In rural communities, long travel distances and limited transportation can make routine care difficult to reach. In this business plan, Janet C. Benzing, FACMPE, explores a proposal to open a hospital-owned Rural Health Clinic in a small Mississippi community. The proposed site would offer nurse practitioner-led primary care and scheduled visits from specialists already employed by the hospital’s medical group.

Benzing outlines how the organization would assess demand, plan services and prepare to open the clinic. The paper covers:

• Community needs, nearby providers and barriers to care
• Staffing, clinical services, facilities and administrative oversight
• Board approvals, certification steps and a proposed opening timeline
• Marketing and community outreach
• Start-up costs, budgets and projected financial performance

About ACMPE Fellowship papers

Fellowship (FACMPE) is the highest designation offered by the American College of Medical Practice Executives (ACMPE). Fellowship candidates wrote papers like this one to show command of a practice management topic through original research or a detailed business plan.

About this content

This paper was written in December 2018 and published in 2019. It has not been updated. Its proposed costs, opening timeline and financial results are projections, and Rural Health Clinic requirements, payment policies and local conditions may have changed. Check current sources before using the plan to guide a new project.

For more recent context, see MGMA’s "Proximity Does Not Equal Access" (2026) and 2026 Payment Overview for Rural Health Clinics and Federally Qualified Health Centers.