EPISODE 1

How a Surgeon Built a 7-Figure Private Practice in 18 Months

For our inaugural episode, Dr. Daniel Choi sits down with Stavros Christoudias, MD, one of his earliest mentors when he was striking out on his own. Dr. Christoudias shares an honest look at the decisions that shaped his successful private practice, Heritage Surgical Group.

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our guest

Stavros Christoudias,
MD, FACSs

September 27, 2026 | 125mins

Direct Primary Care

Physician Wealth Building

Staff Hiring

Billing & Collections

Medical Real Estate

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About the Episode

The Blueprint for a Private Surgical Practice

When Dr. Daniel Choi began building his own practice in 2021, Dr. Stavros Christoudias was one of the first independent physicians he called for advice. In the inaugural episode of The Independent Physician, the longtime friends revisit those early conversations and offer an in-depth look at what it takes to build a surgical practice outside of a hospital system.

Dr. Christoudias shares how he grew from working alongside his father and wife in a small family practice to leading Heritage Surgical Group. He gets into the practical decisions behind that growth, including where to locate an office, whether to lease or own, which employees to hire first, how much financial runway a new practice needs, and why physicians need to understand their contracts and revenue cycle.

The conversation also explores what ownership can make possible beyond the financial benefits. For Dr. Christoudias, building a larger team gave him the freedom to spend more time with his family and define success on his own terms.

Along the way, Dr. Choi and Dr. Christoudias discuss the pressures facing private practice, the role of physician advocacy, and why the next generation of doctors needs greater exposure to independent career paths.

What You’ll Learn

Inside the Independent Practice Playbook

Why physicians should carefully review restrictive covenants before leaving an employed position or signing a new contract

The two primary routes into private practice: joining an established independent group or starting from scratch

What to consider when choosing a market, office location, and geographic footprint

Why multiple smaller satellite offices worked better for Heritage Surgical Group than one large central location

The first administrative roles a new practice needs and why hiring the right people is one of ownership’s greatest challenges

How maintaining three to six months of payroll can help a new practice survive the delay before revenue ramps up

Why Dr. Christoudias reinvested his early earnings into employees, advanced practice providers, and physician partners

What every practice owner should understand about billing, reimbursements, appeals, and insurer negotiations

How ownership allowed Drs. Christoudias and Choi to build careers that made more room for their families

Why effective physician advocacy must focus on how healthcare policies affect patients and communities

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Key Takeaways

Lessons From the Conversation

01

Read Your Contract Before Planning Your Exit

Restrictive covenants shape where and how an employed physician is permitted to practice. Before making a move, understand the agreement, obtain qualified legal guidance, and account for the potential cost and distraction of a dispute.

02

Build Financial Runway

Practices rarely start generating reliable revenue off the bat. Dr. Christoudias recommends planning for at least three months of payroll (and potentially six months when reimbursements may take longer) to give the business time to establish stable cash flow.

03

Choose the Market Before the Office

Location determines the patient population, payer mix, commute, overhead, and the practice’s reach. Dr. Christoudias explains why thinking geographically, and eventually establishing several strategically placed offices, helped his group serve a much larger region.

04

Reinvest Before You Reward Yourself

Instead of upgrading his lifestyle right away, Dr. Christoudias put his early earnings back into the practice. That capital helped him hire support staff and physician partners, expand capacity, and create a more sustainable call schedule.

05

Define Success Beyond Revenue

Owning a practice can create significant financial opportunity, but maximum income was never the only goal. For both Dr. Christoudias and Dr. Choi, independence made it possible to decide what mattered most, including being present for their families.

06

Learn the Business of Getting Paid

Clinical excellence alone does not sustain a practice. Owners need to understand how claims are submitted, why payments are denied, how contracts affect reimbursement, and when it’s time to bring in billing or legal expertise.

“You can end up making all
the money in the world and
still be a failure.”

— Stavros Christoudias, MD, FACS

For Dr. Christoudias, the real value of ownership is having the autonomy to build a practice and a life around the priorities that matter to him.

Meet the guest

Stavros Christoudias,  MD, FACS

Dr. Stavros Christoudias is a second-generation, board-certified general surgeon and the founder and managing partner of Heritage Surgical Group in Teaneck, New Jersey. Founded in 2012, the independent practice specializes in minimally invasive surgery, with a particular focus on abdominal wall hernias.

Dr. Christoudias also serves as Medical Director of Holy Name Medical Center’s Institute for Wound Healing, where he leads a multidisciplinary team that provides advanced wound care. He is a Fellow of the American College of Surgeons and a longtime advocate for private practice, patient access, and the physician-patient relationship.

Heritage Surgical Group

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Episode Transcript

Read the Full Conversation

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Introducing The Independent Physician and Dr. Stavros Christoudias

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