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What Stops Doctors From Opening Their Own Private Practice?
Oooo! Let me answer this one. As a doctor who is planning to open a private practice soon, I can answer your question in one word, money. Going to medical school is a huge financial burden. I owe about 200K to Uncle Sam and various loan companies. I have classmates that owe anywhere from 100K to 300K in loans! So you have no money and you want to start a business which is very capital intensive. In a traditional doctor’s office you need at least an office, a nurse and a receptionist. You need an exam room and some other equipment. You don’t get paid for months due to billing insurance companies that don’t want to pay you at all if they can help it, so you can expect to not make any money for months even when you do begin to see patients. This makes it much more attractive to accept a monthly paycheck from a hospital or an established practice.
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2 Responses to “What Stops Doctors From Opening Their Own Private Practice?”
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RootDoct said on Tuesday, July 28, 2009, 19:01
As someone who has seen numerous Doctors over the years, my impression is that there are many factors involved. These may vary from country to country. I’m not a resident of the US, so my response will differ from that of those before me.
The reasons could be that there are too many expenses involved; there are too many risks involved; the time before one begins getting returns on the investment is rather long; there is no safety net- if you mess up, you pay for it- in my country some hospitals bear the costs of litigation if the authorities feel that you are innocent. One is also insured from the variable inflow of patients- in a hospital you get paid the same regardless of whether you saw 10 patients or 30. Even during the “lean season” you are assured of income at par with what you usually earn, if not more.
honest analyst said on Tuesday, July 28, 2009, 22:18
Its usually a lot safer to stick with a job where you are at least guaranteed a pay especially in today’s economic situation. Also there is a very high risk of failure involved in opening up a private practice.