In this episode, we interview Kristin Winter, owner of SpeechRx in Stuart, Florida, about transitioning from a hospital leadership role to building an adult-only private practice specializing in dysphagia, voice, and head and neck cancer care.

Kristin explains how her side hustle began in 2020 with home visits, grew into an office-based clinic centered on in-office FEES, and expanded to a team of four clinicians with specialized roles.

She shares early marketing tactics (flyers, rack cards, physician outreach, networking, chamber of commerce), conducting market analysis by “searching like a patient,” and using support groups and community education to drive referrals and outcomes.

Kristin discusses credentialing and the realities of insurance participation, emphasizing Medicare’s importance, renegotiating rates, and going out-of-network when reimbursements are unsustainable.