Mr Jonathan Ross is a consultant ophthalmic surgeon with specialist interests in cataract, refractive and oculoplastic surgery, based in Edinburgh, UK.
Affiliation:
- Laser Vision Scotland
Website:
Mr Jonathan Ross, Eye Surgeon
Mr Jonathan Ross
MB BCh MRCSEd FRCOphth FRCPSG
10 years.
Are you still in NHS practice?
NHS part time substantive.
How soon after starting in NHS practice did you start seeing private patients?
Three months.
Please can you describe your private practice?
- 75% self fund
- 20% insured
- 5 % NHS waiting list initiative
- 60 % cataract surgery
- 25% vision correction
- 15% oculoplastic surgery
with all done in private hospitals.
Have you established a brand associated with your practice? If so, why?
- Yes - Laser Vision Scotland
- Vehicle for marketing ourselves and developing awareness of service
- Legal trading entity
Do you advertise?
Yes. It’s a very inexact science but it does have a direct impact on our volumes of activity, and indirectly on our business long term.
What is your business vehicle (sole trader, LLP, corporation etc)?
We set out as a limited company and this has not changed. Changing vehicle is time consuming and heavy on red tape so we would not do this unless there was a very good reason.
Do you own your own premises?
No we trade out of a private hospital, hiring facilities hourly.
Do you own any equipment that you use in your private practice?
Yes we own an excimer laser for vision correction in young myopes, and a range of diagnostic instruments such as corneal topography.
What tips do you have regarding being successful in private practice in general?
Take time at the beginning of your consultant career to really think about what you want from being in business. Private practice has many rewards but ultimately nothing is for free, and if you are doing well it almost certainly means you are working very hard to achieve that success. Try to understand if you want a ‘lifestyle’ private practice which gives you some extra income without a huge additional work commitment, or a busy service with high volumes of activity and your own staff. Then make a plan around your goals. Get expert advice from the outset, e.g. financial, accountancy, legal and marketing advice. Be prepared to change advisors if your team does not feel right to you. Definitely try to work with other like-minded consultants who you trust and get along with. This gives your service much more stability, and makes working life more enjoyable and less lonely.
What do you see as the biggest threat to your private practice?
At the time of writing, the Covid-19 pandemic has completely shut down private practice activity, so this has been the biggest challenge to my business to date. Under normal circumstances, our main challenges are with aggressive fee reductions from insurers, competition from other providers and finding time to manage the business as well as managing patients.
If you work in a private hospital, what aspects of your relationship with the hospital have been most important?
The relationship with the hospital director is important, but like any organisation, it is important to work well with people from all departments, including theatre, nursing staff, the admin team and housekeeping.
Do you have any tips regarding doing private practice within the NHS setting?
Private practice in the NHS is something which should be developed much more in my opinion. NHS has valuable unused capacity, especially out of hours, and benefits from additional private revenue. This is in the public interest so should be encouraged. I do think it is important to keep control over your own fees, and to have clearly defined rules around who employs support staff, who insures them and where liability and accountability lies.
What mistakes do you think you have made in your private practice to date?
I can honestly say I have done my best so I would not reflect too much on mistakes I have made. I think I could have done a better job of delegating roles within the business so that I didn’t work so hard. It’s hugely rewarding to delegate a role to an employee and then find they do the job much better than you ever did!
What advice would you give to someone starting out in private practice today?
All the above. Understand your aspirations. Make a plan. Work collaboratively with colleagues. Delegate where you can. Enjoy your successes. Try to understand your blind side. Don’t work too hard.
To contact the author directly, email: info@laservisionscotland.co.uk