STURGIS, MICH. - As a healthcare provider and as a businessperson, I like to look for true "win-win" propositions for my patients and my practice. One of my biggest wins to date has been my small office surgery suite. Since I built it five years ago, this item has truly helped patients receive better care more economically and with fewer hassles. It has markedly improved my efficiency and helped me serve more patients. Now that the facility is accredited, I believe it will start directly contributing to practice income while still providing a great bargain for my patients' insurance plans. If you're thinking of building your own facility, maybe our story will be instructive.

My practice outgrew my office
When I started practice 14 years ago, I spent four-and-a-half days working with a podiatrist in a community several miles from here. For one half day, I leased space from an optometrist here in the small town of Sturgis and saw patients.