You've likely heard the well-worn quote from Jim Rohn, "you are the average of the five people you spend the most time with". If you're opening your first clinic, that saying definitely applies to your clinic associates and team management. Your clinic's reputation rests in the hands of your front desk staff and team members, so it's important to hire wisely.
But in addition to who you'll spend time with, where you'll spend time is also important to your clinic's success. The right multi-practitioner software and clinic space are important factors when it comes to opening and scaling your first clinic. If these decisions feel daunting, read on to learn from experts in team-based practice management who have been through it first-hand.
In this series, you'll find wisdom from practitioners who have already done the hard work of opening and growing a group practice.
📖 Part 1: Foundations — Privacy, Security & Funding
📖 Part 2: Software, Logistics & Team Management (you're here)
📖 Part 3: Marketing & Patient Retention
Choosing where to put your health clinic is another big decision. Here are some items to consider when creating a care destination that is patient-friendly and highly functional:
- Your facility should be designed to keep clients safe on multiple levels. The Center for Disease Control (CDC) offers tips and guidelines for patient safety, and the Medicare Learning Network (MLN) offers guidance on protecting clients' data.
You'll also want to consider the competitive saturation in the areas you're evaluating. Note that nearby competitive practices don't necessarily stop you from setting up shop. In fact, a cluster of similar clinics can signal that there's strong local demand for the services you offer, and that the area can support another quality provider. Back to our postpartum support example, this practitioner may want to be physically near the hospital, even if competitors are located there too, as proximity to the hospital makes it easier to hop over to support clients who have just given birth.
Instead of using several different siloed solutions to run your health clinic, investing in a single practice management software, designed for group practices, will simplify and streamline your operations as you scale. Dr. Jaime de Melo agrees.
"We wanted to keep our software stack to a minimum. We found that using multiple platforms actually decreased efficiency."
Jaime de Melo, BSc, ND
What are the benefits of a team-based practice management software? Here's a high-level view:
"Maintaining efficiency and secure medical records via our computer systems is an invaluable necessity."
Melissa Parker, CNS
The right group practice EHR platform can speed up your work, while too many platforms or overly complicated systems can slow you down. It might take some trial and error to land on the right solution, but keep at it. Your team will thank you and your schedule will lighten.
Your practice management software should offer online booking, automated reminders, and the ability to manage multiple practitioner's schedules without requiring a massive time commitment.
Dr. Jaime de Melo wanted his practice management software to make it easier for clients to interact with his clinic. "One of our goals was to streamline the onboarding process to make it very easy for patients to sign up for our service, book visits, and start the intake process," he says. "We wanted folks to be able to book appointments from anywhere, anytime. Practice Better's automation tools and packages feature really helped with this."
Integrated billing and invoicing, including secure payment processing, makes it easier to get paid no matter what that looks like:
If you're currently running a solo practice but have your sights set on building a team, it's worth thinking about your software setup sooner rather than later. Not all practice management tools are built to scale, and migrating to a new platform mid-growth is a headache you'd rather avoid. Features like shared calendars, practitioner-level permissions, and centralized billing matter more than you might expect once a second practitioner enters the picture. Practice Better's Teams Plan is designed to grow with you from the start.
When opening a health clinic, prioritizing team collaboration and communication will be the your business running smoothly. To help with that, your practice management software should allow visibility across both teams and functions.
Dr. de Melo's group practice offers nurse practitioner and health coaching services, which have very different frequencies of care. As a result, he invested a lot of time in working out the team structure.
"Nurse practitioner visits are important for ordering and reviewing lab tests, as well as prescribing medication and providing care oversight. Health coaching care is incredibly powerful at helping to facilitate behavior change,"
Jaime de Melo, BSc, ND
"We needed to create a standard model for how often patients would receive care from nurse practitioners and health coaches for their subscription price, but also maintain some flexibility to book extra visits. Having a subscription package with different types of practitioners is something we do differently from a solo practice." says de Melo.
Job postings are one way to recruit staff to your clinic, but don't forget about other channels at your disposal:
It's about more than just hiring people with the right qualifications. You want the professionals in your group practice to align with your approach and values.
Melissa Parker also suggests training your team members thoroughly on your processes and systems, "Do your research, make sure that everyone in the practice is in agreement and properly trained on all systems, and update systems regularly," says Parker. "Also, make sure you communicate with your team openly on a regular basis."
What should I look for when choosing a location for my health clinic?
Key factors include local zoning laws, accessibility for clients with mobility needs, parking, public transit access, and the number and size of treatment rooms your practitioners will need. Being near complementary services, like a hospital, can be a strategic advantage, even if competitors are nearby.
What are the benefits of using a single practice management platform for a group clinic?
A unified platform means your team isn't re-entering thesame information across multiple systems. It simplifies staff training, keeps client health records secure in one EHR, and makes it easier to manage scheduling and billing across multiple practitioners. Using several siloed tools tends to decrease efficiency as your team grows.
When should a solo practitioner start thinking about team-ready software?
As early as possible. Migrating platforms mid-growth is disruptive. If you have plans to bring on a second practitioner, it's worth evaluating whether your current software supports shared calendars, practitioner-level permissions, and centralized billing before you need them.
How do you build a strong team culture in a multi-practitioner clinic?
Beyond hiring for qualifications, look for candidates who align with your values and demonstrate soft skills like communication and empathy. Define roles clearly from the start, keep communication open in both directions, and ensure everyone is thoroughly trained on your systems and processes.
Your communication skills honed through your clinical work can make you a terrific manager. And when you pair strong leadership with the right software and the right space, you're well on your way to building a sustainable, thriving practice.
If you're running a multi-practitioner clinic, or planning to, your software should work as hard as you do. Practice Better's Teams Plan gives your whole practice one place to work, with shared scheduling, managed billing, and client files across every practitioner.
Want more clinic set-up strategies? The next post in this series outlines how to market to your clinic's future patients and how to keep them fans for life.
You've likely heard the well-worn quote from Jim Rohn, "you are the average of the five people you spend the most time with". If you're opening your first clinic, that saying definitely applies to your clinic associates and team management. Your clinic's reputation rests in the hands of your front desk staff and team members, so it's important to hire wisely.
But in addition to who you'll spend time with, where you'll spend time is also important to your clinic's success. The right multi-practitioner software and clinic space are important factors when it comes to opening and scaling your first clinic. If these decisions feel daunting, read on to learn from experts in team-based practice management who have been through it first-hand.
In this series, you'll find wisdom from practitioners who have already done the hard work of opening and growing a group practice.
📖 Part 1: Foundations — Privacy, Security & Funding
📖 Part 2: Software, Logistics & Team Management (you're here)
📖 Part 3: Marketing & Patient Retention
Choosing where to put your health clinic is another big decision. Here are some items to consider when creating a care destination that is patient-friendly and highly functional:
- Your facility should be designed to keep clients safe on multiple levels. The Center for Disease Control (CDC) offers tips and guidelines for patient safety, and the Medicare Learning Network (MLN) offers guidance on protecting clients' data.
You'll also want to consider the competitive saturation in the areas you're evaluating. Note that nearby competitive practices don't necessarily stop you from setting up shop. In fact, a cluster of similar clinics can signal that there's strong local demand for the services you offer, and that the area can support another quality provider. Back to our postpartum support example, this practitioner may want to be physically near the hospital, even if competitors are located there too, as proximity to the hospital makes it easier to hop over to support clients who have just given birth.
Instead of using several different siloed solutions to run your health clinic, investing in a single practice management software, designed for group practices, will simplify and streamline your operations as you scale. Dr. Jaime de Melo agrees.
"We wanted to keep our software stack to a minimum. We found that using multiple platforms actually decreased efficiency."
Jaime de Melo, BSc, ND
What are the benefits of a team-based practice management software? Here's a high-level view:
"Maintaining efficiency and secure medical records via our computer systems is an invaluable necessity."
Melissa Parker, CNS
The right group practice EHR platform can speed up your work, while too many platforms or overly complicated systems can slow you down. It might take some trial and error to land on the right solution, but keep at it. Your team will thank you and your schedule will lighten.
Your practice management software should offer online booking, automated reminders, and the ability to manage multiple practitioner's schedules without requiring a massive time commitment.
Dr. Jaime de Melo wanted his practice management software to make it easier for clients to interact with his clinic. "One of our goals was to streamline the onboarding process to make it very easy for patients to sign up for our service, book visits, and start the intake process," he says. "We wanted folks to be able to book appointments from anywhere, anytime. Practice Better's automation tools and packages feature really helped with this."
Integrated billing and invoicing, including secure payment processing, makes it easier to get paid no matter what that looks like:
If you're currently running a solo practice but have your sights set on building a team, it's worth thinking about your software setup sooner rather than later. Not all practice management tools are built to scale, and migrating to a new platform mid-growth is a headache you'd rather avoid. Features like shared calendars, practitioner-level permissions, and centralized billing matter more than you might expect once a second practitioner enters the picture. Practice Better's Teams Plan is designed to grow with you from the start.
When opening a health clinic, prioritizing team collaboration and communication will be the your business running smoothly. To help with that, your practice management software should allow visibility across both teams and functions.
Dr. de Melo's group practice offers nurse practitioner and health coaching services, which have very different frequencies of care. As a result, he invested a lot of time in working out the team structure.
"Nurse practitioner visits are important for ordering and reviewing lab tests, as well as prescribing medication and providing care oversight. Health coaching care is incredibly powerful at helping to facilitate behavior change,"
Jaime de Melo, BSc, ND
"We needed to create a standard model for how often patients would receive care from nurse practitioners and health coaches for their subscription price, but also maintain some flexibility to book extra visits. Having a subscription package with different types of practitioners is something we do differently from a solo practice." says de Melo.
Job postings are one way to recruit staff to your clinic, but don't forget about other channels at your disposal:
It's about more than just hiring people with the right qualifications. You want the professionals in your group practice to align with your approach and values.
Melissa Parker also suggests training your team members thoroughly on your processes and systems, "Do your research, make sure that everyone in the practice is in agreement and properly trained on all systems, and update systems regularly," says Parker. "Also, make sure you communicate with your team openly on a regular basis."
What should I look for when choosing a location for my health clinic?
Key factors include local zoning laws, accessibility for clients with mobility needs, parking, public transit access, and the number and size of treatment rooms your practitioners will need. Being near complementary services, like a hospital, can be a strategic advantage, even if competitors are nearby.
What are the benefits of using a single practice management platform for a group clinic?
A unified platform means your team isn't re-entering thesame information across multiple systems. It simplifies staff training, keeps client health records secure in one EHR, and makes it easier to manage scheduling and billing across multiple practitioners. Using several siloed tools tends to decrease efficiency as your team grows.
When should a solo practitioner start thinking about team-ready software?
As early as possible. Migrating platforms mid-growth is disruptive. If you have plans to bring on a second practitioner, it's worth evaluating whether your current software supports shared calendars, practitioner-level permissions, and centralized billing before you need them.
How do you build a strong team culture in a multi-practitioner clinic?
Beyond hiring for qualifications, look for candidates who align with your values and demonstrate soft skills like communication and empathy. Define roles clearly from the start, keep communication open in both directions, and ensure everyone is thoroughly trained on your systems and processes.
Your communication skills honed through your clinical work can make you a terrific manager. And when you pair strong leadership with the right software and the right space, you're well on your way to building a sustainable, thriving practice.
If you're running a multi-practitioner clinic, or planning to, your software should work as hard as you do. Practice Better's Teams Plan gives your whole practice one place to work, with shared scheduling, managed billing, and client files across every practitioner.
Want more clinic set-up strategies? The next post in this series outlines how to market to your clinic's future patients and how to keep them fans for life.
