FIVE things Clinicians in Private Practice NEVER say!

I thought it would be fun to create a blog where I examine things Clinicians in private practice would never say. I am sure you can add to the list so feel free to add your comments below!

1. “I wish I had more evening clients”–In private practice, we all know evening appointments are the first to go! Our Clients have busy schedules and probably have 1, 2, or even 3 jobs. Finding time to fit in therapy can be difficult for many and probably serves as a major barrier to those seeking treatment. When first starting out, I saw clients up until 10pm. I did have requests for a 10:00pm time slot….

2. “Geez, I wish more people would use their insurance”– Insurance companies can be a pain in the ____! From setting aside time to do weekly claims, we must also have a system in place for tracking, following up on denials, deductibles, benefits, coinsurance, blah blah blah! Fee for Service Clinicians don’t have to deal with the hassle of insurance, but I suspect with the movement in healthcare reform, we are going to see many more people want to use those insurance benefits!

3. “I am bored”–Private Practice is so dynamic and we wear so many different hats, we are never bored. We can always fill in the gaps in our schedule with marketing, billing, practice management, etc. Our practices are in a constant state of development…or at least they should be!

4. “I miss doing all of that paperwork I did at my nonprofit job!”—If I ever heard ANYONE say this, I would probably pass out! Private Practice is such a shift for people who were bred in the nonprofit world. From 15 page assessments to 10 page treatment plans, we were trained to focus on the paperwork, rather than the clinical work. Our evaluations were based on timeliness of this paperwork rather than if our client decreased their symptoms. This shift is important and probably one of the driving forces for so many to branch out on their own.

5. “I hate my job”–As I talk about private practice being a shift from any other type of work you might have done in the past, this is probably the biggest shift; being a small business owner. You are in control of your vision of what your practice looks like and how cool is that? You are the driving force and it is a reflection of all your professional and educational experience rolled up into one successful business people go to when they need someone the most. I have heard of private practices failing for a number of reasons, but even when I speak to those people, I never hear “I hate my job!”