A New, Affordable Model for Medical Practices

Space sharing, also called coworking, has become a popular option for general office work over the last decade but, until recently, has not been available in health care. MedCoShare, as the name implies, has recently opened one coworking facility in Philadelphia, and is about to open another in Marlton, N.J. The company offers doctors and other health care providers flexible space and support services that help independent providers practice on their own terms at a fraction of the cost of setting up a traditional office.

Ronak Vyas, an experienced real-estate agent and broker, founded the company in 2019. Along with partners who include other real-estate experts and health care providers, he created MedCoShare to fill what he saw as a major gap in the traditional office leasing model.

“There are many doctors whose needs just are not met by the typical office lease,” Vyas said, “so I see this as an exciting innovation in the health care office market.” There are many obstacles to starting a practice, including initial expenses, operational challenges and a significant degree of risk, which are neither practical nor affordable for an individual or small partnership. Part-time and short-term medical office space is not part of the traditional leasing model. Health care-space landlords typically require tenants to sign leases ranging from 5 to 10 years, which often include personal guarantees. These spaces then require long and costly fit-outs before a provider can start seeing patients. Setting up an office also requires establishing long-term commitments for cleaning, medical waste removal, support staff and more.

According to one of Vyas’ partners, Gregory Goldmacher, MD, “Many doctors are increasingly unhappy with the lack of autonomy in working for hospitals or large groups, and are considering private practice again, or for the first time, or going part-time as they move toward retirement or shifting family obligations,” Goldmacher said. “Coworking space could provide an ideal option.” Having an affordable coworking space/part-time office to split telehealth and in-person visits would be an effective hybrid practice model, or could give a provider options to see patients in more than one location, one or two days a week in several offices.

Vyas and his partners opened their first location in an outpatient clinic in the Fishtown neighborhood of Philadelphia, an office left vacant by the closure of the Hahnemann hospital system. They started operations in the summer of 2020. In spite of the pandemic, MedCoShare has attracted a variety of health care providers, including specialists in cardiology, dermatology and men’s health, and other types of ancillary providers such as estheticians, massage therapists and more. “Being a new small business owner in the midst of a pandemic, MedCoShare has been a blessing,” said Marybell Rodriguez, a nurse practitioner who performs skin care procedures. “Where else could I start a business, build clients and have a flexible membership with no long-term commitments for peace of mind during the uncertainty?”

In less than a year, the company has filled its first space and is poised to grow. The location in Marlton is scheduled to open at the end of January, and Vyas and his partners are evaluating more locations in King of Prussia. “Our goal is to build locations in the region, develop our support service offerings and then go national,” Vyas said. “We think this will become a popular new practice model across the country, similar to the way urgent care has grown over the last decade.” •

MEDC SHARE

Healthcare CoWorking

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