Interested in opening your own medical centre?

Q: Where do I start if I am interested in opening a Next Practice medical centre?

A: The best place to start is to complete an enquiry form and our team will be in touch to set up a call with you.

Q: What is the process to open a medical centre with Next Practice? How can I start a medical clinic?

A: Opening your own practice is a big decision. So, the first stage of working with us is to make sure opening a Next Practice is right for you. The key steps involved include:

1. An initial call to understand more about you and your interest in opening a Next Practice clinic.
2. Signing a Mutual Non-Disclosure Agreement. This is so we can share commercially sensitive information with each other.
3. Providing you with more detailed information about the services Next Practice provides to our Network Partners, and indicative costs to open a Next Practice clinic.
4. A visit to a Next Practice clinic in your state to see a Next Practice clinic and meet one of our Network Partners.
5. Arranging a demonstration of the Next Practice technology platform to see how our medical practice software revolutionises clinic operations and patient engagement.
6. Financial modelling to estimate the costs involved in setting up a medical practice and working capital requirements. This is so you have the right level of financing in place before proceeding.
7. Completing a simple business plan that includes demographic and competitive analysis of the suburb in which your clinic will be located, and developing the practitioner and service mix that will best suit your location.
8. Signing a Next Practice Licence Agreement, once you are comfortable with everything.
9. Commencement of the project, starting with finding a site for your new Next Practice clinic!

Q: How long does it take to start a medical practice?

A: There are many variables, with the type of property being the biggest factor. We have opened a clinic within 6 weeks of a Licence Agreement being signed and others up to 6 months. Different types of properties impact the timeframes, for example:

• If council approvals are required, we are at the mercy of the local council
• If a building is heritage listed, there will be various approvals needed that take time to prepare and resolve with the relevant bodies
• New developments, depending at what stage the lease is signed and the complexity of the project, are often delayed

As part of our property search process, we will discuss with you these considerations to make sure they are factored into the property search.

Q: Where can I open a Next Practice medical centre?

A: We are looking for doctors who want to open their own medical centre in Melbourne, Sydney, Brisbane, Canberra, Adelaide and Perth, however we are open to discussing potential locations anywhere in Australia that you believe deserve a Next Practice. Ideally your Next Practice medical centre will be located in an area that is familiar to you and where you have an established patient base. However, we do not want Next Practice clinics competing with each other for patients or practitioners. So as part of the process we will discuss these considerations in order to determine the best location for your future clinic.

Q: How does Next Practice help me when I first open my clinic?

A: We have an established New Clinic Opening plan that includes: recruitment, training, local area marketing, daily, then weekly calls/meetings to monitor progress and address any issues that arise. Our goal is to get your team bedded in as quickly as possible so we can focus on the growth of your clinic.

Q: How does Next Practice help me with Accreditation?

A: The Next Practice Manager App has streamlined Accreditation by providing:

1. A pre-populated AGPAL Self-Assessment Checklist with links to established policies
2. Access to an online policies manual
3. Templates and instructions for all remaining accreditation items such as the creation of registers, information sheets etc.
4. Example surveyor interview questions to help Patient Advocates, Nurses, Practice Owners and GPs prepare for their onsite surveyor interviews.

Our National Clinics Manager is available to coach the clinic team to complete the required steps in preparation for their onsite Surveyor assessment.

Q: How does Next Practice help me with recruitment of doctors and my support team?

A: We will assist by setting up templates and processes to make recruiting more streamlined. For example, setting up SEEK accounts with common advert templates, providing introductions to specialist recruiters, reaching out to the Next Practice network and creating LinkedIn search pools for common roles in cities where Next Practice clinics are located.

We know from experience a critical factor in the successful recruitment of doctors is the clinic owner. So, your role in establishing and maintaining your own network of potential doctors for your practice cannot be underestimated.

Q: How much does it cost to open a medical clinic?

A: Our business planning processes provide you with the comfort that the investment in your new clinic matches your financial capacity and minimizes any uncertainty about how much it will cost to build, fit out and establish. Complete an enquiry form to learn more about financial modelling for a new medical practice.