Thanks to Noon Development, Southeastern Spine · Brain · Joint Helps More Patients

Dr. Jay Jolley, owner of Southeastern Spine · Brain · Joint, opened his practice in 2012. An entrepreneur at heart, he knew that growing his business was essential to achieving his desired work environment and goals. He dreamed of better meeting his patients’ needs by opening a surgery center and expanding access to care across his local and regional communities, but that seemed out of reach.

As he explored expanding his business, he knew it was also time to expand his skills. He pursued this in two major ways: partnering with medical development experts at Noon Development and earning a Physician Executive MBA (PEMBA) at UT Knoxville.

Working with Noon Development, Dr. Jolley received expert assistance with market analysis, financial planning and commercial real estate development, without sacrificing his time as a care provider. Noon Development helped expand his practice and open a second office for Southeastern Spine · Brain · Joint. The project was quickly a success.

During his year in the PEMBA program, Dr. Jolley completed an Organizational Action Plan (OAP) on developing a surgery center.

“This was a huge goal for me, and working through the classes and process made reaching it achievable,” Dr. Jolley says. “I knew I would need a full plan in place to recruit other surgeons to join my endeavor. I also needed to make a financial investment in my idea and convince others to make investments.”

In implementing his OAP, Dr. Jolley recruited eight surgeons to join him to invest in Chattanooga’s only independent surgery center providing spine, pain management, and orthopedic procedures. The building is now under construction.

Independent surgery centers offer better reimbursements, improved patient outcomes, and ease of scheduling for physicians. Plus, they are convenient and generally less stressful for patients than navigating hospitals.

To date, Dr. Jolley and his team have partnered with Noon Development to open three new practices across Southeastern Tennessee in addition to the new surgery center.

“PEMBA gave me the skills to think big and grow every aspect of my business,” Dr. Jolley says. “My partnership with Noon Development allowed me to expand quickly and efficiently while continuing to see patients and perform surgeries on my regular schedule. The combination is incredible, and I’m looking forward to helping others learn and implement similar plans.”

Dr. Jolley explains that another helpful piece of the PEMBA training focused on understanding and creating pro formas and being willing to take smart risks to grow a practice.

“Every graduate walks away from PEMBA with this practical business skill set,” Dr. Jolley says. “Now I’m able to show potential partners how we can be successful by working smart and fostering partnerships, rather than just trying to see more patients.”

What’s next for Dr. Jolley? He’s helping other surgeons think big about their own expansion plans.

“Noon Development outlined the practices that would round out our service offerings and ensure long-term profitability,” Dr. Jolley says. “Now I help do that for others.”

Working with Noon Development, Dr. Jolley will now be part of the team helping physicians and surgeons tackle projects like adding a procedure room onsite or investing in their own medical office building, and he will consult on opening independent surgery centers.