Are you kidding me?
Sunday, February 13, 2011 at 4:49PM 
R.J. Hammett, DC
INTRODUCTION
In the last month I’ve attended several chiropractic seminars, both clinical and philosophical. The best part of the seminars that I found wasn’t just the context of the program being presented, but the conversations in the hallways amongst the doctors. A common theme has run through the last few seminars that I’ve attended. The most heard of conversation is one about insurance and third party pay, the second most prevalent conversation is about patient volume and the lack of new patients. The last frequent conversation is about the economy and where chiropractic is heading in the future.
In this article, I would like to address each one of these three topics that I have heard time and time again from different groups and factions within chiropractic.
Third Party Pay
The first concern is about insurance and third party pay. Every conversation heard is about how much are you getting or how you are losing from the insurance companies? Or, it’s about which insurance is still paying well and which one doesn’t. In 1980 when I started my practice in Wisconsin there was no insurance coverage for any type of chiropractic care. In fact, we didn’t get halfway decent coverage until 1984 / 85. Listening to these conversations amongst the doctors reminds me of the joke “how many doctors does it take to change a light bulb”. Lots of bitching and moaning and no true answers is what I hear a lot of.
Where Are the New Patients?
The second comment thread that I hear discussed in the hallways is about the lack of new patients and low volume. I find it curious that when chiropractic was just correcting subluxations without the use of physical therapy, vitamin therapy, emotional therapy, hair removal, massage therapy, and a host of over 100 different other procedures or therapies, they were easily adjusting 50 and 100 patients per day. With the onset of the greed gland salivating for third party payment and the paperwork, time and aggravation to provide all of these ancillary preparatory and post adjustment treatments has caused the chiropractors to lose focus on what provides the patient with the most for the patient’s dollar—The adjustment.
Chiropractic’s Future
The last conversation heard in the hallways is about the future of chiropractic. Depending on the group of chiropractors you hang out with you hear two different stories. The groups that appear to have stable and growing practices are those chiropractors solely focused on one thing, that one this is each and every patient that comes before them for help outside of mainstream medical care. The other group is more concerned about money, politics and who’s controlling their life from the outside in. It’s not that we should not be concerned about whom our chiropractic leaders are and where they’re going, especially in light of the recent CCE goings-on. However, as with all things in life you cannot control what is outside your own grasp.
My Advice
So the advice I have for you is the same advice that I received at Life Chiropractic College so many years ago, that Doctor Gonstead spoke about when I visited him. The only concern that you have is the patient before you, if your focus has become one of what therapies they need, and how you’ll be paid, when you’ll be paid and who’s paying you, than your practice will reflect exactly that. The only way that chiropractic in the past has survived the attacks from the government, for the medical profession, and even from our own people was to take care of each and every patient as if that patient was their own family member, to provide a great service, to charge a fair fee, to believe in chiropractic and its ability to get sick people well in a way that no other profession does. And then, let the public decide what was most important to them.
SUMMARY
For chiropractic to prosper, to grow, to be more accepted, it must come first from service to the patient and their community. Patients you see, only want one very simple thing from you, answers and results to their healthcare concerns, they want it fast, reasonably priced and caring. If you truly want your practice, yourself, your patents and family to move forward and not just survive but to thrive, look to where your focus has been and ask yourself is your head in the right place?
Till next time…