opening a practice

horus2001 · Jul 9, 2008

you question does not make any sense. nurses can't practice medicine. doctors practice medicine. Usually, a group of doctors (who often have a very high income) will invest in a practice and hire staff (including nurses and others). it does not work the other way around. besides, have you ever priced the cost of insurance for a doctor, depending on the speciality, it can very high...you mentioned ob-gyn, you should see how much insurance costs for a gyno doc, there is a reason why many are leaving the practice.

no offence but a mba and 3.00 dollars will get you a cup of coffee and little else.

ohmeowzer RN, RN · Jul 10, 2008

you question does not make any sense. nurses can't practice medicine. doctors practice medicine. Usually, a group of doctors (who often have a very high income) will invest in a practice and hire staff (including nurses and others). it does not work the other way around. besides, have you ever priced the cost of insurance for a doctor, depending on the speciality, it can very high...you mentioned ob-gyn, you should see how much insurance costs for a gyno doc, there is a reason why many are leaving the practice.
no offence but a mba and 3.00 dollars will get you a cup of coffee and little else.[/quote
couldn't of said it better myself:yeah:

SharonH, RN · Jul 10, 2008

can a nurse open a practice like (obgyn, etc) with only a mba. if so what it be possible to just hire the doctor and the other help to get started.

Yes. You don't even need an MBA.

MQ Edna · Jul 10, 2008

I'm slightly confused. Can't one open their own practice if they are Nurse Practitioner either with a Masters or Doctorate (as in DNP)?

James Huffman · Jul 10, 2008

A nurse who wants to practice nursing can open a private business to offer nursing services.

I've been self-employed in nursing since 1982. Any nurse can do that. An NP certification isn't necessary. What is needed is a plan to practice within one's scope of practice.

A nurse could also open a medical clinic as an entrepreneur and hire physicians and whoever else is needed to run such a clinic.

I wish more nurses would go into business for themselves. It's a great thing. The one caution I'd give about opening a medical clinic is that such a business is not cheap to start up. I considered starting a walk-in emergency type medical clinic years ago, but realized I didn't have the $250,000 (then -- probably more now) I'd need just to get started. (The number came from a consultant I hired to see if it was feasible).

Nurses are always ready to imagine what they can't do. I'd like to see more nurses try to imagine what they can do.

Andrew, RN · Jul 10, 2008

You can practice NURSING. You can write meds, dx, and do "doctor stuff" if you are an advanced practice RN like a NP, CRNA, CRNS, etc.

horus2001 · Jul 10, 2008

well, anyone with capital can open a clinic and hire docs to work for them. i can't see much value in opening a clinic as a non-prescription writing nurse. You can't write orders, can't order tests, can't give meds, what exactly can you do? nursing diagnosis, how about "altered energy field" yeah, i can't see that kind of stuff being exactly what will help separate the customer from their cash...

seems like you would need an affiliation with a doc to get anything really done.

as far as writing scripts as an np, it depends on what state doesn't it?

any type of clinic will require a large amount of capital, and you are now competing with doc-in-boxes, minute-clinics at walmarts and CVS.

as far as nurses imagining what nurses can or can't do, i don't need to, my practice is spelled out by the BON. anyone can open a business, being a nurse is not a pre-req to success or failure for that matter.

J. Bailey, RN · Jul 10, 2008

Many Registered Nurses do not understand what they can and can't do. I believe this is why our profession is taking so long to come full circle.

We are licensed, just as a doctor. We have a different scope of practice though. If you want to hang your own shingle, more power to you. :)

Altra, BSN, RN · Jul 10, 2008

I am interpreting the OP's question differently than some other posters.

Anyone can start a business, in this case, a medical practice. Private practices are often limited corporations or partnerships, and there is no reason per se why the shareholders or partners need to be all physicians. A more typical scenario is that the business shareholders or partners are physicians, who then employ other staff including one or more persons to run the business. "Practice Manager" is a common job title for this function.

Nurses also operate their own practices, offering services such as diabetes education, home health services, childbirth education, etc. This is less common, and the kicker is that payment for these services, if not directly out of the client's pocket, is generally dependent on obtaining a written order from the client's own physician.

But it can be done. I do believe that a number of societal and financial trends will probably result in an increase in the availability of nursing services independent of physician-ordered treatment.

SharonH, RN · Jul 11, 2008

I am interpreting the OP's question differently than some other posters.
Anyone can start a business, in this case, a medical practice. Private practices are often limited corporations or partnerships, and there is no reason per se why the shareholders or partners need to be all physicians. A more typical scenario is that the business shareholders or partners are physicians, who then employ other staff including one or more persons to run the business. "Practice Manager" is a common job title for this function.
Nurses also operate their own practices, offering services such as diabetes education, home health services, childbirth education, etc. This is less common, and the kicker is that payment for these services, if not directly out of the client's pocket, is generally dependent on obtaining a written order from the client's own physician.
But it can be done. I do believe that a number of societal and financial trends will probably result in an increase in the availability of nursing services independent of physician-ordered treatment.

Exactly. You put it better than I could have.