Are you about starting an infusion center and need to write a plan? If YES, here is a detailed sample infusion center business plan template & FREE feasibility report.
As a medical doctor or a player in the healthcare industry, if you are interested in starting a business and you don’t have the financial requirements to start a standard hospital, then you should open an infusion center. To do so, you need to pay a visit to the health and medical regulatory body in your country to get the required information.
A Sample Infusion Center Business Plan Template
1. Industry Overview
The hospital and healthcare industry that infusion center business is a subset of, is perhaps one of the fastest growing and largest industries in the world. There is hardly any country where their healthcare and medical industry is not handled with all seriousness.
As a matter of fact, the healthcare industry is known to gulp over 10 percent of gross domestic product (GDP) of most developed countries. Infusion centers administer therapy to their patients and the therapy involves the administration of medication through a needle or catheter.
Typically infusion therapy means that a drug is administered intravenously or subcutaneously. The term pertains to where drugs are provided through other non-oral routes of administration, such as intramuscular injection and epidural administration (into the membranes surrounding the spinal cord).
Until the 1980s, patients receiving infusion therapy often had to remain in an inpatient setting for the duration of their therapy.
New technologies and heightened emphasis on cost containment in healthcare, as well as developments in the clinical administration of the therapy, led to strategies to administer infusion therapy in alternate settings (at clinics and at home) in an effort to reduce hospital readmissions.
There is indeed a very large market for healthcare service providers in the united states. For instance, the World Health Organization (W.H.O) estimated that there are about 9.2 million physicians, 19.4 million nurses and midwives, 1.9 million dentists and other dentistry personnel, 2.6 million pharmacists and other pharmaceutical personnel, and over 1.3 million community health workers worldwide.
This goes to show that the healthcare industry is indeed one of the largest segments of the workforce of any nation. It is on record that in 2011, healthcare costs paid to hospitals, physicians, nursing homes, diagnostic laboratories, pharmacies, medical device manufacturers and other players in the healthcare system business value chain, consumed an estimated value of 17.9 percent of the Gross Domestic Product (GDP) of the United States.
This indeed the largest of any country in the world. As a matter of fact, experts projected that the healthcare share of the GDP of the United States will continue to grow, reaching 19.6 percent of GDP by 2016. The hospital and healthcare industry is indeed a very massive industry in the U.S. Statistics has it that in the United States of America, the industry is worth $986bn, with an estimated growth rate of 3.4 percent.
There are about 3,184 registered and licensed hospital and medical clinic businesses (strictly infusion centers inclusive) in the United States and they are responsible for employing about 5,513,669 people that comprises of doctors, nurses, pharmacists, dentist, opticians, surgeons and other health and non-health workers. It is important to state that there is no medical clinic or infusion center with a lion market share in the United States.
If you are considering starting your own infusion center business in the United States, then you should try and work around the industry barriers. The truth is that the barriers to entry in the hospital and healthcare industry are high due to the significant regulatory requirements. For example, medical licensure creates a barrier to entry in the healthcare sector.
As a matter of fact it is absolutely compulsory for any investor who is looking towards starting an infusion center to meet extensive federal, state and local laws and regulations. These regulations relate to the adequacy of medical care, equipment, personnel, operating policies and procedures.
Regulations also involve maintaining adequate records, preventing fires, setting rates and complying with building codes and environmental protection laws. These regulations make it difficult and costly for aspiring entrepreneurs to enter the industry.
Some of the factors that encourage entrepreneurs to start their own infusion center could be that the business can easily get support from government at all levels and the business is indeed a profitable venture despite the legislature governing the industry.
2. Executive Summary
Rosa Mark® Infusion Center, Inc. is a government approved healthcare service provider that will be located in the heart of Miami Beach, Florida – United States of America. We have been able to acquire a standard corner-piece facility that is suitable for the kind of infusion center we want to operate.
Rosa Mark® Infusion Center, Inc. is in the hospital and healthcare industry to provide infusion therapy that takes care of a range of medical applications including sedation, anesthesia, post-operative analgesic pain management, chemotherapy, and treatment of infectious diseases. We are well trained and equipped to service the market segments that require the healthcare services we will be offering.
Rosa Mark® Infusion Center, Inc. will operate 24 hours 7 days a week infusion center service; our facility will be opened round the clock to attend to clients (patients). We have a standard medical call center that is manned by trained health workers. Our employees are going to be well trained to operate within the framework of our organization’s corporate culture.
Rosa Mark® Infusion Center, Inc. will ensure that all our patients are given first class treatment whenever they visit our infusion center. We have a CRM software that will enable us manage a one on one relationship with our customers no matter how large they grow to.
Rosa Mark® Infusion Center, Inc. is a family business that is owned and managed by Dr. Rosa Mark and her immediate family members.
Dr. Rosa Mark is going to be the Medical Director (Chief Executive Officer) of the infusion center, she is a qualified and well trained Medical Doctor with over 25 years’ experience working as a medical doctor and medical researcher with one of the leading medical institutions in the United States of America.
3. Our Products and Services
Rosa Mark® Infusion Center, Inc. is in the infusion center business to ensure that our patient/clients are well taken care of and our services will be carried out by highly trained professionals who know what it takes to give our patients value for their money. These are the healthcare services that Rosa Mark® Infusion Center, Inc. will be offering;
- Administering infusion therapy for a range of medical applications
- Inpatient care
- Outpatient care
4. Our Mission and Vision Statement
- Our vision is to become the number one choice when it comes to offering infusion therapy in the whole of Miami Beach, Florida and also to be amongst the top 10 infusion center and therapy practice providers in the United States of America within the next 10 years.
- Rosa Mark® Infusion Center, Inc. is in business is to establish a first – class infusion center that will take care of both highly placed and lowly placed clients as long as they can afford our services.
- We want to become one of the leaders in the hospital cum healthcare services industry in Florida, and in the United States of America.
Our Business Structure
Rosa Mark® Infusion Center, Inc. is a business that will be built on a solid foundation. From the outset, we have decided to recruit only qualified professionals (doctors, medication management counselors, physical therapists and other health and non – health workers) to man various job positions in our organization.
We are quite aware of the rules and regulations governing the hospital cum healthcare industry which is why we decided to recruit only experienced and qualified employees as foundational staff of the organization. We hope to leverage on their expertise to build our infusion center business.
When hiring, we will look out for applicants that are not just qualified and experienced, but honest, customer centric and are ready to work to help us build a prosperous business that will benefit all the stake holders.
As a matter of fact, profit-sharing arrangement will be made available to all our management staff and it will be based on their performance for a period of five years or more. These are the positions that will be available at Rosa Mark® Infusion Center, Inc.;
- Chief Medical Director/Chief Executive Officer
- Doctor
- Nurses/Nurse’s Aides
- Information Technologist (Contract)
- Admin and Human Resources Manager
- Sales and Marketing Executive
- Accountant/Cashier
- Customer Care Executive
- Cleaners
5. Job Roles and Responsibilities
Chief Medical Director/Chief Executive Officer:
- Responsible for providing direction for the business
- Creating, communicating, and implementing the organization’s vision, mission, and overall direction – i.e. leading the development and implementation of the overall organization’s strategy.
- Attend to high profile clients and severe medical cases
- Responsible for fixing prices and signing business deals
- Responsible for recruitment
- Responsible for payment of salaries
- Responsible for signing checks and documents on behalf of the company
- Evaluates the success of the organization
Doctors
- Responsible for providing professional medical services to our patients
- Responsible for offering infusion therapies
- Responsible for handling medical emergencies.
Nurses/Nurse’s Aides
- Responsible for managing our patients
- Responsible for offering medication management services
- Assist the doctors
Sales and Marketing Manager
- Manage external research and coordinate all the internal sources of information to retain the organizations’ best customers and attract new ones
- Model demographic information and analyze the volumes of transactional data generated by customer
- Identifies development opportunities; follows up on development leads and contacts
- Writing winning proposal documents, negotiate fees and rates in line with organizations’ policy
- Responsible for handling business research, market surveys and feasibility studies for clients
- Responsible for supervising implementation, advocate for the customer’s needs, and communicate with clients
- Create new markets cum businesses for the organization
- Empower and motivates the sales team to meet and surpass agreed targets
Accountant/Cashier:
- Responsible for preparing financial reports, budgets, and financial statements for the organization
- Provides managements with financial analyses, development budgets, and accounting reports
- Responsible for financial forecasting and risks analysis.
- Performs cash management, general ledger accounting, and financial reporting for one or more properties.
- Responsible for developing and managing financial systems and policies
- Responsible for administering payrolls
- Ensuring compliance with taxation legislation
- Handles all financial transactions for Rosa Mark® Infusion Center, Inc.
- Serves as internal auditor for Rosa Mark® Infusion Center, Inc.
Client Service Executive
- Welcomes clients and potential clients by greeting them in person or on the telephone; answering or directing inquiries.
- Ensures that all contacts with clients (e-mail, walk-In center, SMS or phone) provides the client with a personalized customer service experience of the highest level
- Through interaction with clients on the phone, uses every opportunity to build client’s interest in the company’s products and services
- Consistently stays abreast of any new information on the organizations’ products and services, promotional campaigns etc. to ensure accurate and helpful information is supplied to clients when they make enquiries
Cleaners:
- Responsible for cleaning the infusion center facility at all times
- Ensure that toiletries and supplies don’t run out of stock
- Handle any other duty as assigned by the admin and HR manager.
6. SWOT Analysis
Rosa Mark® Infusion Center, Inc. is set to become one of the leading infusion therapy service providers in our location. We know that if we are going to achieve the goals that we have set for our business, then we must ensure that we build our business on a solid foundation.
Even though our Chief Medical Director (owner) has a robust experience in health management services, public health and medical research, we still went ahead to hire the services of business consultants that are specialized in setting up new businesses to help our organization conduct detailed SWOT analysis. This is the summary of the SWOT analysis that was conducted for Rosa Mark® Infusion Center, Inc.;
- Strength:
Our strength lies in the fact that we have a team of qualified healthcare professionals manning various job positions in our infusion center.
As a matter of fact, they are some of the best hands in the whole of Miami Beach, Florida. Our location, the Business model we will be operating on, multiple payment options, well equipped medical call center and our excellent customer service culture will definitely count as a strong strength for us.
- Weakness:
Our perceived weakness lies in the point that we are just starting out and we may not have the required finance to sustain the kind of publicity that we intend giving the business and also the finance needed to acquire some of the latest infusion therapy equipment et al.
- Opportunities:
The opportunities that are available to infusion therapy providers are unlimited considering the fact that infusion therapy involves the administration of medication through a needle or catheter, and with specialty infusion therapies you can easily treat conditions which include cancers, congestive heart failure, Crohn’s Disease, hemophilia, immune deficiencies, multiple sclerosis, rheumatoid arthritis, and more. We are going to make the best out of the opportunities that will be available to us in Miami Beach, Florida.
- Threat:
Just like any other business, one of the major threats that we are likely going to face is economic downturn and unfavorable government policies (healthcare reform). It is a fact that economic downturn affects purchasing power. Another threat that may likely confront us is the arrival of a new and bigger infusion center in same location where our center is located.
7. MARKET ANALYSIS
- Market Trends
The hospital cum healthcare industry is indeed a thriving and dynamic industry; with the aid of technology, it is becoming easier to treat, manage and cure some ailments that before now are not easy to handle. No doubt there are many ways of providing healthcare services in this changing era since the place of delivery may be in the patient home, the community, the workplace, or in health facilities.
New standards for infusible pharmaceuticals have been achieved in recent years with the advent of pre-filled, ready-to-use, dose-specific products.
Advanced aseptic presentation, with hermetically sealed containers, allows predictable sterility, ease of use, improved control, and lower total costs. Essentially, systematizing the delivery mechanism and standardizing the delivery container.
One thing about this industry is that labor costs are on the high side. However, medical clinics have also faced nurse and physician shortages and have struggled to recruit qualified personnel. Industry profitability has generally risen over the past five years due to increase in service prices.
No doubt the home healthcare industry will continue to grow and become more profitable because the aging baby-boomer generation in United States are expected to drive demand for healthcare services.
8. Our Target Market
Rosa Mark® Infusion Center, Inc. is in business to service a wide range of customers in Miami Beach, Florida – United States of America and other cities. We will ensure that we target both self – pay customers (who do not have health insurance cover), and those who have health insurance cover.
The fact that we are going to open our doors to a wide range of customers does not in any way stop us from abiding by the rules and regulations governing the hospital cum healthcare industry in the United States. Our staff are well – trained to effectively service our customers and give them value for their monies.
Our customers can be categorized into the following;
- The whole residents within the area where our infusion center is located that need treatment for a range of medical applications
- Expectant Mothers
- Injured Sports Men and Women
- Health Management Organizations (HMOs)
Our Competitive Advantage
To be highly competitive in the hospital cum healthcare industry means that you should be able to deliver consistent quality patient service and should be able to meet the expectations of your patients at all times; they should experience improvement in their health when they patronize your infusion center.
Rosa Mark® Infusion Center, Inc. is coming into the market well prepared to favorably compete in the industry. Our infusion center facility is well positioned (centrally positioned) and visible, we have enough parking space with good security.
Our staff are well groomed in all aspects of healthcare service delivery and all our employees are trained to provide customized customer service to all our clients. Our services will be carried out by highly trained professionals who know what it takes to give our highly esteemed customers value for their money.
Lastly, all our employees will be well taken care of, and their welfare package will be among the best within our category in the industry. It will enable them to be more than willing to build the business with us and help deliver our set goals and objectives.
9. SALES AND MARKETING STRATEGY
Rosa Mark® Infusion Center, Inc. will ensure that we do all we can to maximize the business by generating income from every legal means within the scope of our industry. Below are the sources we intend exploring to generate income for Rosa Mark® Infusion Center, Inc.;
- Administering infusion therapy for a range of medical applications including sedation, anesthesia, post-operative analgesic pain management, chemotherapy, and treatment of infectious diseases, cancers, congestive heart failure, Crohn’s Disease, hemophilia, immune deficiencies, multiple sclerosis, rheumatoid arthritis, and more.
- Inpatient care
- Outpatient care
10. Sales Forecast
Our sales forecast is based on the data gathered during our feasibility studies, market survey and also some of the assumptions readily available on the field. We have been able to examine the infusion center cum healthcare market, we have analyzed our chances in the industry and we have been able to come up with the following sales forecast.
Below is the sales projection for Rosa Mark® Infusion Center, Inc. it is based on the location of our infusion center and of course the wide range of our services and target market;
- First Fiscal Year (FY1): $100,000 (From Self – Pay Clients / Patients): $250,000 (From Health Insurance Companies)
- Second Fiscal Year (FY2): $250,000 (From Self – Pay Clients / Patients): $500,000 (From Health Insurance Companies)
- Third Fiscal Year (FY3): $500,000 (From Self – Pay Clients / Patients): $1,500,000 (From Health Insurance Companies)
N.B: This projection was done based on what is obtainable in the industry and with the assumption that there won’t be any major economic meltdown and natural disasters within the period stated above. Please note that the above projection might be lower and at the same time it might be higher.
- Marketing Strategy and Sales Strategy
The marketing and sales strategy of Rosa Mark® Infusion Center, Inc. will be based on generating long-term personalized relationships with customers. In order to achieve that, we will ensure that we offer all-round healthcare services at affordable prices compared to what is obtainable in Florida.
All our employees will be well trained and equipped to provide excellent and knowledgeable healthcare services. We know that if we are consistent with offering high quality infusion therapy and healthcare service delivery and excellent customer service, we will increase the number of our customers by more than 25 percent for the first year and then more than 40 percent subsequently.
Before choosing a location for our infusion center, we conducted a thorough market survey and feasibility studies in order for us to penetrate the available market and become the preferred choice for residents of Miami Beach, Florida – United States of America.
We have detailed information and data that we were able to utilize to structure our business to attract the number of customers we want to attract per time. In summary, Rosa Mark® Infusion Center, Inc. Services will adopt the following sales and marketing approach to win customers over;
- Introduce our infusion center by sending introductory letters to residents, business owners and corporate organizations in and around Miami Beach – Florida
- Advertise our infusion center in community based newspapers, local TV and local radio stations
- List our infusion center on yellow pages ads (local directories)
- Leverage on the internet to promote our infusion center
- Engage in direct marketing
- Leverage on word of mouth marketing (referrals)
- Enter into business partnership with health management organizations, government agencies and health insurance companies.
11. Publicity and Advertising Strategy
We are in the infusion center business to become one of the market leaders and also to maximize profits hence we are going to explore all available means to promote our infusion center.
Rosa Mark® Infusion Center, Inc. has a long – term plan of opening of our infusion center via franchising in key cities around Florida which is why we will deliberately build our brand to be well accepted in Miami Beach before venturing out. Here are the platforms we intend leveraging on to promote and advertise Rosa Mark® Infusion Center, Inc.;
- Place adverts on both print (community based newspapers and magazines) and electronic media platforms
- Sponsor relevant community health programs
- Leverage on the internet and social media platforms like; Instagram, Facebook, twitter, YouTube, Google + et al to promote our brand
- Install our Billboards in strategic locations all around Miami Beach Florida.
- Distribute our fliers and handbills in target areas
- Ensure that all our workers wear our branded shirts and all our vehicles and ambulances are well branded with our company’s logo et al.
12. Our Pricing Strategy
From available statistics, home infusion imparts significant cost savings as compared to traditional infusion hospital setting. Whereas hospitalization costs upwards of $1,500 to $2,500 per day, the average cost of home infusion is $150 to $200 per day.
Rosa Mark® Infusion Center, Inc. will work towards ensuring that all our infusion therapies are offered at highly competitive prices compared to what is obtainable in The United States of America.
On the average, hospitals and healthcare service providers usually leverage on the fact that a good number of their clients do not pay the service charge from their pockets; private insurance companies, Medicare and Medicaid are responsible for the payment.
In view of that, it is easier for hospitals and healthcare service providers to bill their clients based in their discretion. However, in some cases hospitals and healthcare service providers also adopt the hourly billing cum per visit billing method.
- Payment Options
The payment policy adopted by Rosa Mark® Infusion Center, Inc. is all inclusive because we are quite aware that different customers prefer different payment options as it suits them but at the same time, we will ensure that we abide by the financial rules and regulations of the United States of America.
Here are the payment options that Rosa Mark® Infusion Center, Inc. will make available to her clients;
- Payment via bank transfer
- Payment with cash
- Payment via credit cards
- Payment via online bank transfer
- Payment via check
- Payment via mobile money transfer
In view of the above, we have chosen banking platforms that will enable our clients make payment for our infusion therapies without any stress on their part.
13. Startup Expenditure (Budget)
If you are looking towards starting an infusion center, then you should be ready to raise enough capital to cover some of the basic expenditure that you are going to incur. The truth is that starting this type of business does not come cheap.
You would need money to secure a standard medical clinic facility, you will need money to acquire medical equipment and supply, pay your workforce and pay bills for a while until the revenue you generate from the business becomes enough to pay them.
The items listed below are the basics that we would need when starting our infusion center in the United States, although costs might vary;
- The total fee for registering the Business in the United States – $750.
- Legal expenses for obtaining licenses and permits – $1,500.
- Marketing promotion expenses for the grand opening of Rosa Mark® Infusion Center, Inc. in the amount of $3,500 and as well as flyer printing (2,000 flyers at $0.04 per copy) for the total amount of – $3,580.
- The cost for hiring Business Consultant – $2,500.
- The cost for computer software (Accounting Software, Payroll Software, CRM Software, Microsoft Office, QuickBooks Pro, drug interaction software, Physician Desk Reference software) – $7,000
- Insurance (general liability, workers’ compensation and property casualty) coverage at a total premium – $3,400.
- The cost for payment of rent for 12 months at $1.76 per square feet in the total amount of – $255,600.
- The cost for clinic remodeling (construction of racks and shelves) – $20,000.
- Other start-up expenses including stationery ($500) and phone and utility deposits – ($2,500).
- Operational cost for the first 3 months (salaries of employees, payments of bills et al) – $400,000
- The cost for Start-up inventory (stocking with a wide range of products) – $150,000
- The cost for Supplies (Injections, Bandages, Scissors, et al) – $3,000
- The cost for infusion therapy equipment (Electronic Pump, Elastomeric pump, Pre-Filled Infusion Therapy gadget and infusion pump et al) and other related medical equipment – $350,000
- The cost for the purchase of furniture and gadgets (Computers, Printers, Telephone, TVs, tables and chairs et al) – $4,000.
- The cost of launching a website – $700
- Miscellaneous – $10,000
We would need an estimate of $1.2 million to successfully set up our infusion center business in Miami Beach – Florida.
Generating Funds/Startup Capital for Rosa Mark® Infusion Center, Inc.
Rosa Mark® Infusion Center, Inc. is a private business that will be owned and managed by Dr. Rosa Mark Jnr. and her immediate family members. They decided to restrict the sourcing of the startup capital for the business to just three major sources.
- Generate part of the start-up capital from personal savings
- Source for soft loans from family members and friends
- Apply for loan from the bank
N.B: We have been able to generate about $500,000 (Personal savings $300,000 and soft loan from family members $200,000) and we are at the final stages of obtaining a loan facility of $700,000 from our bank. All the papers and documents have been duly signed and submitted, the loan has been approved and any moment from now our account will be credited.
14. Sustainability and Expansion Strategy
The future of a business lies in the number of loyal customers that they have, the capacity and competence of their employees, their investment strategy and the business structure. If all of these factors are missing from a business, then it won’t be too long before the business closes shop.
One of our major goals of starting Rosa Mark® Infusion Center, Inc. is to build a business that will survive off its own cash flow without injecting finance from external sources once the business is officially running. We know that one of the ways of gaining approval and winning customers over is to offer our services a little bit cheaper than what is obtainable in the market and we are prepared to survive on lower profit margin for a while.
Rosa Mark® Infusion Center, Inc. will make sure that the right foundation, structures and processes are put in place to ensure that our staff welfare are well taken of. Our organizations’ corporate culture is designed to drive our business to greater heights and the training and retraining of our workforce is at the top burner.
We know that if that is put in place, we will be able to successfully hire and retain the best hands we can get in the industry; they will be more committed to help us build the business of our dreams.
Check List/Milestone
- Business Name Availability Check:>Completed
- Business Registration: Completed
- Opening of Corporate Bank Accounts: Completed
- Securing Point of Sales (POS) Machines: Completed
- Opening Mobile Money Accounts: Completed
- Opening Online Payment Platforms: Completed
- Application and Obtaining Tax Payer’s ID: In Progress
- Application for business license and permit: Completed
- Purchase of Insurance for the Business: Completed
- Leasing of facility and remodeling the facility: In Progress
- Conducting Feasibility Studies: Completed
- Generating capital from family members: Completed
- Applications for loan from the bank: In Progress
- Writing of Business Plan: Completed
- Drafting of Employee’s Handbook: Completed
- Drafting of Contract Documents and other relevant Legal Documents: In Progress
- Design of The Company’s Logo: Completed
- Printing of Promotional Materials: In Progress
- Recruitment of employees: In Progress
- Purchase of infusion therapy equipment, medical equipment, medical supplies and ambulances et al: In Progress
- Purchase of the needed furniture, racks, shelves, computers, electronic appliances, office appliances and CCTV: In progress
- Creating Official Website for the Company: In Progress
- Creating Awareness for the business both online and around the community: In Progress
- Health and Safety and Fire Safety Arrangement (License): Secured
- Establishing business relationship with Private medical insurance companies, Medicare and Medicaid, wholesale pharmaceutical companies and medical suppliers: In Progress.