For the past 10 years, I’ve been running THC Primary Care, which is a consultancy supporting the leadership and management of primary care networks. I absolutely love the community we’ve built, and I love the job.
Whilst we share a lot of advice and guidance to help primary care networks on social media, I don’t share much behind the scenes. I’ve been thinking more recently about the pros and cons of building in public, and I’ve decided to share a bit more about something I’m working on.
This is nerve-wracking because I don’t want to overshare, but I love watching people document their journeys on YouTube and TikTok. While I love consuming video, making them isn’t my jam. Writing for me is the way to go for now, and I can also share updates on my Business of Healthcare podcast, too.
So here goes…..my first attempt at building in public.
How It All Started
Back in early 2025 (around January/February), I discovered Claude AI. That discovery opened my eyes to the tech industry and what was possible. Then I attended a hackathon, which completely changed my perspective on what I could build myself.
At the hackathon, I spotted a massive problem: primary care networks were struggling with how they manage their finances. So I decided to build a solution, using Claude AI to help me create an MVP.
Where I Am Now
Fast forward to today, and I’ve built what I think is a sophisticated MVP. But here’s the thing—maybe it’s too sophisticated. Every time I try to make refinements, I end up breaking something else.
‼️For those who think AI is the answer to everything, it has its limitations.
The Reality Check
I wanted to launch by summer, but I missed that deadline.
Here’s what I’m dealing with:
- 50 tasks in my Asana project (no exaggeration)
- Working with 2 mentors for guidance
- Solo development while running my existing business
- Learning to code through a beginner’s course to understand the technical challenges
The silver lining is that the tool and my business work together seamlessly. I’m building a solution for problems I encounter daily in my work with primary care networks. Rather than splitting my focus, everything I’m doing is intertwined.
Wrestling with Decisions
I’ve been wrestling with three options, so I created a decision matrix:
Deploy Current MVP:
- Pros: Get real user feedback immediately, stop endless refinements, start validating the concept
- Cons: Complex interface might overwhelm users initially
Keep Simplifying:
- Pros: Better user experience, easier to maintain
- Cons: Risk of endless perfectionism, breaking working features, delayed feedback
Start Over:
- Pros: Clean architecture, apply lessons learned, and a better first impression
- Cons: no guarantee of better results, more time required… and quite frankly…. demoralising
I’ve made my decision: I’m starting over!!!! I am already on version 12! But now I am going to build the pages separately and connect them using APIs. Those of you who know what Im talking about will feel my pain.
I’m feeling disheartened, but I know my future self will thank me.
Asking for Help
I’ve also learnt that while I’ve accomplished a lot by myself, I can’t do everything alone. I’m a non-technical founder building a technical project! Yes, keeping costs low by doing it myself seemed bright, but I need help (which I have now got).
It’s Not All Bad Though
There is some good news:
- Published work: I’ve contributed to PCN Pulse (an online publication for primary care leaders) and already submitted my article early!
- Team milestone: My assistant, Valentina celebrates 5 years at THC this week—employing her was one of my best business decisions
- Strong B2B demand: We’re getting lots of requests for group training to support primary care network leaders
- How It Got Commissioned: I’ve recorded all of the interviews for our How It Got Commissioned podcast series (inspired by How I Built This with Guy Raz)—showing how primary care leaders got services commissioned when they haven’t gone through traditional routes. It’s sooooo good!!!!
- Batched content: I’ve already written all of the content for our Business of Primary Care Network blog for the month of September
Latest Podcast Episode
Speaking of content creation, this week’s podcast episode explores how policy shifts, the NHS 10-year plan, and AI are reshaping primary care networks.
I share insights on evaluating AI’s potential, staying grounded in core strengths, and navigating uncertainty in team dynamics.
And Learning how focusing on what you can control, fostering collaboration, and building alliances can help you keep moving forward.
Listen here: https://bit.ly/THCNavigatingUnvertainty
The Business of Healthcare
Going with the Flow
Having run a business for 10 years, I know it’s perfectly normal for not all work streams to progress smoothly simultaneously. Ideally, everything would move forward together exactly as planned, but that’s not life. There are constant swings and roundabouts.
Thanks for following along with this journey. I’ll keep you updated on what happens next!
The Business of Healthcare Leadership (Patients, People, Money, and Governance)
The Business of Healthcare leadership
7 sessions covering what every healthcare leader needs to master:
- Team dynamics and vision building
- Finance and strategic planning
- HR essentials and culture
- Influencing change and integration
- Governance and decision making
- Developing integrated services
- Productivity and AI tools
Develop the strategic leadership competencies to navigate complex healthcare environments, make confident resource decisions, and drive transformation through influence and coalition building.
Learn more and apply here: https://www.thcprimarycare.co.uk/thebusinessofhealthcareleadership
