Private practice location

[psyxh]

I'm seriously toying with starting a part-time private practice. I have an opportunity to rent an office for N days a week. It's 35-40min from home, a bit further than I'd imagined, as I'll probably be doing an evening after my regular job.

Part of the fantasy of private practice is convenience and personal preference. I mentioned this to the psychologist that turned me on to this space (and who would get me some referrals), and she pointed out that I may not actually want to have a practice too close to home...

So, I wonder, has anyone had a practice too close to home, and has it been a problem? And how far is far enough?

Thanks all.

---

Members don't see this ad.

 

[Bartelby]

I'm about to graduate residency and lived a 5 min walk from my program all four years. It was never an issue. I occasionally see my patients around but either we ignore each other or we smile and wave, that's about it. If you work with, for instance, a homeless population that you would walk by on a daily basis then it can be more intrusive in your life.

I would for sure go closer to home. If you are doing an evening practice with a 40 min drive each way that's an hour and twenty minutes of time wasted. If you cut that commute to 10 mins driving you would be billing an entire extra hour for the same amount of time, and depending on the traffic I'm guessing an extra hour of clinical practice would be less stressful and more rewarding than that hour of driving. Let's say you do three evenings a week for now, ~$200 extra x3 for $600 more per week, times ~48 weeks per year for 28,800 extra on the bottom line isn't bad!

 

[strangeglove]

The closer to home, the better, especially if you are doing private practice in the evening after a "day job." You don't want to commute for 20-30 minutes after a long day of patient care. Also there is the time = money factor. I would avoid having your practice in your home, however.

 

[TexasPhysician]

I don't mind seeing my patients in public at all.

 

[northernpsy]

I think the awkwardness of encountering patients in other situations really depends on the patient.
With some of my high functioning therapy patients, I think if we ran into each other in public we'd probably just give each other a nod and leave each other alone. However, I have also had patients who with very severe borderline PD or antisocial tendencies where I would probably try my best to avoid them if I spotted them in public.
I also recall one of my attendings telling me back during residency about how someone she cared for on inpatient ended up attending an event at the church the attending belonged to and was acting creepy there.

While it is rare, I have had some patients where I would not want them to ever find out where I live or get anywhere close to my child. For that reason, I would prefer to keep my work far enough away from home that it wouldn't be easy for someone to follow me home from the office.

 

[TexasPhysician]

I would prefer to keep my work far enough away from home that it wouldn't be easy for someone to follow me home from the office.

If you own the home in your name, any half intelligent patient can find your address on the Internet in under 10 minutes. I don't think following someone home is the thing to worry about.

 

[Johnpet]

The closer to home, the better, especially if you are doing private practice in the evening after a day job.