The Human Side of Selling and Scaling a Clinic | Teresa Harvey #48

In this episode of The Business of a Clinic, Jared speaks with Teresa Harvey, an osteopath based in Glasgow who has spent 30 years in clinical practice and built a four-clinic osteopathy group in Scotland, which she has recently sold to join a larger MSK group.Teresa’s journey began in nursing, where she specialised in neuro and spinal care before moving into osteopathy. She explains why she was drawn to a more holistic model of healthcare, how osteopaths think beyond isolated symptoms, and why understanding a patient’s full history can completely change the way care is delivered.The conversation explores what it really means to manage a patient, not just treat them. Teresa shares why her clinics spend an hour on initial assessments, how they set short-, medium-, and long-term goals, and why expectation-setting is one of the most important skills new clinicians need to learn.Jared and Teresa also discuss retention, recall, cancellations without rebooking, patient responsibility, scripts for practitioners and reception teams, and why the language of the clinic shapes the patient experience. Teresa explains how her team built a strong community feel, where patients consistently describe feeling listened to, heard, and cared for.They also go into AI, including AI telephone answering, note-taking tools, and where technology can genuinely improve patient care without making the experience feel robotic. Teresa shares how AI can help clinicians make more eye contact, listen more actively, and reduce administrative friction, while still preserving the human relationships at the centre of care.Finally, Teresa reflects on the process of preparing for and completing a clinic sale, what made her choose the right group to join, how due diligence felt, and why joining a larger group has helped unlock growth, marketing, HR, legal support, clinic expansion, and new community-based services.In this episodeTeresa’s journey from nursing to osteopathyWhy holistic care changes the patient experienceReductionist medicine vs whole-person careWhy osteopaths often act like healthcare detectivesThe importance of one-hour initial assessmentsManaging patients vs simply treating symptomsSetting expectations around recovery timelinesWhy new clinicians need mentoring on patient managementRetention, recall, and cancellations without rebookingHow scripts can help teams communicate with confidenceMaking clinic communication feel authentic, not roboticBuilding a clinic culture around trust, values, and communityUsing AI telephone answering without losing the human touchAI note-taking and helping patients feel heardPreparing a clinic group for saleChoosing the right group to join after acquisitionDue diligence, systems, accounts, and operational readinessHow joining a larger group supported marketing, HR, legal, and expansionWhy face-to-face care, touch, trust, and human connection still matterKey ideaA clinic can become a sellable asset without losing what made it special. The strongest clinics are built on systems, standards, trust, patient communication, and a clear sense of human care.About the showThe Business of a Clinic explores how private healthcare clinics can grow by improving patient relationships, patient engagement, clinic operations, retention, follow-up, commercial systems, and the overall patient experience.