Why Doctors Are Going Private

Doctors and nurses across the world are leaving national hospitals to set up their own private clinics and services. But what’s the cause of all this? If you’re in a medical profession and have been thinking of making the move to private, here are a few reasons to get involved.

It’s worth big bucks

Private doctors have the freedom to set their own rates. There are considerably more overheads to consider such as premises costs, insurance, equipment, staff and outsourcing of legal and financial help just to name a few. These may require initial funding from lenders and investors. As business pick up however you’ll start to see the return.

Personalised service

As a private medical practice you get to personalise the way you carry out service treatment. You can buy the equipment you want – there are many sites such as foremostequipment.com that can allow you to do this. You may even be able to invest in other luxuries that you wouldn’t have in a standard hospital as a way of providing superior service.

Lower workload

National hospitals can often suffer from an excessive workload and high waiting times. They can be rewarding places to work – but ultimately stressful. Going private may allow you to bring the workload down to something more manageable that gives you sufficient time with each patient to meet their needs. You also have the option to say no in some cases, which you don’t have working for a national hospital. That said, it is important to not forget the added responsibilities of running a business when going private. This may work out more stressful if you aren’t delegating or outsourcing enough tasks to others.

Specialisation

Another major perk of going private is the ability to specialise. If you’re a lung surgeon with a big success rate and you feel that national hospitals are holding you back, starting up your own clinic might allow you to specialise more in what you’re good at. It could allow you to invest in better specialised equipment for the job. And as already discussed, you may be able to up your rates to what you think is suitable for the job that you’re performing.

The cons

Going private does have its pitfalls. You have to have a business mindset to succeed – all the admin that was once carried out by others around you is now your job on top of providing care. Getting a good attorney and an accountant is necessary. You’ll also have to hire staff, which will require additional paperwork in order to keep on top of HR laws, rotas and payrolls. Patients going private will also expect better service for paying more, which means you can’t skimp back in any areas. All in all, you need a solid business plan first. Going into a partnership with someone else could make the process easier. You may even find someone who’s willing to take control of the business side, whilst you focus on the medical side.