Opening your private therapy practice can feel like an exciting and daunting prospect. You may have a passion for helping others and a wealth of knowledge in your field, but running a successful private practice also requires skill in business operations. Unfortunately, many therapists make the same mistakes when it comes to managing the day-to-day aspects of their practice. Below are some common mistakes to avoid to ensure your private practice’s long-term success.
1. Lack of Financial Planning
One of therapists’ biggest mistakes is not having a clear financial plan for their practice. Even if you start your practice from home with a laptop, comfy chairs, and a webcam, there are a lot of startup costs you need to be ready for. From licensing fees to rent or internet, it adds up fast.
Many may assume that the money will start rolling in once they start seeing clients, but that isn’t always the case. It’s important to have a solid understanding of your expenses and revenue goals and how to manage cash flow. This includes understanding how insurance billing works, setting fees, accepting payments, and budgeting for expenses. Seeking the advice of a financial advisor or accountant can be helpful in navigating these complex areas.
2. Inadequate Marketing Strategy
Marketing is a critical aspect of building a successful private practice. However, many therapists make the mistake of assuming that word-of-mouth referrals will be enough to sustain and grow their practice. In today’s competitive market, it’s important to proactively create a strong online presence, including a professional website and social media accounts, and to develop a marketing strategy that targets both potential clients and referral sources. Consider investing in search engine optimization, networking events, or even advertising to build your brand and increase your visibility. If you do it right, it’s time and money well spent. This is especially important if you’re not planning to take insurance, as you lose a large referral network.
Not sure where to begin with online marketing? We wrote an in-depth eBook that’ll help you get started with online reputation management, content creation, and email marketing.
If you’d prefer to watch a webinar rather than read, you’re in luck! Our own Amber Murphy partnered with WebMD for a marketing 101 webinar.
3. Poor Time Management
As a mental and behavioral health provider, you likely have a number of responsibilities that extend beyond seeing clients. Running a private practice requires strong time management skills, as you’ll need to balance administrative work, marketing your practice, continuing your education, and managing your finances. Many therapists struggle with finding the time to handle all these responsibilities, leading to late payment of invoices or difficulty managing deadlines. Consider investing in management tools and software to help streamline your workflow and prioritize your tasks. If you find yourself drowning in work, consider hiring staff to help you balance your workload.
Mental and behavioral health providers can prevent discontinuation by actively listening, showing empathy, and respecting their clients’ cultural values and beliefs. Seeking ongoing education and training regarding cultural diversity can help mental health professionals improve their effectiveness and reduce potential biases. If you have staff, hiring people from different demographics who can speak different languages is worth hiring.
4. Neglecting Insurance Requirements
For many insurance companies to reimburse mental health services, providers must meet certain qualifications such as having their insurance credentialing, following billing guidelines, and tracking details on outcome measures. Neglecting these requirements can result in denied reimbursements or potential legal issues. So, it’s important to make sure you are licensed and have completed the necessary training, credentials, and know the guidelines for billing insurance.
Keep track of insurance payer policies and check them at least monthly to make sure you’re on top of it. If you’re planning on adding staff, start the credentialing process early! It can take between 90 to 150 days. That’s not a typo. The world of insurance can move very slowly, so you need to stay on top of deadlines to get anywhere.
5. Not Enough Focus on Professional Development
Providing mental health services requires continuous education to stay up-to-date with the latest research and developments in your field. However, many clinicians may not prioritize their own professional development, leading to a decline in service quality over time. Make sure to regularly participate in continuing education courses, attend conferences, read relevant research papers and articles, and connect with colleagues in the field to keep yourself updated on the field changes and improve your clinical knowledge.
Depending on how long you’ve been practicing, you may already have adapted to a few shifts in the industry. Right now, the big ones are value-based care, whole-person care, and integrated care. There’s also a renewed focus on making care more accessible. We don’t know what tomorrow will bring, but keeping an eye out can help you make sure your practice is keeping up with changes instead of getting left behind.
Providers should strive to offer flexible appointment options, including outside regular business hours, to accommodate diverse schedules. For example, if you find yourself with consistent no-shows at 9 am or have holes in your schedule, that may be time to schedule a break or finish up documentation. Furthermore, self-care practices and professional support are crucial for therapists to maintain their well-being, ensuring they remain effective and motivated in their roles.
6. Inefficiencies In Operations
Providing exceptional client care is crucial to building a successful practice. Yet, many therapists make the mistake of relying on outdated or inefficient methods of practice management systems. It’s important to invest in electronic health record software that streamlines data collection and client care. Using the right EHR can streamline your operations, cut down the time you spend on billing and documentation, and help you support clinical decisions.
As luck would have it, we also wrote an eBook on things you can do to streamline operations to see more clients.
Managing your operations is an ongoing, evolving process. As you learn and grow, you’ll stop making some mistakes – and begin making new ones. By auditing your efficiency and finding ways to improve your workflow, you’ll be able to save time and offer better client care. Using the right EHR is crucial to improving your operations. For example, a common mistake for new private practices is to get a cheap EHR that looks modern, only to realize it can’t handle your practice’s growth.
If you want to see how a new mental and behavioral health provider started and grew her practice using TheraNest, check out this case study. Ashley Williams needed to save time if she was going to grow her practice while providing counseling services, managing her business and handle administrative tasks.
As a mental health provider, the business aspects of running a private practice can be overwhelming, but avoiding these common mistakes can help achieve the outcome you desire. With the right balance of business acumen and clinical expertise, you can make your private practice thrive.
TheraNest knows that when you’re not caught up in administrative tasks, you’re changing lives. That’s why we developed software designed by and for therapists. We want to help you save time and easily manage your practice so you can provide the care your clients need. See what we can do for yourself with our free 21-day trial, no credit card required.
