Starting Your Own Chiropractic Practice
6 January 2010
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After completing your four year chiropractic program and obtaining your license, the question that arises before you is whether to take employment with a hospital or a clinic, or to start your own independent practice. And if to start an independent practice, whether to buy an existing practice or to start from a scratch. Here are some guidelines to help you.
Advantages of Independent Practice
As against employment with an established institution, private practice has a number of advantages. As an independent practitioner, you work for yourself, make your own rules and decide your own working hours, treat as many patients as you like, make as much money as you can, experiment with your own methods, have a floor plan that is custom designed for you, install the equipment you want, and keep assistants of your choice. In fact, most chiropractors prefer to do independent practice rather than taking up salaried employment.
Problems in Independent Practice
Difficulties in setting up your own private practice should also be obvious to you. Acquiring premises at a convenient location, getting costly equipment, publicizing your clinic, all these may be daunting tasks in the beginning. Depending on the locality you choose, starting a new practice will cost you anywhere between $40,000 and $70,000 in any big U.S. city. Besides, you must be prepared for a minimum office overhead of $5,275 per month.
Once you establish your practice, you will be strained for time, seeing the patients, promoting your business and struggling to get time with your family. You will be tied to your practice as when you are not in your clinic, your income stops, but your overhead doesn’t. So, you will find it difficult to go on vacations, attend seminars, etc. Furthermore, you will also have to spend extra hours maintaining records and looking after administrative functions.
Buying a Practice
If you are not sure whether you can set up a successful practice from the scratch, or don’t want to put in so much effort, buying an existing practice, if available, can be a good option for you. This will help reduce your financial risks and achieve your goals quicker. However, you must carry out exhaustive research before doing so, and avoid buying a declining practice.
Will Business Classes be Useful
If you can acquire some business qualification, like M.B.A., along with your Doctor of Chiropractic degree, it will certainly be useful. However, it is not at all necessary. If you have confidence in your chiropractic abilities, knowledge of business and sufficient funds, you can certainly go ahead with your plans of setting up independent practice.
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