How to Start Up a Pain Clinic

Pain clinics are an important part of the health care system and provide an invaluable service to all those in need of pain management. Opening a pain clinic can be accomplished by all those who wish to be part of the health care industry.

Instructions

• 1

  Secure financing. Both start-up money and long-term financial planning should be considered before opening a clinic. Find out what Medicare, Medicaid, and insurance companies will approve or disapprove. You will need enough money for location, equipment and supplies, salaries, and other business expenses.

• 2

  Find a location. Select a place that has enough space for individual treatment rooms, a front desk, a waiting room, office space for a physician and other specialists, an equipment storage area, medical records storage area, restrooms, and an employee break area. Some locations may need to be divided into individual spaces for the desired layout and others may not.

• 3

  Hire staff. Begin placing ads in local papers or online to find the ideal staff prior to the clinic's opening. Nurse practitioners can be valuable assets to a pain clinic. They can provide assistance with diagnostic and surgical procedures performed in the office, triage patients when needed, and answer medical questions. Specialists in psychiatry or psychology are recommended for a pain clinic to provide counseling and support for those patients suffering with pain on a regular basis. Health care providers who specialize in anesthesiology, neurology, pharmacology, and physical therapy should also be available at a pain clinic in order to provide the best possible care for all patients who seek treatment at the clinic. Medical billing specialists are an important part of a pain clinic and can ensure that bills are sent out and payments are received so that the clinic can operate and provide services to patients. Hiring the staff and bringing them into the clinic prior to opening allows the staff to become familiar with the clinic and gives the opportunity for a review of the standards, general office operations, and the policies and procedures beforehand. Discuss everything, from how to greet patients to handling problem situations. The clinic will have a smoother opening and greater success if all employees know their positions, job duties or description, and responsibilities prior to opening the door.

• 4

  Get equipment and supplies. Order the amount of supplies necessary to provide high-quality treatment to patients plus extra in the event of unplanned situations, such as an unscheduled patient who needs to be seen, should they occur. When the clinic is first started, equipment and supply amounts may need to be estimated. Determine what services will be offered in the clinic and what supplies are necessary to provide the services for each patient. Consider everything you will need, from machinery to paper towels, soap, medications, bandage supplies, test equipment, linen, chairs, exam tables, a filing system, computer system, phone system, patient gowns, pens, paper, magazines, etc. Making a list of desired equipment and supplies may be done while designing the layout of the clinic in order to determine what is needed and where it is needed. For example, determine where the individual treatments rooms will be located and make a list of each item that is needed in every room.

• 5

  Set up policies, procedures, and billing. Pain is a very difficult thing to deal with. It may be necessary to create a policy and procedure manual or plan that has rules and consequences to help when dealing with more difficult patients. For example, agreements may be used with patients stating how and when medication should be used for treating pain and what consequences will occur if the patient misuses the prescribed medication. Decide whether you should hire your own billing specialists or hire an outside company. If you decide on in-house billing, make sure there is office space for them.

• 6

  Market the clinic. Place ads in the yellow pages, newspapers, television, and the radio. Discuss the pain clinic with physicians, therapists, and other medical professionals who can recommend the clinic to their patients who may benefit from the services offered at the clinic. Fliers can be made and mailed to residents in the area where the clinic is located. Nursing homes, rehabilitation centers, hospitals, doctor offices, therapy offices, and pharmacies are also wonderful places to display fliers so that patients who need the services offered at the clinic will be able to see them . An open house at the clinic for the public is a great way to introduce the clinic, meet potential patients and discuss available services, treatments, procedures and options that will be made available to patients of the clinic.