Starting Private Practice
Marcus Cope is
a Consultant Orthopaedic Surgeon working at Ramsay’s Renacres
Hospital, in Ormskirk, and also at Southport and Ormskirk District
General Hospital. Marcus has been practising as a Consultant in the
NHS for the last two years, since he returned to the UK from a
Fellowship in Australia to take his post up at Southport Hospital.
Here he shares some helpful hints.
“I was always advised as a trainee to concentrate on my NHS
practice for the first year before commencing private work. However
after just two months I met the staff at Renacres Hospital and I
decided to take the plunge earlier than I had originally planned.
This was largely due to the friendliness and support that Renacres
offered me as a new starter.
Consultants go into private practice for different reasons: some
are motivated by the extra income; others like the ability to have
a greater control over how their practice develops. In private
practice I like the fact that I can choose how many patients I see
and how long I have with individual patients, a luxury compared to
the NHS.
Since starting work at Renacres I have been exposed to the
business aspects of practice that I have never previously had to
deal with in my NHS career. Marketing, dealing with insurance
companies and the collection of bad debts are a few examples. It is
my good fortune that Ramsay staff have been there to hold my hand
and offer guidance all the way and always with a smile on their
faces! The help offered is flexible and is tailored to your
needs.
How your practice develops depends on the support of the staff
around you. Examples of this are the way that your secretary deals
with any problems that your patients may be experiencing. Patients
that are pleased with the treatment they have had will recommend
you, helping to grow your reputation. The appointment staff book
patients into clinics without gaps, allowing you to be more
efficient with the extra time that you devote to your private
practice. This enables you to concentrate on the clinical aspects,
which is what you have been trained to do.
Before you see your first private patients there are several
things to do. You must register with the hospital to gain admitting
rights. If you gain admitting rights to one Ramsay Hospital you
gain rights to them all. The next thing is to register with the
various health insurance companies, very important if you wish to
be paid! Once again, various Ramsay staff are there to support and
direct you during this initial entry into the world of private
practice.
Finally you will find that you are sitting nervously in a clinic
room waiting for your first private patient. Remember they may well
be nervous coming to see a specialist, one of the top men or women
in their field.
A last note of advice is never let private practice sour your
working relationships with your NHS colleagues, as you will be
working with them for many years and you never know when you will
need a favour.
Good luck!
Marcus Cope
Consultant Orthopaedic Surgeon