Building a Private Practice Team Fit for Success
Building a Private Practice Team Fit for Success
Mental health practice owners who are looking to ensure they are implementing best practices need to remember that best practices do not always just come from policies and procedures implemented inside their practices. Indeed, practice owners would be wise to remember the adage, "It takes a village to raise a child”. To have a truly great practice that is ethically and legally compliant, practice owners need to be considering who their “team” is. While it is critically important to have the right people placed inside your practice, it is equally important that you are also considering who to have on your team that is outside your practice as well.
Who Do I Need on my Private Practice Team?
Private Practice owners should consider establishing relationships with individuals and entities outside of their practice who relate directly to the clinical services they provide. Practice owners should consider developing relationships and a well-rounded team of external contacts who can help ensure their business is following best practices. These contacts can and should include a:
Private Practice or Group Practice Consultant
Attorney
Accountant
Financial Planner
HR Specialist (for group practice owners)
The Benefits of Having Your Own Team of Professionals
What is the benefit of having an external “team” of people working for your practice? Because as much as you may know as a mental health practitioner, the truth is, there is a lot you don't know outside of your own field of study---and that’s ok! It is essential, though, that you be able to acknowledge this and find those outside of your practice who can assist you, who do know how to do the things you don’t know how to do. The reasons are fairly obvious: there is a real and legitimate risk of liability to your practice. Consider the following example. A pediatrician is a medical practitioner specializing in children and their diseases A pediatrician, without additional training, would not normally be qualified to perform brain surgery. Instead, the pediatrician treating a child who might need brain surgery would refer the child and their family to a surgeon who specializes in such surgeries. Continuing our example, would a pediatrician who owns their own practice likely handle their accounting? No, likely not---they’d hire an accountant.
In that same way, practitioners need to know what they do not know, in a sense---and be willing to admit it. Think of it another way: Unless you are a financial whiz, you need professionals to help you do your bookkeeping and accounting. Unless you are a specialist in human resources, why are you handling your own HR? You, as a practitioner, specialize in treating and providing clinical mental health services to your clients. You need a team of other people to help you with all the other aspects of running a business you may not know how to do.
Prepare Yourself for a Journey Toward Success
It is imperative that you do not fall into the trap of trying to do everything on your own. Owning a private practice may have been a life-long goal of yours, or an opportunity you never expected to undertake. It’s a journey, though, and attempting to embark on the journey by yourself is risky; it may result in liability for your practice, audits, complaints, legal issues, or financial and tax issues, among others. All of which can bankrupt a practice. Give yourself the support you need by creating your team. Give your practice the foundation of support from professionals that it needs to thrive and operate with compliance in mind.
Enjoyed What You Just Read?
Check out Episode #2 on “Building Your Team” to hear what else Melissa and Dan have to say on this topic.
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