Whilst this new 2021 has brought with it a whole host of changes for the United States, some problems from yesteryear remain–namely COVID-19. As a result of the deadly pandemic, businesses have had to close (some permanently), schools have had to send their pupils home and entire industries have had to be emptied of their workforce. Of those who are still fortunate enough to be in employment, most are now working from home. Those that have had to be let go from their jobs form another casualty of the coronavirus; one that will likely still have consequences long after the pandemic itself has been eradicated.
Rebuilding the workforce of the U.S. will be a difficult and arduous task that will require American society to look at the industries that are lacking, and attempt to bolster numbers. However, if you have been laid off from work but have a specialty in healthcare or administration, then you may be an exemption to the norm. In fact, even if you have always had an interest in working to help others in the healthcare industry — an employment sector that has been severely tested recently — then you can help by setting up your own private practice.
What is a private practice?
In recent years, the number of medical services that have been offered by private practices has grown. Private practice is when one, or a group of medical professionals work together but are not tied to a larger entity such as a hospital or clinic. Private practices may work within another larger medical environment but are an entity in and of themselves. As such, these healthcare professionals set their own remits and may even offer more specialist treatments that doctors and surgeons within the public medical care field ordinarily would.
If you are not a healthcare professional and don’t have a license for the practice of medicine, then you can still be a part of private practice in more of an administration role. Unlike in many other countries, healthcare in the United States is often paid for with medical or healthcare insurance coverage, Medicaid, and/or Medicare. Because of this, a number of doctors may find themselves in a need to have their practice ran like a business in order to ensure they have enough patients to make money. Though healthcare is primarily intended to save lives and improve the quality of life for patients, ultimately a practicing healthcare worker with an active license is going to need to make money to stay in the profession — especially if they have a particular specialty, which is where a good private practice manager comes in.
Taking care of your private practice staff.
Once you have made the decision to run a practice, you should find your staff. This should be easy —get a group of doctors with an active license together (and try to get ones who have a specialty in various fields). You should be able to operate within a hospital or rent your own space in time. Once you have done this, you will act as an advocate for them and help them build a good reputation for health care. That part, however, is down to how well they practice medicine.
Obviously, nobody wants anything to go wrong but failing to plan for any mishaps is a plan in failure. Potential claims should always be treated with accountability. Regardless of whether this is for an accusation of malpractice that is unrealistic or turns out to be completely bogus, having uninsured doctors is an absolute mistake waiting to happen. There are no exemptions to this — you must have insurance for your practice. MedPli would be a good start in finding the right coverage. They offer malpractice insurance to health care workers all over the United States in a fashion that is easy to understand, as well as being on-hand more often. They have plenty of helpful information on their website, broken into place-by-place comparisons (such as a list of malpractice insurance Florida-based offices), and do not sell any other type of insurance.
Offering a more varied range of treatments.
Another way the industry has adapted through COVID-19 is with the growing use of telehealthcare, also known as telemedicine. This is the provision of healthcare through telecommunications and looks to be a practice that will continue long after coronavirus, as it has been successful so far.
COVID-19 has caused significant problems for private practices, according to the AMA, so it might be worth looking to adapt your own practice to accommodate for COVID-19 too. Look into offering services like telehealth by default.
The patient experience, and why it matters.
At the end of the day, you will have patients attending your practice. A fundamental rule across all of business and healthcare is to make your services comfortable. Whether that is by softer sofas and chairs, or a fresh bottle of Labrador Source water readily available in the reception area, if the patient has a great experience, your practice will grow.