ABSTRACT
In an earlier part of the book, the issue of utilization was mentioned. The more the clinic is used, the lower the cost per unit of service. This is the simple microeconomics of any facility that produces something-in this case, patient visits. Everything is scalable and so is an on-site clinic. However, the capital and construction decisions are a lot less “scalable” than matching the personnel to the patient demand. If the space is adequate, the addition of a provider or a medical assistant can allow for more services
to be provided on-site. If the space is overbuilt, it will be unused or inefficiently used. If there is not enough space, the services will suffer from the same working problems that face most physicians-waiting time and appointment queuing. This is another problem that can be minimized by careful planning.
