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What's the difference between Academic and Private Practices? Which route is better? Does Private mean more money? The Academic v. Private Practice community answers all your questions regarding each practice through articles, terms and experts.

Academic v. Private Practice Contributors

Wesley D. Millican, MBA
CEO and Physician Talent Officer

Academic v. Private Practice Contributor

Wesley D. Millican, MBA

CEO and Physician Talent Officer

CareerPhysician

Wesley D. Millican, MBA, is CEO and Physician Talent Officer of CareerPhysician Advisors, LP, and CareerPhysician, LLC, providers of comprehensive talent solutions for academic children’s hospitals, colleges of medicine and academic medical centers across the nation. Mr. Millican is an acknowledged expert in completing complex faculty and executive leadership initiatives across academic medicine. He possesses a longstanding passion for career development of all young physicians and serves as a go to career resource for training program directors and their residents and fellows.

Most recently, Mr. Millican held the role of SVP and Physician Talent Officer for OU Medicine. He joined OU Medicine to lead the development of a cutting-edge academic faculty leadership talent platform. Previously, he was Founder and Chief Executive Officer of MillicanSolutions, Inc., for 17 years. The firm was a leading executive search and consulting firm, recognized nationally for its success in strategic leadership initiatives for academic medical centers and colleges of medicine prior to its acquisition by AMN Healthcare in 2015. He served as Vice President of Physician Services at Physician Reliance Network (now U.S. Oncology).

Mr. Millican has long been viewed as an expert in leadership initiatives specific to child health and the academic medical center. He has a total of 28 years of experience in search execution and has completed more than 450 complex faculty and faculty leadership assignments while keeping focus on his professional passions of student education, faculty conflict resolution, retention and succession. Additionally, and in continuing his commitment to the “future of medicine”, Mr. Millican still speaks nationally at residency and fellowship programs. His Launch Your Career^TM Series is a proven resource for today’s residents and fellows and has served as a go to resource for program directors over the last 15 years.

Mr. Millican holds an MBA degree, with focus in negotiation strategy and organizational behavior from the Cox School of Business at Southern Methodist University and BBA degrees in both Marketing and Management from Texas A&M University. He has been the recipient of the National Institute for Physician Recruitment’s National Honors for Comprehensive Campaign Plans and Strategies and ACMS’s Physician Relations Executive of the Year award. Recognized as a recruiting industry expert, Millican has been published in the Wall Street Journal and was a contributor to Get Paid What You’re Worth, a book by Robin L. Pinkley, focusing on compensation and salary negotiations.

Mr. Millican serves on the Executive Committee of the McFerrin Center for Entrepreneurship, a subsidiary of the Mays Business School at Texas A&M University, and the Board of the Texas Methodist Foundation and its Institute for Congregational & Clergy Effectiveness.

Most Recent Articles

Academic vs Private Practice Ophthalmology

Andrew G. Lee, MD Professor of Ophthalmology, Neurology, and Neurosurgery University of Iowa Hospitals and Clinics Iowa City, Iowa The decision to enter academic or private practice is one of the most important choices that a resident can make. This article compares the advantages and disadvantages of each career choice. Academic ophthalmology, like private practice ophthalmology, generally includes a mix of outpatient clinical medicine and ...

by admin on 04-13-2020

Most Recent Terms

Case Mix

The range of varying types of diseases encountered and patient care delivered. Generally speaking, case mix is most diverse in an academic treatment environment and least diverse in a primary practice environment.

by admin on 05-05-2020
Specialist

A physician who has special experience and expertise in a portion of the medical field. In most instances specific credentials, including residency placement and board certification must be acquired in order to qualify as a specialist. http://www.deha...

by admin on 05-05-2020
Tenure

The employment status of a person who holds an academic appointment that is continuous until terminated by retirement or dismissal. The termination of a continuous tenure appointment is always pursuant to University policy. Only professors, associate...

by admin on 05-05-2020
Continuity Of Care

The process by which the patient and the physician are cooperatively involved in ongoing health care management toward the goal of high quality, cost-effective medical care (AAFP). http://www.aafp.org/x6694.xml

by admin on 05-05-2020
Integrated Delivery Systems (IDS)

The banding together of healthcare providers (e.g., physicians, hospitals, mental health centers, nursing homes and home care providers) as a means to coordinate patient care, strengthen or broaden the range of services, expand geographic coverage, and...

by admin on 05-05-2020
Independent Practice Association (IPA)

A network of physicians in a region or community—solo practitioners and groups of physicians—who agree to participate in an association to contract with health maintenance organizations, other managed care plans, and also vendors for the benefit...

by admin on 05-05-2020
Group Benefits Package

Services an insurer, government agency, or health plan offers to a group or individual under the terms of a contract, and can include malpractice coverage, CME, paid time off and relocation. www.hhsc.state.tx.us/Medicaid/Med_info/glossary.html

by admin on 05-05-2020
Economies of Scale

Situation(s) whereby the cost of producing one unit of a good or service decreases as the volume of production increases. The possibility of spreading costs among a greater number of transactions, inputs, etc. that reduces the overall cost of production...

by admin on 05-05-2020
Academic Ophthalmology

A term used to describe those who seek to improve their understanding of ophthalmic disease through scholarly scientific work, including both clinical and basic science, and the dissemination of knowledge through teaching and publication. "Academic...

by admin on 05-05-2020
American Academy of Ophthalmology (AAO)

The largest national membership association of Eye M.D.s. Eye M.D.s are ophthalmologists, medical doctors who provide comprehensive eye care, including medical, surgical and optical care. More than 90 percent of practicing U.S. Eye M.D.s are Academy members...

by admin on 05-05-2020

Most Recent Questions

If I chose to go into specialty practice, are there additional business risks beyond what I'd encounter in a primary care practice?

Unlike a primary care practice where the patient is the only customer, a specialty practice has two customers—the patients and the primary care practices who refer their patients to them. The primary care practice referral network can be the lifeline...

by admin on 05-15-2020
On a strictly financial basis, how does solo versus group practice compare?

On average, those in solo practice did a little better than those in group practice in 2002. Solo practitioners earned an average of $345,000, up $43,000 from 2001. Doctors in group practices earned an average of $303,000, up $7,700 from 2001. Of doctors...

by admin on 05-15-2020
I'm tempted by the learning culture and case mix offered by a career in academia. But are there any significant financial benefits to choosing this over private practice?

Steven E. Wilson, MD and professor in Vision Research, and chairman of the Department of Ophthalmology at the University of Washington, Seattle, says with increases in malpractice insurance and the other costs associated with private practice, some individuals...

by admin on 05-15-2020
I'm very risk averse and have heard goods things regarding The Integrated Delivery Systems (IDS) benefits, e.g. income guarantee, academic appointment etc. Are there any downsides I should know about?

In an integrated delivery system (IDS), the hospital and its affiliated clinics serve as the hub for care delivery. IDSs are typically formed around either a teaching hospital or a community hospital system, and the physicians are usually IDS employees...

by admin on 05-15-2020
I've decided private practice is for me. Should I seriously consider solo practice over group practice?

In solo private practice your are practicing alone, without partners or other affiliations, usually with minimal administrative or clinical staff. Today, only about one in five residents chooses solo practice. The solo practitioner handles all aspects...

by admin on 05-15-2020
I'm energized by a wide-ranging case mix and control over my time. Which careeer choice makes the most sense?

The private practice ophthalmologist generally has more flexibility and autonomy to decide their individual scope of practice, malpractice, clinic schedule, and vacation times, business practices and policies, and administrative structure (e.g., human...

by admin on 05-15-2020
Typically, what is a clinician-teacher's role in an academic setting?

Typically, a clinician-teacher is expected to teach and see patients. Some institutions expect some research or scholarly productivity as part of the overall effort. The exact amount of time devoted to each varies with the institution, but generally the...

by admin on 05-15-2020
Are there significant downsides to my earnings potential in the academic world, e.g., "hidden obligations?”

Another problem faced by many clinician-teachers is having enough time to meet their practice, research, and teaching obligations. Typically, as you mature in your job, time is slowly eroded away by department requirements to attend meetings, join committees...

by admin on 05-15-2020
As a new physician, what are the comparative compensation packages I can expect to be offered?

Most new physicians receive compensation not from salary alone, but from a combination of salary and clinical productivity. In general, contracts that are more heavily weighted toward the salary component provide a more dependable income, but there is...

by admin on 05-15-2020
If I place a high premium on continuity of patient care, what's the best career choice?

Academic physicians with multiple partners in practice might see their own patients only or rotate care within a division among several specialists. The practitioner is less likely to have continuity of care for all patients if he/she spends fewer days...

by admin on 05-15-2020