Expanding Your Practice and Your Net Worth
I have been conducting business as usual for the past 2 years and have found that through expansion an NP may increase the value of week-to-week profit, but not necessarily increase net worth.
In fact, I personally have found that owning my own practice but renting the office space limits net worth. I am growing in leaps and bounds, but at the end of the day, the practice is people. Do I really own the people in a practice? The practice name and establishment are worth something, but not nearly as much as they would be if owned the office location. I think of it as a long-term investment toward retirement. I don't know that I will really ever retire entirely, but I may feel the need to slow down in the future.
There is a lot of time and energy put into starting a new practice and establishing a clientele. I think that it is acceptable to think of the hard work put into your passion as a form of saving for retirement down the road, when you are ready. Another delight is that your work will continue on. At this point in my career I am a long way from retirement, however, one must think of the future for further business plans and investments to keep the dream alive.
I have added a few extra modalities in my practice including hypnotherapy and Reiki. So far the complementary therapies have been a hit. The schedules are filled and the patients are happy to have a choice in mainstream medicine as well as an alternative. I am also looking to hire a new NP who is family health certified but trained extensively in diabetes. This will add even more depth to my practice. Many people in my community cannot get into the endocrinologist for months, if even at all. This not only helps my practice grow, but fills a gap in the community.
I think the take-home message with this particular blog post is to rent if you must for only the time required, at least until you are established, but look down the road for future endeavors. Also, don't hesitate to add additional services to your practice. You can always feel out your patients to see what the general consensus is. If there is a need and an openness, then as always, the sky is the limit.