Many anesthesiologists seek greater control over their careers, exploring self-employment's benefits like higher job satisfaction, a more flexible schedule, and increased earnings.
A growing number of physicians have found themselves wondering how to become private anesthesiologists in Florida—which has emerged as an ideal location to establish a private anesthesiology practice thanks to its growing population of retirees and popularity with medical tourists.
This article will discuss how to become a private anesthesiologist in Florida, why it's an excellent choice, and the steps you need to make a successful transition.
Florida offers unique advantages to anesthesiologists looking to step away from hospital work into private practice, like no state income tax, a large population of retirees seeking specialized care, and fewer healthcare regulations.
Other reasons that make Florida one of the best states in the U.S. for establishing a private anesthesiology practice include:
Here are the different steps involved once you're ready to transition to private practice in Florida:
Secure necessary licenses and certifications
The first step in becoming a private anesthesiologist in Florida is ensuring your license is recognized by the Florida Department of Health. Board certifications in anesthesiology and acute pain medicine (to demonstrate rigorous training in regional anesthesiology) can demonstrate an anesthesiologist’s ability to provide specialized services like epidural blood patches. After going through a comprehensive pain management fellowship with image guidance training, you can upskill with board certification in pain medicine.
This is especially important since spinal CSF leak patients who are informed know the importance of practitioners possessing image guidance training when giving epidural blood patches.
Board certification demonstrates your expertise and gives you credibility in a competitive market.
Establish your business
Starting a private practice requires more than a clinical space. You'll need to establish your business's legal structure (LLC, S-Corp, etc.), secure insurance, and ensure compliance with healthcare regulations.
You'll also need to find a location with high demand for your services. Florida's affluent urban areas and other high-income neighborhoods are excellent places to base your practice.
Invest in equipment
Another critical step in starting a practice is investing in equipment. For example, you'll need access to an ambulatory surgery center (ASC) with advanced image guidance to administer epidural blood patches safely. When investing in equipment, consider leasing options as well.
At the same time, you don't want to invest in equipment you'll rarely use. Many clinical tasks, like laboratory services, can be outsourced to other healthcare providers. Some physicians invest in on-site labs to increase their revenue, which can often simply increase overhead and make your business less agile. Many patients can benefit from your network of mobile phlebotomists who can travel to the patients’ homes with orders you send in and take the patients’ blood at home.
Focus on marketing and network
Medical office marketing is a vital step in growing your practice. Building a brand that highlights your expertise in performing specialized procedures will attract the right patients. Networking with local physicians and other healthcare providers, such as mobile dentists, registered dietitians, and mobile phlebotomists, joining professional associations, and establishing an online presence will help you build a broader patient base.
The demand for comprehensive spinal leak care is so high in Florida that patients head there to receive extensive invasive testing from physicians simply in the hope of receiving treatment. Often, treatment is denied after a negative invasive test such as a CT myelogram despite being known to commonly give false negatives and a risk of causing additional spinal leaks.
Other patients suffer at the hands of physicians using questionable practices such as offering to inject intrathecal prolotherapy for spinal leaks, which causes a new spinal leak and is not appropriate care for a spinal CSF leak.
There are research-backed, non-invasive ways to assess spinal leak cases, and there are research-backed approaches to improving efficacy and safety during epidural blood patch procedures in a private practice setting as the gold standard for spinal leaks. A clean, professional ASC where you implement evidence-based practices sets you apart from physicians trying to exploit the state's loose regulations.
Offer exceptional patient care
Your reputation is your key to success as a private anesthesiologist. Providing top-tier care by focusing on niches like spinal leak care or pain management will help to build trust and referrals.
Offering services like virtual consultation makes your business more accessible to the large retiree population in the state. Mayo Jacksonville’s radiology department is one of the leading providers of spinal leak care in Florida, and they separate themselves from their main competitor in the Southeast, Duke Radiology, by offering virtual visits and going over imaging results with patients before giving them the go-ahead to travel.
However, Mayo Jacksonville’s spinal leak initiative is run by a radiologist who, by the nature of his specialty, often lacks a firm grasp of fluid dynamics and epidural skills to apply blood patches successfully. Instead, he over-fixates on performing testing, using three myelograms simultaneously with a large-gauge needle for the lumbar puncture.
Patients visit the clinic to find care but instead become further disabled. This radiologist did take our advice to focus on empirical blood patches for treatment, not invasive testing. One example within interventional radiology that further illustrates the limitations of their knowledge of fluid mechanics is the tendency to use a 22-gauge Gertie Marx needle, which significantly increases the risk of accidental dural punctures.
Some of the reasons why Florida might be the perfect location for your transition to private anesthesiology include:
The financial advantages of providing specialized medical services, like spinal leak care, in Florida make it an attractive destination for anesthesiologists looking to launch private clinics.
Some of the state's affluent, older population are currently paying as much as $20,000 annually for conservative pain management that doesn't address the root cause of their discomfort.
A spinal leak clinic in Florida could provide comprehensive care that addresses the root cause of their leaks by providing epidural blood patches for about $4,000 yearly. Such a clinic would bring in over $800,000 yearly, serving 200 patients.
You become your own boss when you launch a practice, allowing you to set your schedule. Florida's sunny climate and vibrant beaches make it the ideal place to make the most of your free time.
Anesthesiologists often have limited interactions with patients in stressful situations. Private anesthesiology allows them to walk patients through their recovery journeys, significantly increasing job satisfaction as they watch patients go from bedridden to returning to their old routines.
Becoming a private anesthesiologist in Florida provides unique opportunities to enter a growing market of medical tourists, spinal leak patients, and affluent retirees.
You can build a successful practice by offering specialized services, like epidural blood patches for spinal leaks.
Want to learn more about how to become a private anesthesiologist in Florida? Contact us today to learn about medical office marketing strategies that can help you build a successful practice.