Starting a physical therapy private practice is an exciting adventure for any budding entrepreneur who’s ready to tackle one of the most challenging yet rewarding career paths possible. And there are a lot of things to consider when opening a new private practice.
This article will outline everything you need to start a successful physical therapy practice. After all, this is your dream – don’t let the things you can control derail it.
1. Get your Business Plan Together
What’s your go-to-market strategy? How are you going to be different from the competition? What services will you offer? Will your business model be insurance-based, cash-based or a hybrid? Where will you be located? How many employees will you need? Understanding these points will help you develop the long term goals you want to achieve.
2. Develop Your Brand Identity
Sure, the logo is important, but it’s just one way to represent your brand. From your website to your videos to your brochures to your rack cards to your clothes – this marketing investment will solidify the professionalism of your brand. Find someone who can bring your vision to life.
3. Location Location Location
There’s a lot that goes into finding your ideal physical therapy startup location. Are you working with physical therapy-specific experts who can help you with location sourcing, lease negotiations and office space build out? Location, size and space are just some of the pre-open logistics to consider.
4. The Right Equipment for the Right Outcomes
Does your equipment help you stand out from the competition? Does it accommodate your private practice layout? Is it within budget? Are you harnessing the physical therapy technology your patients have come to expect from their PT? Invest in equipment that will deliver positive patient outcomes.
5. Create Proper Personnel Policies
The best athletes in the world have coaches and even the best physical therapy owners have mentors who they lean on to provide the right tools to hire and develop their staff. By setting up and measuring your management’s standard operating procedures and personnel expectations, you set your practice up for success.
6. Cultivate Your Owner Mindset
As physical therapy owners, we never stop learning. And while you may be up-to-date on your physical therapy training, don’t skimp on the leadership and executive training framework that empowers you to a successful structure for your people that provides the best overall patient experience.
7. Get Clinic Management Operations in Order
Overall, your patient experience will be handled by your team in-house. Too many new private practices fail to see what area is draining their team and keeping them from achieving their goals. Ensure your system of operations for things like billing and credentialing and compliance are optimized – and, if they aren’t – find a physical therapy-specific vendor to handle it for you.
Get Started Building the Physical Therapy Practice of Your Dreams
For nearly two decades, we’ve coached thousands of physical therapy owners into turning their practice into their dream job. But, in order to make it “dream-worthy”, startups need to eliminate the risks and responsibilities that can cripple the business and leave the owner working feverishly IN the business rather than ON the business.
Finding the right time to open a physical therapy practice starts with balancing your dreams with your limitations and then playing to your strengths while mitigating any weaknesses that can get in your way. Consider these common concerns of physical therapy owners as they step into the business world:
“I’m not sure what actions to take and in what order to take them.”
“I don’t want to make mistakes in the areas that I have limited to no experience in, such as getting funding, lease negotiations, credentialing and setting up billing processes.”
“I’m in need of coaching to keep me on task and on a timeline so that I don’t end up just treating patients all the time and other very important actions go overlooked.”
If you can relate – GREAT – that self awareness has already set you apart from a lot of your competition. The next step though is to identify the areas where you need help and outline the solutions to the physical therapy clinic limitations you have.
And don’t feel like you’re in this alone – we’re here to help! Check out these testimonials from physical therapy owners just like you.
Take it from Brian Gallagher, PT – the owner and founder of MEG Business Management: “In my 14 years of coaching, the most common mistake I see new and existing owners make is hesitating or waiting too long to start the learning and training processes on what they’re lacking – even though they know it’s vital to their success. I really hope you come on board and join thousands of owners who’ve found great value in the mentorship with the virtual training system we developed for today’s PT owner and staff.”
Get started with a free Physical Therapy Practice Startup Evaluation and let us do the heavy lifting for you. We’ll assess the different areas of your practice and offer solutions to any gaps we uncover.
