Opening a practice overview

Professional regulation

The purpose of professional medical regulation is to foster the highest standards of health care to protect the public and to maintain public trust in the profession.

A psychiatrist working in either Australia or Aotearoa New Zealand must be registered with their relevant regulatory body and ensure they meet and maintain the mandatory regulatory requirements prescribed by their relevant regulatory body. Refer to:

• Medical Board of Australia (MBA)
• Medical Council of New Zealand (MCNZ).

Legal requirements to open a private practice

Establishing a successful private medical practice requires not only clinical but also business acumen. Before opening a private practice for business, a medical practitioner needs to consider a number of clinical and financial elements of good practice to ensure it operates lawfully and ethically.

Australia

Before commencing a private psychiatry practice in Australia, a psychiatrist should address the following issues:

• medical registration
  • provider number(s)
  • prescriber number
  • Australian Business Number
  • business name registration
  • professional indemnity and other relevant insurance (e.g. public liability).

For more information see Legal requirements for opening a practice in Australia

Aotearoa New Zealand

In Aotearoa New Zealand, a psychiatrist undertaking private practice work should:

• have medical registration and an annual practicing certificate
• have professional indemnity
• have a MCNZ Health Provider Index Number
• be familiar with Special Authority application procedures for restricted prescription items
• be familiar with the role of the Accident Compensation Corporation.

For more information see Legal requirements for opening a practice in Aotearoa New Zealand

Establishing a private practice

When entering private practice a range of issues need to be considered, which may vary according to whether a psychiatrist is starting a new practice or joining an existing one.

Issues for consideration include but are not limited to:

• location of rooms
• rental or purchasing of premises
• leasing contract
• proximity to public transport
• parking availability
• proximity to a pharmacist
• signage
• access to a toilet
• disabled access
• waiting room capacity patient privacy
• liability and other relevant insurance
• building security
• security of patients' health records (both hard and electronic copies)
• personal and staff safety
• safety systems (e.g. duress alarm, external security company links, CCTV).

About this information

For enquiries about this information, contact policy@ranzcp.org.

Disclaimer: This information is intended to provide general guide to practitioners, and should not be relied on as a substitute for proper assessment with respect to the merits of each case and the needs of the patient. The RANZCP endeavours to ensure that information is accurate and current at the time of preparation, but takes no responsibility for matters arising from changed circumstances or information or material that may have become subsequently available.