I recommend the AAOA basic allegy course , because it tends to cover everything, and there are a lot of people there (colleagues and vendors) to help you get started the correct way.
Here is a rambling list of things to consider: You need to choose an allergen vendor. You shouldn't switch allergen vendors, because of possible variances causing reactions if you change a patients allergens when they are being treated, so this is a big decision. You also need to choose which other supplies you will use (multi test, testing needles, syringes, sharps disposal, testing board, vial storage) . You have to design the charting you will do, and patient education protocol. You need to know about the risks of systemic/pulmonary reactions and how to treat them. You need to have some meds on hand: epi, antihistamines, steroids, steroid cream, nebulizer with albuterol, etc. Ideally, you will need an RN or better yet a mid level, who knows just as much as you do, and can run the day to day testing and mixing. You need to understand coding and reimbursement, and how to instruct the office staff on getting prior authorization or otherwise helping patients with questions like, "how much will my insurance cover for allergy testing and treatment?" Consider doing spirometry to test people for asthma, and consider if you will treat asthmatics with immunotherapy, if so, how severe, whether you will treat their asthma with inhalers, etc. Have a protocol for prescriping epinephrine self injectors, or not. Will you test and treat beyond inhalants? (Venoms? Foods?) Sublingual is pretty easy and there is not a good reason not to offer it, but you need to think about how that fits in. Staff should be educated on initial treatment of anaphylaxis, CPR, BLS. What type of square footage are you going to allocate for mixing, testing shot administration, charting, etc.? Protocols for missed shots. Staff calling patients about appointments, what type of hours will be offered for shots (appointment needed? walk in?).
