In this episode of The Business of a Clinic, Jared speaks with nurse prescriber and clinic owner Joolia Gilvey about moving from hospitality into nursing, building an aesthetics business, and creating a patient experience that reflects how she wants to deliver care. Joolia’s first career was running pubs. After having children, she moved into a hospital caring role, returned to university, and qualified as a nurse at around 40. She explains how her hospitality experience shaped her approach to welcoming people, understanding their needs, and paying attention to the details that make them feel comfortable. Her decision to build a clinic also grew out of frustration. Joolia recalls raising concerns within larger organizations and feeling that little changed, including difficulties replacing equipment and a COVID-era incident involving missing thermometers. Those experiences helped her recognize how much she valued having control over her working environment. Ownership brought responsibilities of its own: recruiting, choosing systems, developing a brand, and making decisions that had previously belonged to someone else. Joolia describes starting small and working through each step. Her clinic now has three treatment rooms and around 2,500 patients on the books. Her ambition is to build a strong team and keep those rooms busy while remaining involved in the business. The conversation explores why the patient experience begins before treatment. Joolia sees calls, emails, reception, and the physical environment as parts of the same service. She describes creating a welcoming atmosphere in a Grade II listed building, with music, fresh flowers, and thoughtful details that support the clinic’s premium positioning. Drawing on her surgical nursing background, Joolia also explains why clear communication matters when patients feel nervous. A procedure that is routine for a practitioner may still be unfamiliar or unsettling for the person receiving it. Her suggestion is to sit in the patient’s chair, experience the consultation from their perspective, and notice what is easy to overlook from behind the desk. Jared and Joolia discuss the challenge of converting cold leads and her focus on people who already know the clinic. She outlines plans to reconnect with patients who have drifted away, develop annual treatment plans, and offer payment options. Memberships, rewards, and birthday vouchers also form part of her approach to maintaining relationships. The discussion turns to expanding beyond injectables and skin treatments into devices, including Neogen, EMFACE, and body treatments. Joolia explains how existing patients helped her introduce new services, and shares her interest in longevity and wellness. A potential hard-shell oxygen chamber costing around £90,000 brings the business questions into focus: patient demand, evidence, space, and whether the investment makes sense. The episode closes with Joolia’s changing priorities around teaching, brand work, and industry recognition. She explains why building her own clinic now takes precedence over opportunities that look impressive but draw time away from it. Her advice is to find a mentor, build a support network, and ask suppliers what practical help they can offer, including support she had not previously known was available. In this episode Running pubs before moving into healthcareReturning to university and qualifying as a nurse at around 40What hospitality taught Joolia about patient serviceFrustration with hospital bureaucracy and unresolved problemsWanting greater control over her working environmentTaking the first steps into clinic ownershipRecruiting staff, choosing systems, and building a brandGrowing a clinic with three treatment roomsBuilding relationships with around 2,500 patients on the booksCreating an experience from the first call or emailReception, atmosphere, and attention to detailPremium positioning in a local marketHelping nervous patients understand what happens nextLessons from surgical nursingSitting in the patient’s chair to see the clinic differentlyDeveloping the team’s approach to communicationThe difficulty of converting cold leadsReconnecting with patients who have drifted awayAnnual treatment plans and payment optionsMemberships, rewards, and birthday vouchersExpanding beyond injectables and skin treatmentsIntroducing Neogen, EMFACE, and body treatmentsBuilding new services around existing patient concernsInterest in longevity and wellnessWeighing up a potential £90,000 device purchaseConsidering demand, evidence, space, and affordabilityGrowing without losing day-to-day involvementBalancing teaching and brand work with clinic ownershipFinding mentors and a business support networkAsking suppliers what practical support is availableKey idea Joolia’s approach connects the experience patients receive with the kind of business she wants to own. Thoughtful communication, a welcoming environment, and lasting relationships guide her growth plans, while each new service or opportunity needs to justify the time, space, and investment it requires. About the show The 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.
