Essential equipment for new practice owners

Starting, acquiring or buying into a practice  is a career goal for many medical professionals. While a doctor’s skills and training form the backbone of a strong practice, success is often closely tied to practice equipment. 

Equipment is a driver of practice success 

As technology advances, the need to invest in medical equipment is ongoing.  

Patients seek to become better informed and look to the different treatment options available. As a result, they will often seek out medical practices with the latest technology.  

However, investing in new equipment also allows a practice to provide a greater range of services. This can be the difference between nurturing patient loyalty by meeting their holistic healthcare needs under one roof or losing patients to other practices that are better equipped. 

It’s not just about medical equipment 

When planning for practice equipment, it can be tempting to focus on medical equipment.  

Remember though, a practice is fundamentally a business, and to function effectively it will need a variety of non-medical equipment ranging from computer and phone systems, through to furniture and fittings that enhance patient amenity. 

This is why it is important for doctors to draw up a list of the equipment they need considering all aspects of their practice. 

Knowing who to turn to 

When it comes to financing equipment, one of the first stumbling blocks doctors can encounter is uncertainty about who to speak to, or the various funding options available, to get the ball rolling.  

Add in a substantial capital outlay, and it’s not unusual for doctors to be apprehensive about the financing process.  

This is where Avant adds real value, helping doctors understand and arrange suitable finance for all their practice equipment.  

It is worth stressing that each doctor has unique financing needs. What worked for a colleague may not be the right option for you.  

This is why Avant finds a bespoke solution that reflects your practice needs, cash flow, and budget. 

Doctors are in a fortunate position in that they can often secure 100% equipment finance without the need for a deposit*. This reflects the investment that doctors have made in their own skills, and the recession-proof, non-seasonal nature of the healthcare industry. 

Even so, this doesn’t lessen the need for tailored finance solutions put together by a team of experts who have taken the time to understand each clinician’s needs.  

Unlike the big banks, which serve many industries, Avant only partners with medical professionals. We understand how practices work, and we apply this knowledge to each doctor’s equipment finance options.  As a national business, we can also leverage our knowledge of medical equipment suppliers and their preferred payment terms. 

A bespoke finance plan 

Just as no two practices are identical, there is no one-size-fits-all option for equipment finance.  

In addition to reflecting your needs, financing options should reflect other factors. It may be appropriate, for example, to have a longer term for a loan used to fund practice furniture. For items with a shorter life expectancy such as computer and phone systems, it can make better financial sense to select a shorter term.  

Equally, with innovations in medical technology coming onto the market all the time, it may be appropriate for medical equipment to be financed over a shorter timeframe.  

Avant weighs up all these factors in a process that starts with understanding your needs. From there we’ll put together a plan of funding – and explain the regular payments for each type of loan. We offer an extensive suite of our own loan products as well as those available through other lenders we work with.  

Long story short, the way you finance essential equipment for your practice may look very different from a colleague’s approach. But you can be confident it is the right mix for you.   

Letting you focus on what you do best 

As we see it, the role of Avant’s team of medical finance experts is to remove the stress many doctors feel around “How am I going to pay for this?”  

We work behind the scenes putting together equipment finance that keeps your practice in great shape, leaving you free to focus on what you do best – looking after your patients’ health.