COPD Clinic Business Plan - Research Proposal Example

COPD Clinic Business Plan Inserts His/Her Table of Contents Item Page # Introduction 3 Company Summary 3 Objectives 4 Mission Statement 5 Keys to Success 5 Start-up Costs 7 Market Analyses 8 Marketing Plan 9 Strategies to attract customers 12 Competition Summary 14 Management Summary 14 Closing Summary 15 Supplemental Material 16 References 17 Introduction COPD is a term abbreviated as Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (Donnell, 2006). It is a disease that constantly narrows the airways which makes it difficult for the air to get in and out of the lungs properly. It also causes the destruction of certain areas of the lungs that is responsible for the oxygen from the air to move into the blood stream and taking the waste gases back to the blood stream so that it can be exhaled. It has been studied that the main cause of COPD is excess smoking done by the people. There are some other factors as well like air pollution and dust particles which cause this disease but they are quite rare to be true. Some may also have inherited COPD from their ancestors but this is also unusual. It is a fact that COPD cannot be cured but efforts could be made in order to discard its symptoms and allow a person leading a health and prosperous life. Company Summary After providing many health services to the people living in rural areas, the General Medical Centre has now decided to introduce a COPD Clinic which would enhance its awareness among the people and prevent them from bad attacks. Location and Facilities The foremost requirement to start a business includes a building that will be purchased for the use of the clinic. The building is quite old and it would certainly be renovated before taking any initiatives. The total space for the clinic will be approximately 1200 sq. feet. The clinic will be located along side the main street with an underground parking for at least eight cars. There will be a wide road in front of the main gate of the clinic which would be convenient for the patients. Services The COPD clinic will make sure that their patients do not find any difficult once they get associated with us. In order to make things easier for the patients we have planned to render following services: The clinic will be opened for the patients 24 hours a day There will always be a doctor available in case of an emergency The clinic will also have a medical store from where the patients could purchase their medicines, in case they are not able to find it somewhere else (Kumar & Clark, 2005). For every patient admitted in the hospital, a nurse will be assigned so that she looks after the patient throughout its medical treatment. The treatment will be done in reasonable prices that could be affordable for the people of any class. COPD clinic and its doctors will try their level best to treat the patients in best of the standards. We will make sure that our patients get satisfied by the services we offer. Objectives Our short term objectives regarding our clinic are as follows: To develop a clinic that will provide the services to the patients more than their expectations To provide quality medical treatment to the people in the rural area To create a medical health care that will fulfill each and every need of the community. To create a website that will provide all the relevant information that is desired by the patient or the visitor Our long term objectives are as follows: To survive by our own cash flow within 10 months To increase the number of patients of the clinic by 15 to 20 percent every year by providing quality treatment and services and word-of-mouths. The average number of visits should be more than 300 within 10 months and it should be increased to 450 by the start of the second year. Mission Statement The mission of the COPD Clinic is to provide their patients highly accessible and quality treatment for the people of all age groups. Moreover, we will make sure to provide the services to the patients more than they expected which would result in a successful profitable business. Keys to Success Patients Patient care should be given the top priority Spread awareness amongst the patients regarding the COPD disease Educate patients about the importance of regular checkups A proper system should be setup that would remind the patients about their checkups Maintain diversity in the Staff Recognize and select the staff that would be as determined as the management for the success of the clinic. Allowing the staff to benefit from the increased profit generated by the clinic in terms of incentives and bonuses. Maintain a proper schedule for the staff so that the patient is not required to wait for a longer period of time. Finances The overhead will be kept low. Evaluate the number of patients we treat in an hour while providing quality treatment. Latest billing technology should be implemented. Refer to this business plan as guidance for management policies. Sales and Marketing Aggressively participate in different hospital talks and exhibitions so as to create your presence within the community (Bruzelius, & Rothengatter, 1998). Strong network communication with other hospitals Location of the clinic should be in such a place where ratio of patient-to-doctor is high Location should be in the area close to Medical Surgery Centre which would provide easy access in case of a specialty care. Start-up costs It was estimated that while starting the business we will have a total expense of almost 23000$ which includes all the liquid assets like furniture, office equipment and other start up expenses. It is also important to do the initiatives with some cash in hand. In this case we will need around 10000$ cash in hand to progress. Other miscellaneous expenses and cash will be sponsored by the General Medical Centre. As far as our long term assets are concerned a total of $250000 will be needed to purchase the building for the clinic and the owner will finance about 20-year loan from the well renowned bank putting his personal assets as a guarantee (Arditi & Gurdamar, 1985). Initial Expenses Expenses for Legal & Accounting services Stationary Marketing Expense Technical Equipment License for Business Communication Expense Clinical Equipment Office Maintenance Office Furniture Marketing Plan Duties on Equipment $500 $1,000 $2,000 $3,000 $32 $150 $7,000 $4,000 $2,000 $3,000 $50 Total Expenses $22,732 Start-up Assets Cash Required Other Current Assets Long-term Assets $10,000 $0 $225,000 Total Assets $235,000 Total Requirements $257,732 This is actually what will be our total expenditure at the start of the business (National Audit Office, 2003). This is something which cannot be neglected to start a COPD Clinic. Market Analyses According to the Demographic Report that came in 2005, there is a lot of demand of cost-effective medical health care in the nation and the region. It is predicted that the local population (within 30 miles) will increase by 3.5% per year, currently having a population of nearly 150,000 people. It was analyzed that the largest age group in our area was between 40 and 48. People over 60 are also found in big numbers within the regional area. As we will provide the medical treatment to people of all age groups our market segmentation breaks potential patients out into local population and patients from different regions. Currently there are only 4 or 5 clinics that deal with COPD disease. Therefore it will be an ideal statistics for us to increase the ratio of patient-to-doctor by a fair margin. This will surely allow us to dominate the region within a short period of time. Target Market Segmentation COPD Clinic will make sure that it focuses its efforts on the local population (within 30 miles). Thus our target segmentation strategy is geographic. The reasons behind this are as follows: The patients of these rural areas surely cannot travel to long distances in order to visit a doctor. They will wait for their turn unless and until it’s an emergency case. Our clinic will serve people regardless of their age, sex, cast, religion. So there is no need to waste money on marketing materials to attract these groups. However will appeal a similar message for everyone within the region. As aforementioned, increase in the local population is predicted to be 3.5% year. This gives us an ideal condition to build our foundations on a geographic approach. Marketing Plan Our Marketing plan in order to have a successful start is to quickly create our presence within the region in terms of public events, hospital talks, networking, and promotional events. These marketing materials will be followed by the sales strategy that depends upon ideal location, well-trained doctors and quality treatment of the patients (Flyvbjerg & Buhl, 2002). One of the biggest advantages of this strategy is that each and every aspect is within our control and depends how appropriately we implement it. The region only consists of 4 or 5 practitioners so it will be not a bigger issue to compete with them. It is quite obvious that patients will prefer a proper Clinic rather than visiting a doctor for their treatment. Our clinic will be much reliable for them. Marketing Strategy Before the inauguration of our Clinic it is important that we create a momentum that would create awareness among people about our Clinic. And for this purpose Marketing and Advertising Companies will be approached who will start this activity one month prior to the inauguration. We will first try to make our name popular within the region by informing them our location and the services that will be beyond their expectations. It is very important that we create a dominant presence within a community. For this we not to implement certain strategies that are highlighted below: Marketing Materials The clinic will make sure that all the written materials that we will share with people are polished and give a professional touch. We will have a separate leaflet of our clinic. This leaflet will contain all the information about our clinic and the services that we offer. It will also include the pictures of our Clinic, Laboratories and other promotional material. A separate section in this leaflet will be designed that will educate the people about the doctors associated with our clinic and their areas of expertise. This leaflet will be presented as both as handouts for the patients within the clinic as well as outside the clinic. We will also provide multiple brochures to the people that will give them appropriate health information. This will be distributed to the potential patients by means of handouts, Electronic Medical records and via our official website. There will be a number of patient-friendly videos, mailings and various promotional materials to market our clinic. Moreover, we will have our advertisements in the magazines and newspapers that will inform the people about the opening of our clinic within their region. The COPD Clinic will also encourage commercials and mailings that will tell the people about our special discount rates, yellow pages and all other forms of advertising. Promotional Events There will be a number of open houses arranged in which surrounding business and potential patients will be welcomed. In the open houses people will be able to see our new clinic. A casual activity program will be managed in which we will provide Sugar Testing, Blood Pressure reading and much more. The COPD clinic will conduct health information workshops for which we will ask the community to help us to organize the event for the cause of the general public. Our main target will be to bring in new patients but it will also be very important to create word of mouth. This is something that will help us a lot to introduce new patients to our clinic. It will be our foremost target to introduce as many people as we can before the inauguration as well as after it is opened. Networking The COPD Clinic will act as an active member of the business community. We will make sure that a number of our representatives attend the social events that are held within the region. This is one of the best ways to make the name of the clinic popular. We will also network through various organizations like Creek Club, Country Club and many other social places so that we can promote our clinic and attract the people towards the COPD Clinic. Accessibility It is very important for us to know that people are indulged with their busy routines throughout the week. It is unlikely for the patients to work all day long and then visit the clinic. Knowing the fact, the COP clinic will remain open on Saturdays and Sundays. This will definitely help us in attracting potential patients as there very less medical institutions that remain open over the weekend (Wachs, 1989). Marketing Expense In order to do market our clinic we have put various advertisements on different magazines and newspapers. These are materials which are distributed to almost every resident within the region. Whether it is a magazine or a newspaper or a commercial advertisement, this expense is something that is obligatory on us (Kotler, 1986). We cannot avoid or neglect this under any circumstances. We must prepare ourselves that a fair amount of money will always be separated for marketing means from the profit that is generated by the clinic monthly. Strategies to attract the customers In order to attract the customer to the COPD clinic following strategies should be implemented: Location of the Clinic The clinic will be located in the middle of the town. This would make easier for the patients to travel to our clinic no matter where they come from. Appropriate signs will be printed on the sign boards that will help the patients to find our clinic (Patrick & Suzanne, 1993). The location of the clinic plays a vital role in the success of the organization and it would be an asset if we are able to build our clinic in the heart of the town Patient’s Experience The building of the clinic will have a bright and an attractive appearance. Decorations will be done with flowers inside as well as the outside of the clinic. Every patient that enters the clinic will be greeted with smile and respect. There will be a person assigned at the entrance of the gate that would guide the patients to their desired locations within the clinic. During the patient’s visit to the clinic, there needs will be addressed properly and they will be asked to wait in the waiting area in a very polite manner. The waiting are of the clinic should be properly decorated and it should include cushioned seats that will make the patient feel comfortable. Different magazines and brochures will be kept in the waiting area which would entertain him or her throughout the waiting period. A television will also be placed in the waiting area for the patients who are not interested in reading magazines. Other rooms of the clinics should be clean and contain professionalism. Posters of health information and various diseases should be posted on the walls so as to provide the customer with important information that should be known to every person regarding their health (Szyliowicz & Goetz, 1995). The rooms should also contain bottles of mineral water in case any patient feels thirsty. A cafeteria will also be constructed in the canteen where the guardians of the patients could get fresh and health food to eat. They need not to go outside the clinic to eat food or ask a family member to bring the food from the house. Furthermore, during the consultation the doctor should be well dressed. A white coat along with a tie will be made necessary for the doctors as long as they are within the territories of the clinic. Doctors should conduct with their patients in a polite and courteous manner. After the consultation the doctors or the nurse will guide the patients for further formalities. In case, if any patient is asked to visit the clinic for regular check-ups he will be provided a proper reminder card that will help him to remember the time of his or her next appointment with the doctor. The Pricing Strategy The pricing for the consultations or any other activity will be billed according the ongoing standards of the industry. We will make sure that we are consistent with our competitors. The pricing of the clinic will be dependants upon the agreements that are signed by the five largest insurance companies within the region (Maldonado, 1990). The clinic will not avoid any patient who cannot afford the treatment. Special funds and sponsors will be raised for the patients of such caliber. Competition Summary The COPD Clinic will certainly have a competitive edge based on the location, flexible timings, quality treatment, 24/7 service available for the patients, week end extensions, diversification within the staff and excellent clinic environment. These factors will contribute to a great extent in order to give the clinic a unique position and status within the region. Generally, there are only few practitioners that are providing the treatment for the COPD disease due to which the competition is not a very challenging one. In addition the growing population in the local population and few doctors gives us a great opportunity to excel in a short period of time. Management Summary The COPD Clinic will be developed as a sole proprietorship owned and operated by Dr. Roger Hedrick, MD. Initially the clinic will hire two employees: a receptionist and a medical assistant. They will be appointed on hourly wages along with the facilitation of health and dental benefits. After a certain span of time, their package will be revised depending on the work and responsibilities assigned to them. During the first year of the business the owner will be paid by the General Medical Centre. But it is important that by the start of the 2nd year the physician should be able to draw his salary direct from the COPD Clinic. A proper handout will be created and distributed among the employees that will contain the alternatives in case of sick leave, hourly wages, vacation, payment, etc. This handout will help us to maintain a proper organizational culture. Closing Summary COPD is a disease that is not curable. The fact is not known by many people. It is also true that there are not many medical organizations in the rural areas to treat the disease. Our motive is to create a COPD Clinic in such areas. The COPD Clinic will be owned and operated by Dr. Roger Hedrick. It will be his duty to manage things appropriately within the organization. He will work closely with the advisors from the General Medical Centre to get the clinic to a successful start, using this medical Business Plan as a guiding management tool. Dr. Roger will focus on the treatment of the patients of all age groups and provide quality treatment to them. The Clinic will be nicely decorated along with a well-trained staff that will guide the patients in an appropriate manner. The services that will be provided by the clinic will surely be beyond patient’s expectations. The marketing and sales strategies have been emphasized in this plan in order to attract the potential patients towards the Clinic. Creating a dominant presence within the region has been given the utmost priority. The business will not have many competitors since there are only 4 or 5 practitioners in the town. A gradual increase in the patient load is expected throughout the first year. All in all, we hope to implement this business plan in the best of the ways. This will be beneficial for us as well as the patients since they will be provided with quality treatment. 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