Opportunity's knocking Jun 1, 2007 By: Mark Opperman, CVPM

Opening your door to new profit centers can help take the bite out of remodeling and building expenses.

If your burgeoning practice is making you claustrophobic, try these strategies to accommodate growth.

I'm considering remodeling an exam room. What are the first steps I should take?

Our contest winner transformed an exam room. And you can do it, too.

We tried for years to get you all to share your hospital makeover projects—the progress you made with a weekend of work and a bucket of paint. But to no avail.

First decide which areas of your practice offer the greatest opportunities—then look at ways to make the changes you want without breaking the bank.

My treatment area is on the small side, and I wish I could give myself more space to work. Is there a better way to arrange my equipment and supplies so I'm not tripping over everything?

If you think it takes $50,000 to update your facility, think again. We’ve got project ideas for limited budgets, from free to $6,000. Just check out this list:

“Practice owners want to put their best foot forward, which makes the hospital foyer, reception area, and waiting area the most popular for remodel projects,” says Dan Chapel, AIA, NCARB, owner of Chapel and Associates Architecture in Little Rock, Ark., and a Veterinary Economics Editorial Advisory Board member. “Luckily, those areas are the easiest projects to tackle.”