Hospital vs Private Practice – A Shifting Trend for Physicians?
The battle between hospital vs private practice continues as more and more physicians are considering shifting toward independence.
We have been seeing a notable shift from healthcare workers toward large hospital providers, but many physicians predict that this is only a temporary trend especially amongst younger physicians and surgeons.
These mavericks in healthcare often find themselves frustrated and hindered by the systems in larger organizations, leaving them to wonder what other opportunities are available for their ambitious, entrepreneurial aspirations.
Physician Benefits
One primary reason in the hospital vs private practice fight is physician benefits. Just as it is in many other fields, networking will be key for physicians to continue to advance and flourish professionally in the upcoming years.
As physicians make decisions for the benefit of their own career, they will have higher expectations from prospective employers.
Partnership and mentoring, competitive compensation, autonomy – these are just a few of the benefits private practices can and should leverage to win over professionals looking to explore new paths.
But the adaptations made to attract new physicians can come at a great cost.
Healthcare becomes more expensive by the day; therefore, providing benefits, salaries, etc. will require the practice to pressure their employees to not just meet bottom line financials but breakthrough and profit at higher rates continuously.
This can easily endanger their once sought out benefits due to physicians feeling as if they’re once again in the uncomfortable work environments they were fleeing in the first place. It will be a challenging balancing act, but one that private practices will master once an equilibrium of efficiency, financial prosperity, and welfare are found using the right practice management model.
Impact on Patients
The autonomy provided by private practice enables another great benefit: flexibility. Not only does this benefit the physician but it is also increasingly becoming a vital factor in delivering quality care.
These two factors (autonomy and flexibility) provided by the environment of a private practice enables professionals to focus and personalize the experience of each patient, strengthening the physician-patient relationship.
Setting optimal office hours and scheduling for sufficient time with patients subsequently provide a personal work-life balance that empowers physicians and their teams to deliver the best care possible.
The digitalization of healthcare will contribute to their success in doing so, and will bring patients even closer to their providers. Technology will also do away with the substantial gap when comparing the resources available to hospitals in comparison to private practices.
And overall, the digital connectivity between general and specialized providers will make the patient-provider experience seamless, effective, and fruitful.
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