WHY Concierge medicine and aesthetics tend to spend far more per employee than most other healthcare models, reflecting their focus on premium service.

When it comes to patient or customer experience, training budgets reveal a lot about priorities. Across healthcare and hospitality, spending per employee varies widely depending on service expectations, business model, and competitive positioning. Here’s what recent data tells us about annual training investments.

By Staff, Concierge Medicine Today

Traditional, Plan-Reimbursed, Small Primary Care & Family Practices

• Small primary care and family medicine offices—especially those operating within insurance-based reimbursement models—typically invest $200–$500 per employee annually in customer service training.

  1. Costs vary depending on whether training is delivered online or in-person, the program’s length, and the chosen training provider. Factors like office size and location also play a role.

  2. Source:

     • Business.com – Cost of Employee Training in Small Medical Practices (2024)

Direct Primary Care (DPC)

• DPC practices, which operate on a membership model but without insurance billing, generally spend $300–$800 per employee annually on staff training. This is often higher than traditional practices because patient satisfaction and retention are central to the model, yet lower than concierge medicine due to leaner budgets.

  1. Investments often include communication skills, patient engagement strategies, scheduling technology, and retention-focused soft skills.

  2. Sources:

     • Hint Health – 2023 State of DPC Report

     • DPC Frontier Practice Startup Survey (2022)

Pediatric Practices

• Pediatric practices typically allocate $250–$700 per employee annually to customer service training.

  1. Key focus areas include family communication, conflict resolution, handling anxious parents, and child-friendly interaction techniques. Training budgets tend to increase when practices are affiliated with children’s hospitals or large pediatric groups.

  2. Sources:

     • Pediatric Practice Management Benchmarks (MGMA, 2023)

     • American Academy of Pediatrics – Practice Efficiency & Staff Development Report (2022)

Aesthetic & Plastic Surgery Practices

• These practices outspend most medical sectors, investing $1,000–$3,500 per employee annually in customer service training.

  1. The elevated spend reflects luxury service expectations, elective procedure sales training, and patient experience optimization. Training often includes external hospitality consultants, brand immersion programs, and sales psychology workshops.

  2. Sources:

     • Plastic Surgery Practice Management Trends Report (American Society of Plastic Surgeons, 2023)

     • Global Aesthetic Market Training Survey (Allergan Institute, 2022)

Concierge Medicine Practices

• Concierge medicine offices typically spend $500–$2,000 per employee annually—a figure that reflects their competitive focus on premium patient service.

  1. Many adopt hospitality-industry training standards to strengthen patient relationships, retention, and loyalty. This includes advanced communication training, service recovery techniques, and personalization strategies.

  2. Sources:

     • Concierge Medicine Today – Staff Training Survey (2023)

     • ACHE Patient Experience Investments Report (2022)

     • Training Magazine – Healthcare Sector Report (2024)

The Hotel Industry

• For comparison, hospitality companies typically invest $1,200–$6,000 per employee annually in service training. Hourly roles average about $1,200, while management roles can reach $6,000.

  1. Training emphasizes service excellence, conflict resolution, upselling, and guest loyalty programs—areas that healthcare can draw lessons from.

  2. Source:

     • Opus Hospitality Industry Training Benchmark (2025)

Key Takeaways

• Concierge medicine and aesthetic medicine spend far more per employee than most other healthcare models, reflecting their focus on premium service.

  1. Direct Primary Care invests more in patient experience training than traditional practices but less than high-end models due to smaller margins.

  2. The hospitality sector sets the gold standard for service training investment, often serving as the model for patient experience strategies in concierge medicine.

In short: the more your business model depends on loyalty and personalized service, the more you’re likely to invest in customer service training.

Disclaimer: Some of the information in this publication was gathered with the assistance of generative AI tools. While we strive for accuracy and timeliness, this content may contain errors, omissions, or outdated details. It is provided for informational purposes only and should not be relied upon as medical, legal, or financial advice. Concierge Medicine Today, LLC. makes no representations or warranties regarding its accuracy or completeness and assumes no liability for any loss, injury, or damages arising from its use.