Welcome to the Planning for Practice Success Newsletter

January 8, 2007
ISSN 1934-3248

QUOTE: To give real service you must add something which cannot be bought or measured with money, and that is sincerity and integrity. -- Donald A. Adams

In this issue:

A present for you
What's New:
Tips: Deductions for use of autos
Leasing Tip: Expert advice on small office improvements for maximum effect

First, my New Years present for you.  I enjoy creating inspirational pieces to print out and look at for motivation.  This is my current one, and I wanted to share it with you.  Just go to the website http://www.dcpracticesuccess.com/commitment.html to download and print out. Have a happy and successful 2007!

Financial Tip: Deductions for use of cars Every so often when I'm speaking to groups, someone in the audience asks, 'I hear I can paint my practice name and phone number on my car and then I can deduct it.  Is that true?'
Well, the answer to this is 'yes' and 'no.' Yes, If you paint your practice name and phone number on your car, you can deduct the cost of the paint as an advertising expense.  But, No, you can deduct the cost of the car and auto expenses for the time it is being used for travel or transportation to and from your work location.  Here is the general rule:  If you are driving back and forth from home to work, you can not deduct the use of the car.  If you are driving somewhere from your office to another location for work purposes (going to the bank, to a seminar or to another office you own), you can deduct the auto expenses.  The key is to keep very specific and accurate records, then let your tax preparer figure out the deduction.

Leasing Tips: Let's say you have an office space you are considering for your practice, but you aren't sure if this is the right location, or how much build-out is really necessary.  Here are some considerations:

* One tenet of office layout is to minimize walking time, because no work gets done when you're walking from room to room.  Freeing up 15 or 20 seconds between patient encounters, particularly in a higher volume practice, can enable you to see more patients each day.
* Force the patient to walk by the front desk on the way out, so the front desk staff can discuss payment methods.
* To determine the size of your reception area, first determine the number of chairs you'll need.  Multiply the number of patients you expect  to see in your busiest hour and multiply by 2.5 (for other family members who tag along).  Then multiply the total number of chairs by 20 square feet.
* Make sure the reception desk is the first thing patients see when they enter, so they are not confused.  The receptionist should also be able to see everyone in the area all the time (including young children!).
* Some relatively small replacements can improve the look of the office considerably; replace doors and doorjambs; install handles instead of knobs (for easier opening), and spruce up the rest rooms with new fixtures and a new coat of paint.
* Last but not least, replace or clean the carpets or install new flooring.  Next to waiting time, dirty-looking floors are the number one complaint of patients at health care offices.

Bottom line:  If you can't afford to do a major office renovation, work with what you have for the first few years, and move to a nicer office when you have the income to support it. In the meantime, do what you can to improve the overall look and feel of the office.

For more information on leasing, see our book 'Leasing Your Office' at www.dcpracticesuccess.com.

Startup Terminology:  If you are getting ready to go to a bank for a startup loan, you'll need to know about how the monthly payments are calculated.  The process of paying off a loan in installments of principal and interest over time is called amortization.
Although the determination of the monthly loan amount is complicated (in other words, don't try this at home), there are many web sites which provide free loan calculators.  You just enter the loan amount, interest rate and time period, and you can see the monthly payment.

Here are a couple of sites:
http://www.hsh.com/calc-amort.html
http://www.bankrate.com/brm/amortization-calculator.asp

Our mistake is your GAIN. We made a mistake on the reprint of Planning for Practice Success last month. The cover states
'Everything you need to buy an existing practice...' instead of the correct wording: 'Starting and Operating a Successful...'
These are the identical books sold on the website for $129.95.  We only have four left.  For $69.95 + shipping, you can have one.  Just send an email to service@dcpracticesuccess.com and include your phone number and the best time to call.  My terrific assistant Cindy will call you and get your information and send you the book right away.  The first four emails will get this great value.
 

________________________________________________________________

Ask Dr. Jean Murray a question: email her at jean@dcpracticesuccess.com
Order Planning for Practice Success or one of our other
products or call our toll free number at any time (24/7): 1-866-940-7526

Best wishes for your continued success,

Jean Murray
Planning for Practice Success
Online at:   http://www.dcpracticesuccess.com

The most absurd and reckless aspirations
have sometimes led to extraordinary success.
-- Vauvenargues

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