Helping midwives and midwifery practices with the nuances of running their own business
As licensed care providers for mothers and babies, midwives wear many hats including educators, nutrition counselors, coaches, advocates, and trusted health care professionals—just to name a few. Adding ‘business owner’ to the list means more roles and responsibilities that can be overwhelming to navigate. Our clients—midwives and midwifery practices across Ontario—needed help understanding how they were being taxed as independent contractors or in some instances, through partnerships. While health care providers first, midwives who are partners or associates are also considered business owners or self-employed and required guidance completing personal and partnership tax returns.
Translated the complexities of tax compliance for individuals and practices operating as a partnership.
Provided a deeper understanding of their business including explanations about cashflow management.
Supported the re-writing of a partnership agreement by working with a lawyer to make it more reflective of how the practice operates.
Prepared tax returns using an integrated planning approach to fulfill compliance obligations.
Midwifery practices require specific knowledge and experience combined with a thorough understanding of their challenges. Our team took the time to explain how their funding model—which is based on courses of care or the number of births performed—dictated cashflow, and taxable income. They also helped clients who were associates of a practice understand they are still taxed as business owners and considered self-employed. Additionally, our team supported clients involved in partnerships who deal with other nuances when new partners are hired or leave and how profit calculations need to adapt. In one instance, we worked with a midwifery practice and its lawyer to rewrite a partnership agreement so that it was more reflective of how they operated. At the end of the year, our team was fully prepared to complete both personal and partnership tax returns accurately, helping each client become as tax efficient as possible.
Being a midwife is undoubtedly one of the oldest and most beautiful professions. Our team’s help with supporting the business aspect of their work was deeply rewarding. By making the effort to get to know our midwife clients and their practices, we understood the challenges they faced and could assess their needs, find opportunities, and provide strategic advice to see them thrive. In understanding the implications of being a business owner while also being a health care provider, they were able to focus more on their passion: delivering exceptional primary care to mothers and babies. Through regular touchpoints, timely service delivery, and taking a genuine interest in their work, we built strong relationships that have grown our client base in this unique market.
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