How to Start a Business
Opening a Diabetes Clinic
These tips are ideal for entrepreneurial folks who hope to start a diabetes clinic. Read this advice before you open up shop.
Wondering how to start a diabetes clinic? We take you step-by-step from start to success.
Diabetes in the U.S.
More than 25 million Americans (8.3%) are living with diabetes. But that's nothing compared to the 79 million Americans who are prediabetic, making diabetes one of the most prevalent and preventable health problems in the U.S.
Diabetes clinics provide health monitoring, insulin, dietary counseling and other services to diabetic and prediabetic patients. Like many branches of the healthcare system, diabetes care is increasingly being outsourced to specialists and medical entrepreneurs, creating opportunities for the establishment of new clinics to meet rising demand and patient loads.
Yet despite the potential for profitmaking in a diabetes clinic startup, the field has no tolerance for profiteers. In other words, your primary motivation for opening a diabetes clinic must be the care and well being of your patients -- not bottom line profits.
Startup Essentials for Diabetes Clinic Entrepreneurs
Since your clinic will be responsible for the health and welfare of countless diabetics, it's even more important to make sure your startup has covered all of the bases before you open for business. Here are just a few of the essential requirements you'll need to address.
- Licensing & Certification. Diabetes clinics need to be licensed and certified in accordance with state medical regulations and industry standards. The American Diabetes Association has a wealth of information about diabetes and clinic requirements, making it the first stop for would-be clinic owners and practitioners in the field.
- Medical Staffing. To run smoothly and safely, your diabetes clinics will need a variety of medical and non-medical professionals. Whether they are employed full-time or on a contract basis, plan on staffing your new clinic with one or more physicians, RN certified diabetes educators, registered dieticians, nurses and social workers.
- Billing. Accurate medical billing is important for both your accounts receivable department and your patients' peace of mind. Billing snafus can be stressful for patients and employees, so you'll need to either outsource billing to a reliable third-party or implement medical billing software capable of delivering near flawless billing and payment procedures.
- Facility Maintenance. Have you thought about who will be responsible for maintenance and janitorial functions in your clinic? If not, you'll need to decide whether to hire a maintenance professional or contract with an outside service to make sure your clinic complies with health codes and medical hygiene standards.
Best Diabetes Clinic Business Plans
As a startup small business owner, you need to have a business plan you can rely on for both external and internal purposes.
Although there are a lot of tasks screaming for your attention, cutting corners on your business plan can be a precursor to disaster. Why? Because there are a multitude of reasons why your company can't succeed without a sound business plan.
As a rule, don't exit the business planning process until you are completely satisfied with the scope and content of your business plan.
Check Out the Competition
Prior to launching a diabetes clinic in your town, it's a smart move to find out how strong the competition is. Try our link below to generate a list of competitors in your area. After following the link, enter your city, state and zip code to get a list of diabetes clinics in your area.
Gain a knowledge of how existing firms have positioned themselves in the marketplace, and then design your business in a way that sets you apart from the others.
Getting Advice from Experienced Entrepreneurs
As part of your due diligence on opening a diabetes clinic, it's a wise move to talk to somebody who is already in the business. If you think your local competitors will give you advice, you're being overoptimistic. It'd be crazy for them to teach you the business.
But, a person who owns a diabetes clinic on the other side of the country can be a great learning resource for you, provided that you won't be directly competing with them. In fact, they are often very willing to share startup advice with you. In my experience, you may have to call ten business owners in order to find one who is willing to share his wisdom with you.
Where can an aspiring entrepreneur like you find an owner of a diabetes clinic on the other side of the country to talk to?
Simply, try our helpful link below, type in a random city/state or zipcode, and start calling.
Advantages of Using a Business Broker
Business owners are decision makers. And the first decision you'll need to make is between a diabetes clinic startup and an acquisition. For diabetes clinic entrepreneurs, there are many reasons why a purchase is more logical than a startup.
A qualified business brokers can provide a range of services designed to ease your transition into business ownership.
The best business brokers will ensure that you get the right business for the right price, and will help you avoid common diabetes clinic acquisition mistakes.
Franchising May Be a Better Way to Go
Going with a franchise opportunity is not a recipe for certain success but it will ensure that you have the best possible chance of succeeding.
Prior to making the decision to open a diabetes clinic, it's worthwhile to check out whether purchasing a franchise might make sense for you.
The link below gives you access to our franchise directory so you can see if there's a franchise opportunity for you. You might even find something that points you in a completely different direction.
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