Clinical excellence matters in entrepreneurial medicine, but it’s rarely the differentiator between thriving practices and those that struggle. The physicians who build sustainable, scalable practices have figured out a different formula: Success starts with culture, character-driven hiring, and a relentless commitment to service.
Dr. Jordan Shlain, founder of Private Medical, has spent two decades refining this approach. His practice now spans six locations and counting. The lessons he’s learned along the way offer a roadmap for entrepreneurial physicians building their own membership-based practices.
The Five-Star Service Methodology
Dr. Shlain’s path to membership medicine started with frustration. Early in his career, a handshake agreement with an older physician fell apart in the 11th month. He walked out of that meeting and wandered through downtown San Francisco to cool off.
He ended up in a cafe at the Mandarin Oriental hotel. Noticing the clientele, he approached the concierge desk and asked who served as the hotel’s physician.
The concierge delivered feedback that changed his trajectory: At a five-star hotel, service matches the setting. A physician might be five-star smart, but the medical industry delivers one-star service. If he wanted to serve these patients, he needed to prove his credentials and match the service standard.
Two weeks later, Dr. Shlain returned with a package resembling a medical chart: his resume, residency documentation, and letters of recommendation. The concierge took him under her wing and taught him the five-star methodology.
The framework isn’t complicated. It centers on listening, following up, following through, doing what you say you’ll do, and being attentive. Execution is the hard part.
But Dr. Shlain’s house call income quickly exceeded what he’d made in an entire month at his previous position. He replicated the model at the Ritz-Carlton and eventually partnered with every hotel in San Francisco.
Culture Comes First
Most physicians assume patients should be their primary focus. Dr. Shlain takes a different view. He prioritizes how his team members treat each other.
A practice can’t deliver excellent patient care without first taking care of its partners, colleagues, and staff. Building an enterprise requires focusing on the internal culture first. Patient care, operational efficiency, and growth all follow from there.
At Private Medical, this translates into what Dr. Shlain calls a culture of care. The team strives to be the best physicians they can be while avoiding drama and challenging each other through intellectual curiosity rather than ego-driven debates. The goal is to collectively arrive at better answers rather than prove who holds the correct position.
Intellectual Humility as an Operating System
A few years ago, Dr. Shlain arranged for his team to attend a lecture on intellectual humility. The concept now permeates the practice’s operations and decision-making.
The core idea centers on separating beliefs from identity. Every belief is essentially a hypothesis. You could be wrong. Dr. Shlain describes his approach as arguing as if he’s right while listening as if he’s wrong.
This mindset shapes what he calls the practice’s communication architecture. High-fidelity communication reduces anxiety internally and with patients. Simple systems that work well, when combined thoughtfully, create a larger, more complex system that functions smoothly. Trying to build a complex operation from scratch almost always fails.
None of this happened overnight. Dr. Shlain describes it as a 20-year journey, a composite of insights absorbed over time. Expect the same gradual progression.
Hire for Character
When Dr. Shlain started his membership medicine journey, he worked alone. Then, he added a naturopathic doctor, a nurse, and a patient care coordinator. Conflicts emerged almost immediately.
Assembling a team doesn’t mean it magically works. You have to work through dissonance at every interaction. Much of that dissonance comes down to personality.
Character is destiny. A brilliant hire with sharp elbows will give you sharp elbows throughout your practice. Before extending an offer, consider whether the person is truly a team player. Think about equity, equality, and fairness.
Technical skills can be developed. Character rarely changes.
Find Your Peer Network
Private Medical operates as a finely tuned machine. Dr. Shlain has also explored digital health, food as medicine, and other ventures. Through it all, he credits much of his success to maintaining a network of like-minded physicians.
The entrepreneurial medicine market is expanding rapidly. Physicians seeking autonomy and the ability to practice at their highest level are making the transition in growing numbers.
The leap can feel like jumping into a hole without seeing the bottom. Dr. Shlain insists there’s a soft landing waiting.
The mistakes new physicians make are predictable. Learning from those who’ve already navigated the challenges saves time, money, and frustration.
Some opportunities that look promising will blow up. Others that seem questionable turn out to be transformative. Distinguishing between the two is nearly impossible without guidance from peers who’ve been there.
The Modern Doctor’s Lounge
Entrepreneurial medicine can feel isolating. The traditional doctor’s lounge, where physicians once gathered to share insights and support each other, has largely disappeared from healthcare.
Private Physicians Alliance fills that gap. Our alliance is a forum where physicians at the start or in the middle of their journey can learn from those who’ve built successful practices over decades. The shared wisdom helps members avoid costly mistakes while accelerating their path to sustainable growth.
For entrepreneurial physicians ready to build practices that prioritize culture, character, and service excellence, joining Private Physicians Alliance provides access to a curated network of peers who’ve already figured out what works.