahman is a leading advocate for TMA’s Impact Texas Medicine referral program, which encourages physician members to share their own personal stories and invite colleagues to join one of the most powerful physician-led organizations in the U.S.
“I feel like the association has been very valuable in speaking out for physicians,” Dr. Rahman told Texas Medicine. “They work on trying to improve the livelihoods of physicians in Texas.”
Created under the guidance of the TMA Council on Member Experience and rolled out as a two-year pilot program in August 2025, Impact Texas Medicine allows member physicians to earn a $50 credit toward their annual dues for each nonmember colleague who uses the member physician’s referral link to join TMA, up to a maximum of $150 in total credits per dues year and subject to the program’s terms and conditions.
“I’m really excited about this program,” said Emily Briggs, MD, chair of the Council on Member Experience. “We need to get more members who reflect the physicians of Texas. My hope is by having this referral program, we can encourage [more physicians] to join and have a stronger voice.”
A family medicine physician in New Braunfels, Dr. Briggs says physicians outside the large metro areas of Texas may have a better idea about issues in communities that might get overlooked. Local matters are local, she said, and TMA “would love to have more awareness of what’s going on locally so we can support physicians in Texas in a meaningful manner.”
“Tell that colleague about the benefits you receive from the TMA, and if they sign up and use your referral link, you get a little perk,” Dr. Briggs said. “It’s not a major thing, but it’s something to help get our colleagues on the bandwagon to speak with volume.”
Simple truth
Sylvia Salazar, TMA’s associate vice president for membership development and strategy, says the idea for a referral program started with physicians who make up the Council on Member Experience. That panel plans and oversees programs designed to recognize and elevate the TMA member experience and to better align the association’s offerings with the needs of the membership.
The council was thinking that peer-to-peer ask was much more impactful than anything else,” Ms. Salazar said. A referral question was once part of the TMA application process, she added: How did you hear about TMA? Far and away, the most common response was a referral from a colleague.
“If a friend tells you that it’s a good idea, and a friend tells you how they benefitted from being a part of the association, folks are more likely to consider joining,” Ms. Salazar said. “We’re basically inviting physicians to tell their colleagues their story about how TMA has impacted them with their practice and why they participate.”
Current members can use the Find a Physician tool on TMA’s website to check whether a colleague is already a member. To refer a nonmember, current members simply log into their TMA profile and click the New Member Referral Program link. From there, they can copy their unique referral link and share it with the nonmember – by email or text only if the colleague has given consent.
For Dr. Rahman, that simplicity is the point.
Whether it’s the millennial generation or older, “they want something easy and simple. Use a link to join TMA, boom, that’s that,” Dr. Rahman said. “In the age of social media, people are trying to find simple ways. Here is the simplest way to sign up and become a member. And there’s value in becoming a member.”
Dr. Rahman belongs to multiple physician discussion groups whose members span a wide range of backgrounds. She is convinced active members eventually benefit from TMA’s collective strength and sees referrals as a way to broaden the table.
People feel their voices are not being heard. We have a very diverse group of physicians in Texas from all backgrounds. It’s really, really important to include them.”