In response to OP, I just thought I would contribute my 2 cents.
I am currently in a solo practice situation, but I did not start my own practice. It is still up and running, so not a failure, but I am feeling some sense of burnout, and trying to figure out how I can manage things better (hence my earlier post on how to handle patient phone calls). There were other physicians initially when I joined, but for various reasons, others left, and I inherited the practice with no buy-in which is probably an incredibly rare situation and opportunity. There was a good reason for the no buy-in though, as the practice has it's challenges, spread out over few locations, so high overhead cost to inherit for one practitioner (we have downsized now to 2 main locations). I am not getting rich doing this, because that was never my priority. I could probably make more if I worked for a hospital, although the potential to make more is probably there, if I were to prioritize that. I agree with one of the other posters that running a private practice, especially if solo, would be a 5a-9p job. What makes my situation a little more manageable is that I have a non-physician business partner who handles all of the non clinical aspects of running a practice. If I took over his responsibilities, I could make more for myself (his salary would become mine), but I just don't have the aptitude for it, or the desire to do so, and I would be even more enslaved to my work. So the arrangement works for me. As to why I would not just go work for a hospital...in the end, I do value having some degree of independence from administrative bureaucracy, which allows for some flexibility in my schedule, and allows me more freedom to practice pain in a way that I feel is best for my patients.
Perhaps the best advice here. I find this to be very true.
