Equipment and Supplies
Physicians need equipment and supplies to care for their patients. While it may seem obvious to include items such as bandages and gauze in a procurement list, what may be less obvious are furnishings, uniforms, and durable medical equipment (DME). A vendor to partner with on purchasing supplies can be a worthwhile investment. It's also a good idea to compare prices at various supply companies. Figure 6 lists some basics to get you started equipping and supplying your practice.
Questions to ask yourself as you begin procurement:
- Will you purchase or rent items?
- Are you planning to purchase only new items, or can some items, such as office furniture, be used?
- Will you need financing, and if so, will this be through the vendor or a private bank?
- Do your professional organizations have group purchasing arrangements for discounted pricing?
- Do your medical supply vendors offer office supplies?
Cost Categories
Things to Consider
Front Office Space: Patient waiting room
- Make it look inviting. Consider the lighting, color scheme and the furniture and art on the wall. It needs to make a good impression, from ceiling to floor.
- Chairs vs couch, tables, +/- magazine rack or reading materials.
- Consider TV or radio as background noise.
Nurse vs. front desk staff station
- Do you need it? Solo doctor may function well with limited or overlapping spaces. Your front desk staff may be the same person as your ‘nurse’ or MA.
- Equip with basic office supplies. Desk, chair, computer, printer, phone system, Fax system, USPS supplies, etc.
- Consider storage space, cabinets, lockers, etc.
Physician Exam Room
- This is highly personalized to the physician, depending on the number of procedures they perform and their practice style.
- Basics: Exam Table (table paper), desk, chairs, computer, printer.
- Things to consider:
- ENT equipment: otoscope, ophthalmoscope tongue depressors, etc. Cerumen impaction equipment: curette, ear wash system etc. Consider Fluorescein, Proparacaine and Woods lamp for corneal abrasion exam.
- Vitals/ Basics: BP cuff, Pulse Ox, thermometer, scale. Sharps container
- Basic Skin: bandages, Coban, tape, gauze, cleaner, topical antibiotic, etc
- Procedure Skin: Scalpels, suture kit vs reusable quality instruments, (and therefore an autoclave and it’s materials), sutures 6-0 to 3-0, punch biopsy, ring cutter, Iodoform, cautery (chemical vs electric or both). Consider Cryotherapy; Liquid nitrogen vs other system ( eg. Histofreeze).
- Orthopedic: Consider splints (finger, wrist, ankle), casting material, trigger injections, slings, ACE wraps. Consider in oKice TENS, ice packs, or various forms of adaptable SAM Splints.
- Cardiovascular: EKG machine and supplies. Consider Kardia mobile devices.
- Pulmonary: Consider PFT’s in office, Nebulizer with albuterol.
- Gastro Intestinal: consider FOBT, in office hemorrhoid procedure equipment
- Gynecology: Consider if you will be doing pap/pelvis or even Colposcopy. Speculum, brushes, thin prep (monitor expiration dates). Consider disposable vs metal quality (and therefore Autoclave and equipment)
- Diagnostics: things to consider:
- Point of Care lab work: CLIA waived tests. POC Strep, Flu, Covid, RSV, UA, Monospot. Consider glucose, etc. Are you interested in something extensive (and costly) like the Piccolo Xpress or similar.
- Consider Point of Care Ultrasound: Is that something you want to have, for example the Butterfly IQ system or similar.
- Consider in house Exercise Stress Test: Do you have room for a treadmill, or stationary bike. Consider doing your own Holter monitoring testing.
- Medications. Things to consider:
- Common injectables the physician normally uses. For example: Rocephin, Phenergan, Toradol, B12, Lidocaine, Benadryl, steroids. Also consider supplies: needles, syringes, alcohol preps, Band-Aids etc.
- Consider PO medications that may be needed. GI cocktail, Nitroglycerin, Benadryl, emergency/urgency Blood pressure medication.
- Consider if you will be doing any Urgent Care work. Do you need/want a small container of oxygen, do you want IV fluids: Saline, Ringers, D5W?
- Will you have a dispensary as many Direct Primary Care doctors have? That can be an extensive list of the most commonly prescribed medicines.
- Hardware and software to run the practice.
- Consider the best choice of hardware to run the practice: Apple vs Windows vs Google vs Linux. Also consider printer selection to best meet the needs of the office. Consider B&W vs color and cost of ink vs laser printers.
- Software to consider: EHR software is a very personal choice. Also consider the billing (RCM) software that integrates with EHR. Also consider dispensary software, communication software, and sometimes accounting software like QuickBooks or similar. Also consider host for the practice website and social media presence. Also consider Telephone system vs VOIP option.
- Restroom and Kitchen Spaces.
- Standard things for restroom supplies.
- Standard kitchen supplies as well. Coffee maker and snacks.
Office setup and supplies for a solo doctor’s office really does depend on the personal preferences of the physician and the type of practice they have. Use the above as a general starting point. A guide that stimulates thoughts and ideas for your practice. For a new office or a new practice, start with a mandatory minimum list of staff, equipment and supplies. Many, if not most, of the supplies or equipment that you may need can be obtained quickly, so allow yourself to learn as you go. You can order the supplies you need and bring the patient back next week to do the procedure. Always consider cost but also consider cost effectiveness. For example: a primary care physician may be trained in exercise stress testing. They have room in the office for the treadmill and equipment. The doctor also enjoys doing the test. However, they may learn that over time they don’t perform the test often enough to justify the cost of the equipment and the software. That space can be used for something else more cost effectively.