Four tips to get past the inevitable anxiety that comes with starting your own practice

I remember sitting in my basement in October 2021 and looking around thinking, “What am I doing? I can’t just start up my own practice from scratch.” Although I’d put a lot of thought into it, discussed it with my wife and truly believed I could do it, the pressures of opening a practice — finding malpractice coverage, choosing an EMR, untangling payroll and withholding taxes, building my own website and countless other tasks — had me doubting my decision.

Despite all of this, I put my doubts aside and opened my own practice in Westlake, Ohio. When December came, I was seeing patients and enjoying a level of professional satisfaction that I did not believe was possible. In this article, I will explain what helped me to ease my worries when opening my practice.

TRUSTED ADVISORS

If you are considering starting your own private practice, find advisors you trust and who are at the top of their game. This will be critical to protecting yourself and your business. My lawyer, medical advisors, marketing firm and my accountant were (and remain) key to making sure all the details were covered so that my new business was in line with rules and regulations. This “board of advisors” was quite costly but well worth it. You can find advisors by asking around and having honest, in-depth discussions with professionals you are considering. There is nothing wrong with beginning the conversation by saying that you are completely new to owning your own business.

ONLINE MARKETING/PRESENCE

When it comes to marketing your business, your website will go a long way. In the beginning, I launched a website, but my practice wasn’t showing up in searches. As chance would have it, a friend’s wife offered her marketing firm’s help and before I knew it, I was educated on the ins and outs of websites, including SEM, SEO and Google bidding. Lo and behold, the site’s visibility increased significantly.

Social media is also an incredibly important tool in marketing. This was a new concept to me having never engaged in social media personally or professionally. My administrator happens to double as a social media genius and, as a result, increased our reach in a manner that is much more affordable than the professional advertising route we use to augment our digital presence.

A LOW OVERHEAD

My model from its inception was low overhead. Overhead has always appeared to me to be a malignant neoplasm. Creative ways of capping overhead have been key to minimizing costs. For example, one major issue we encountered was finding the right workspace. To solve this, we modeled a ‘kiosk’ approach whereby we rented space from friends in the community (eg, ophthalmologists, optometrists and cosmetic practices) who had office space sitting dark certain days of the week. So, rental agreements were appealing as they could collect a check to support their offices on unutilized days (in compliance with Stark law, anti-kickback, and so on).

GREAT CUSTOMER SERVICE

Finally, I think the key to a successful practice is customer service. It may sound like a cliché, but word of mouth is how you build your practice. Hire the best people who will treat every patient like family and who will make your workday fulfilling and fun. Also, when looking for staff, ask them how they would manage a few different patient-care scenarios and ask yourself if you would be satisfied by their hypothetical solution(s).

CONCLUSION

When opening a practice, hire advisors you trust to protect yourself and your business. When it comes to marketing your business, your website and social media platforms will go a long way. Also, try to keep a low overhead, and hire the best people who will treat every patient like family and will make your workday fulfilling. OM

Bryan Costin, MD, currently practices in Westlake, Ohio. Dr. Costin graduated with Alpha Omega Alpha honors from Case Western Reserve University School of Medicine. He completed residency at Riverside Methodist Hospital and The Ohio State University Havener Eye Institute where he was elected ‘Resident of the Year’ during internship and chief resident in his last year. He then completed a two-year fellowship in oculofacial plastic surgery at Cleveland Clinic.