Can I Start A Cash-Based Physical Therapy Practice?
Updated: Oct 19, 2021
What do you even need to get started? How do I know if I can?
I go over my Pre-Check Checklist in this video. The good news -- if you meet the criteria below, you CAN start your own practice.
"I don't even know where to start..."
Does that sound familiar? It does to me.
I know when I was first planning to start my own practice in 2019, I kept thinking this over and over again. I kept looking for the exact checklist of everything I needed in order to start treating Crossfit athletes out of my local gym, cash only. I wanted to make sure that I had everything in place and just right, so I was doing it all by the book.
And I wanted to take a second to talk about something that I think I tend to gloss over as a coach, because I want to get right down to the nitty-gritty too — my Pre-Check Checklist.
When it comes to starting your own practice, how do you even know that you can? That it's an option? And what do you need to even be ready for the Big Checklist of How To Get Started?
Here are the main pieces:
Your clinical degree and license — often overlooked! In order to start practicing as a healthcare provider, we need these two things. That being said, if you're still in school or studying for your licensing exam, you can still work on getting your business established and start marketing yourself! Then plan to take patients as soon as you're licensed :)
Computer & internet — for documentation, marketing, organization, and communication of course.
~$500-$1,000 in startup money — obviously depends on tons of different factors, how you want to set things up, and what you plan to invest in, but I suggest planning on at least $500 to set your business entity up with your state/locality. Check out the video above where I talk about a few different aspects!
Motivation — obvious, but also overlooked. You can want to have your own practice, but if you don't have the motivation to do it and the drive pushing you, you won't get very far.
Resourcefulness — being willing to problem solve, take initiative, and execute will get you where you want to go. This applies throughout all phases of starting and growing a business — if you aren't willing to try to figure things out (including finding patients), it's going to be slow going.
Feel like you have these things on lock? Great! Now you're ready for Big Checklist of How To Get Started — you can find it inside my free ebook, So You Want To Start a Solo Practice.
Bonus tips:
Check your state practice act for any language regarding starting your own practice
Check your direct access laws to see when and how you're allowed to treat patients directly (many states have unlimited direct access & you can start seeing a patient directly today!)
Are you a practice owner? What else do you feel like needs to go on this Pre-Check Checklist? Leave a comment down below along with any questions.
