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Perspective on a Large Private Practice - Private practice skill

Practice ownership and growth

CHANNEL: Business Savvy Physician

Summary for practice owners

OB-GYN Misty Wayman reflects on working in a large independent group and explains why that structure suited her better than a solo practice or hospital employment. A group can preserve some independence while making call coverage and time away more manageable. Her account also highlights the value of choosing partners based on reputation, working style and personal compatibility. The practice’s physicians make a point of spending time together outside work so they can maintain trust when decisions become difficult.

The group model brings its own management work. Six physicians may have different opinions about staffing and operations, alongside patient care, so communication and shared decision making matter. Knowing each other’s styles helps with patient assignment and gives colleagues a way to coordinate care across the group. Recruitment has been tied to succession, with new physicians joining through buy-ins as existing doctors retire. That approach can support continuity, though it depends on having a suitable candidate and a practice that can absorb them.

Wayman also discusses market pressure, including hospital groups seeking to retain referrals, and the need to keep marketing current as patient habits change. She describes trying to keep schedules workable while recognizing that not every delay is under the practice’s control. Her perspective gives owners several management areas to examine: call coverage, partner fit, governance, recruitment, referral relationships and patient flow. It is especially relevant to physicians deciding whether to join an established group, because it explains both the support a group can provide and the effort needed to make a multi-owner practice function well.

Owner takeaways

1:39 Private practice versus hospital work depends heavily on the kind of working environment that suits the physician.
2:46 Wayman chose her group partly for the reputation and personalities of the people she would work with.
3:56 Partners need deliberate ways to communicate and work through differing opinions.
6:09 Buy-ins connected to retirements can provide a route for new physicians to enter an established group.
10:35 Marketing needs to change as patient habits and referral patterns change.

Why it made the list

A practicing OB-GYN explains the mechanics of a larger independent group, including call coverage, partner fit and succession. It has 1,273 views.

Next steps

Check how ready your practice is for a transition with the exit readiness score. If your practice website needs work, see our website plans.

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This video is published by Business Savvy Physician on YouTube. Obstetricians.com is not affiliated with the creator, and inclusion is not an endorsement by either party. Watch it on YouTube.