Lessons Beyond the Balance Sheet

Opening a private ophthalmology practice often means having to navigate the worlds of business, finance, and management. Without a solid foundation, it can quickly turn into a nightmare the moment an unexpected setback throws a spanner in the works. Christina Grupcheva MD, PhD described her own cautionary story during a Leadership, Business, and Innovation (LBI) session on wealth management.

Life can sometimes be unapologetic and unpredictable. Professor Grupcheva knows this well. After returning to her native Bulgaria 20 years ago after a period of research and clinical work in New Zealand, she refused to settle for a position at a public hospital with a below-average salary. Instead, she pursued her dream of opening a small private practice, modelled on what she saw in New Zealand, with a more personalised approach to patient care and quality examination—something that was largely unheard of in Bulgaria at the time.

Without a business and management background, she managed to secure a loan for a construction site to start building her project before life interfered. Suddenly widowed with an underage child, she persevered, working around the clock beyond her ophthalmic practice to manage her resources, repay her loan, and cope with health issues that gave her a new perspective.

“It was the time to be educated, so I assigned myself to a university business programme, and I finished a master’s in public management,” Prof Grupcheva recounted.

Many years later, she her practice was thriving, and she even expanded it. Her son, now a vitreoretinal surgeon with his own practice, completed a business and management education programme and has helped Prof Grupcheva with her practice.

The importance for ophthalmologists to have business administration education is crucial, she stressed. Especially important is maintaining financial stability by keeping liquid assets available to cover unexpected expenses and taking a holistic approach to future planning that extends beyond the balance sheet—a lesson she said she learned the hard way. A clinical practice is not a single business, even if the goal is to provide the best patient care possible. Real estate management, medical business, equipment management, and human resources have distinct challenges practices must take into account.

These factors are what makes the ESCRS LBI Committee a crucial resource for ophthalmologists, she said. The committee provides ophthalmologists with the resources and opportunities to learn and develop professionally. Prof Grupcheva sees an unmet need for guidance that can help ophthalmologists make a sound plan, learn from experts in the economic and financial sector, and gain an advantage to successfully carry out their projects. She also believes hearing stories such as her own can help others avoid making the same mistakes.

“Inspiration is extremely important today,” she said. “AI can search for personalised solutions for you, but it cannot give you inspiration; it comes from meetings like these and LBI educational programmes.”

Prof Grupcheva encouraged her motivated peers to check out Vision to Venture (V2V), the new flagship business education executive programme launched by the ESCRS LBI Committee. It acts as a specialised business accelerator designed to help ophthalmologists bridge the gap between clinical excellence and commercial success. She hopes to see more ophthalmologists interested in exciting LBI activities.

Christina N Grupcheva MD, PhD, DSc, FEBO, FICO (Hon), FBCLA, FIACLE is a Full Professor in Ophthalmology, a Member of Bulgarian Academy of Science and several academic institutions, and a practicing clinician. She is part of the Leadership, Business, and Innovation (LBI) Committee.