You have finished medical school, developed a solid reputation among your peers, and learned from the most respected plastic surgeons in the nation or perhaps the world. Now you are ready to open your own practice, and you feel confident that your experience and skills will attract a significant patient base. The reality is that reputation, experience, and education alone cannot guarantee that your practice will be successful.
Starting Your Practice?
Challenges for New Plastic Surgery Practices
New plastic surgery practices like yours face a competitive environment. Medical practices of all types are now betting on the popularity of minimally invasive and non-surgical treatments to grow their practices, even though plastic surgery is not their primary field. Consumers looking for the most “cost-effective” treatments are now shopping around for the best deals. As you know, however, cost does not always reflect quality of care.
Standing Out in a Crowded Market
Standing out in a crowded market can be the difference between surviving and thriving. Cost alone will not set you apart from other practices. In fact, competing on that level can be detrimental to your practice. To truly stand out, you must carefully craft a strategy to give patients the overall experience they want from their plastic surgery procedures. Do this, and you will have more than just patients – you will have loyal patients.
Avoiding “Pain Points”
“Pain points” are factors that motivate people to change. Your patients choose plastic surgery as a result of a “pain point” with their appearance, self-confidence, and other factors. Similarly, their “pain points” underlie their choice of plastic surgeon. As you begin your practice, what you must avoid are “pain points” that cause your patients to choose a different plastic surgeon. As part of your Launch Plan, the Vision Group shares key insights that help you avoid “pain points” that adversely affect your bottom line, including the following:
- New patient acquisition
- Interviewing, hiring, & training staff
- Payroll & staff compensation models
- Human Resources & operations (manuals to staff evaluations)
- New product purchases and service offerings
- Internal Sales Models
- Location selection & lease negotiation
- Marketing & Lead Management
- EMR & IT Solutions
- Patient flow
- ASC accreditation
- Whatever makes running your practice difficult!