March 24th, 2015

Book Recommendation: How We Built Our Dream Practice: Innovative Ideas for Building Yours Written by: Dave Verhaagen, Ph.D. and Frank Gaskill Ph.D. Reviewed by: Chana Kaiman, LCSW Whether you are clinician who is just starting out or a seasoned professional who wants to expand, growing your practice is an ever-present goal that takes more than knowledge and experience. You may be a competent professional with superb clinical skills but who is kno …
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Author: Charles Sender, LCSW

December 31st, 2014

Writing articles in local publications and blogging can be a very effective marketing tool.  Here are some quick tips on maximizing the benefits of your written word.

Persistence and Consistence
Write often and systematically.  This allows for you to build an audience and thus name recognition.  Writing a short article or posting once a week may have better payoffs than one long article.

Include a Bio an …
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Author: Charles Sender, LCSW

October 1st, 2014

“But, I do not have enough time in the day to write for and maintain a blog,” Is a common statement heard in response to the suggestion to build a professional internet presence through a professional blog. Yet, blogging can be a fun, ethical, quick and easy way to develop and maintain a healthy and professional internet presence. Posting can and should be quick and short. In the era of internet and quick paced clicks, professional bl …
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Author: Charles Sender, LCSW

September 23rd, 2014

A common struggle clinicians grapple with is their relationship with money, fees and finances. As helping professionals, we are proud, and should be proud of our dedication to our chosen profession. We chose our profession because we yearn to care for and help others. It is difficult to contemplate that there are other dynamics involved in our relationship with the individuals and people we serve. Yet, to neglect the “what’s in it for …
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September 11th, 2014

Do you FaceBook?  Ever think you are putting simple benign information on your FaceBook Page?  A social worker has been given a 12-month conditions of practice order by the HCPC after posting comments on Facebook about a child protection court case. The social worker posted on the social networking site: “I’m in court tomorrow for a case where there is a high level of domestic violence amongst many things…” and …
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Author: Steven Walfish, Ph.D.

August 6th, 2014

When I was a graduate student one of my colleagues was married to an Ophthalmologist who had his own practice. She asked three of us to schedule an examination and gave each of us cash to pay for the exam. This was a win-win. We got free eye examinations and they were able to “follow the money” in their practices.             This experiment was suggested by their accountant. This …
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Author: Steven Walfish, Ph.D.

July 23rd, 2014

Last week I presented a workshop titled “Growing and Sustaining a Private Practice: Opportunities Are Where You Find Them and Where You Make Them” at the Florida Psychological Association.”          It was great fun and there was lively give and take with the participants on ways to make a practice grow.             In my last col …
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Author: Steven Walfish, Ph.D.

July 16th, 2014

This week I will be presenting a workshop titled “Growing and Sustaining a Private Practice: Opportunities Are Where You Find Them and Where You Make Them” at the Florida Psychological Association.”   I am always please to be invited to do workshops and am excited about this particular topic because it is a new one for me.             In preparing for the workshop …
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Author: David Taylor, MA, LMHC

July 14th, 2014

  There Are No Exceptions Every Private Practice needs a website. This is absolutely a non-negotiable. YOU MUST HAVE ONE! If you are active on Facebook, Twitter or any other social medial channel, but not on your website, you are fighting an up-hill battle.   When a therapist first searches for a suitable therapist to trust in, they will make their first impressions often off of your website. When they come to your site, they will …
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Author: Steven Walfish, Ph.D.

July 8th, 2014

            There is a movement in medicine by physicians who are tired of dealing with traditional practice styles that they believe impinge on how they practice medicine and how they are reimbursed for their services. They feel like they are on an assembly line and the joy of practicing medicine has been sucked out of them These physicians have changed to a style called “Concierge Med …
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Author: Steven Walfish, Ph.D.

July 2nd, 2014

            In my consulting work at the Practice Institute I review contracts that clinicians are asked to sign when considering joining a group practice. While I am not an attorney (and I do encourage that an attorney review each contract) I do have enough experience in private practice to be able to point out some possible red flags for the clinician to consider in making the decision to s …
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Author: Steven Walfish, Ph.D.

June 25th, 2014

            About nine years ago I saw a new client who managed a local clothing store. She was distressed due to a breakup of a relationship with a man that she had been dating for some time. She thought that “he was the one” and felt depressed about this relationship not working out and pessimistic about finding the “Real Mr. Right” in the future. I worked with her f …
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Author: Steven Walfish, Ph.D.

June 9th, 2014

  It is likely every private practitioner’s dream to have insurance carriers out of their professional lives. After all who likes filling out claim forms, reviewing EOBs for mistakes, losing money due to contractually agreed upon discounted fees, and occasionally being told that services are not medically necessary and therefore will not be reimbursed.             There are several …
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Author: Steven Walfish, Ph.D.

May 28th, 2014

One of the things that the general public hates about attorneys is that they charge for everything that they do. Take a phone call, write a letter, copy a file, one knows to expect a bill for every 3 minutes spent. When people are paying several hundred dollars per hour for legal services they often feel “nickeled and dimed” when they are charged for these seemingly small services.         &nbs …
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Author: Steven Walfish, Ph.D.

May 5th, 2014

When thinking about where to begin practicing most mental health professionals think about joining a group of other mental health professionals. That is, they want to be around like-minded people who have similar values and goals. While this strategy may work well for some people, in general I think this is the slow road to having a full and sustained private practice.             Reportedly …
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Author: David Taylor, MA, LMHC

April 30th, 2014

I have built three successful practices having lived in Tampa, the Seattle area, and now Atlanta. My father-in-law once said to me, “Steve you are really good at getting customers.” At first I was taken aback thinking “customers”? No, I have clients. After all I’m a health care professional.             My father-in-law was right. Our clients (whether they are th …
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Author: Steven Walfish, Ph.D.

April 14th, 2014

The New Jersey State Supreme Court has ruled that a mental health professional; may not sign a contract that contains a restrictive covenant, better known as a noncompetition agreement. The Court ruled that it is not in the best interest of the client to not be able to continue with their psychotherapist if the clinician chose (or was asked) to leave their practice location. As such, as a matter of public policy the best interests of the clients …
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April 9th, 2014

In the goodness of your heart you have allowed a client to not pay all that is due to you for the services that you have provided and they now have built up a balance of $500. They have dropped out of therapy, are not returning your phone calls, and while they previously responded to your emails, these are now going unopened.             So in our consulting many clinicians ask, “Can I …
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Author: Steven Walfish, Ph.D.

March 25th, 2014

To specialize or generalize is a common question asked by those entering private practice. Part of the answer to this question lies in geography. If you live in a rural area specialization will end your practice; generalization is the route to take. There just aren’t enough people (e.g., potential customers) in rural areas to support a specialized practice. On the other hand if you are in a city or suburban area, specialization in the key t …
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Author: Steven Walfish, Ph.D.

March 19th, 2014

            It is amazing to me that most people who join group practices do so with little forethought and little due diligence. This is especially true for early career professionals who are just happy to be “taken in” to a practice so they can fulfill their professional dream of being successful in private practice.           &n …
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Author: Steven Walfish, Ph.D.

March 5th, 2014

Those clinicians who provide both high levels of clinical skill and high levels of customer service (to both client and/or referral partners) tend to have their practices full. In general, psychotherapists overestimate their success with clients and underestimate the percentage of clients that get worse from psychotherapy. More than 90% of nonmental businesses believe they provide superior customer service. However, when actual customers are …
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Author: Steven Walfish, Ph.D.

March 5th, 2014

Just like with the marketing of any product or service, most marketing efforts for the mental health professional to grow their practice with potential referral partners will be misses.  That is, they will not pan out.
However, you don’t need that many “to hit” in order to have a great practice, as long as you wind up with the right referral partners. When I first started practice I called a substance abuse treatment …
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The short and glib answer of course, is to charge an average of what other therapists in your area charge, but since you asked the question you already
know that there is much more to it than that.


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It is 9:00 PM, and Rachel, the local therapist, just finished her final session of the evening. She would love to close up her office, go home, relax and get to bed at a reasonable hour. But she has twelve new voicemails, most probably needing a call back to schedule a session or answer a basic question. Little does she know that one of the messages is cancelling tomorrow’s session and another message is asking for an appointment ASAP.David, a busy psychologist working out of his home office, has not invoiced his clients in over six weeks and cannot remember if he made that last
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Blogging is a great way to build your online presence:
It’s low-cost (or even free)
It’s easy
It’s effective
It’s an ethical marketing strategy that benefits both you and the public.
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