What's in a Name?

Deciding your new practice’s name is an important task, and one you need to accomplish as one of your first practice start-up steps. I found the job surprisingly difficult. I’ve started two practices in my life and my first one was eponymous, with a “P.C.” tacked on the end. That was a big mistake Read more

Location, Location, Location

You’ve heard the real estate advice, about how the value of a property is most determined by its location. It’s true for medical and health care practices too! Probably more true than that other saying, “Build it and they will come!” which doesn’t always seem to work out. Finding the perfect office location might seem to be an obvious goal, but the goal is often elusive to new practices. Read more

Credentialing Your New Private Medical Practice

Getting credentialed is one of the time-consuming tasks at the start of a new medical practice. Although I have several friends who did the work themselves, I would highly encourage any doctor starting a new practice to outsource it to a credentialing expert. For each hospital, insurance company, or managed care company that you wish to be a provider, you will need to submit an application with all the supporting paperwork they ask for. This process can drag on and you will not be paid to see any patient for a particular health plan until you are credentialed and approved. Read more

Financing Your New Private Healthcare Practice

Financing the start-up of a new private practice is the biggest hurdle in the whole process, based on my own experience. If you are lucky enough to somehow have a pile of cash available before you start your private healthcare practice, you are golden. You will have less difficulty with almost every other challenge you will face in starting your practice. Maybe you’ve saved diligently and didn’t have to pay for medical school. Maybe you inherited your start-up capital. Perhaps your spouse works and can cover home expenses and healthcare insurance for you while you get going. I wasn’t that lucky. Read more

So You Want To Start Your Own Private Practice?

You’ve made the big decision to set out on your own and start your own private practice. Congratulations! It may be a scary proposition but many doctors and professionals have made that decision before you and had (and have) rewarding and fruitful careers. You will too. There’s nothing more satisfying than building your own practice that brings your skills and healing arts to your community and rewards you for the risk you take and the sweat equity you invest. You can temper your risk, and limit the amount of equity you have to invest at the start, by getting good advice from practice management experts and experienced doctors who have already built successful practices. You will find them here at PrivatePractice.MD! Read more

Sales Representatives Have A Tough Job Now

When I first started in private practice, sales reps, mostly pharmaceutical representatives, stopped by our office throughout the day. Sometimes I had to tell them I was too busy to hear about their company’s latest drug for some ailment, and most of the time the representative was respectful and polite about my request to come back another day. Read more

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