January 2006

Five ways to facilitate 'paradigm shift' in your patients' minds

by Laurent Goldstein

In the beginning, my perception of chiropractic was not really different from the majority of the population. I associated it with back pain and the only time I ever went to a DC was when I was looking for a "quick fix." I never thought of going back for regular adjustments.

Chiropractors have been educating patients for the last 110 years but the fact remains that their efforts haven't worked well.

According to the last Eisenberg/Tindle study on alternative medicine, 7.4% of the population visited a chiropractor in 2002, down from 9.9% in 1997. Enrollment in chiropractic schools is down 35%. The time has come to look for fresh and new ways to get the chiropractic message across.

Because of Brican, I have traveled extensively in the last eight years. I have attended hundreds of seminars, some that were organized and hosted by Brican in different cities across the US and Canada. I have visited hundreds of practices and met thousands of chiropractors. I have asked people all over North America and Europe what they think of chiropractic and drawn on my own experience as a patient. I have identified five key components which have to be implemented in order to run a successful practice.

1. An effortless shift from allopathic to chiropractic/wellness thinking has to be created.

Patients come into the office with an allopathic frame of mind. They, like I did, expect a quick fix. The challenge is that if the pain doesn't go away after a few adjustments, they don't understand why they should keep coming back. If the pain does go away quickly, they still don't understand why they should keep coming back.

Explaining during the report of findings that health is a process and all processes take time conflicts with the allopathic paradigm which offers a "pill for every ill." This model is featured and advertised hundreds of times a day on TV and in magazines, even sometimes in the chiropractic office itself!

The other challenge is a perception that when people see a chiropractor, they have to keep going back. Playing a few slides on your TVs or Plasma screens in your reception and adjusting areas of you getting adjusted and adjusting your staff and family, will effortlessly and subconsciously change the perception in your patients' minds and move them toward a desire to explore the idea of making chiropractic care part of the lifestyle of the entire family.

2. When it comes to patient education, repetition is the key.

How many times did you have to read and be exposed to the definition of the vertebral subluxation before you became comfortable explaining it to your patients? Not only should patients understand what a subluxation is and its impact on their health, but they will very likely have to try to defend their decision to see a chiropractor to their spouse. When patients are exposed to clear, simple and highly visual educational messages, they become more fluent in spreading the chiropractic story.

3. Make every minute spent in the office count.

When patients are in the office, every minute counts. As soon as they leave the office, they are "educated" by the drug companies.

4. Get patients to ask questions!

We might assume that an 82 year‑old patient wants to hear about arthritis or high blood pressure, when she might want to hear about pregnancy, because her granddaughter happens to be pregnant! The fact that chiropractic does wonders as far as facilitating a better pregnancy is concerned will never enter her field of consciousness ‑‑ unless it's triggered by visual messages showing pregnant women being adjusted, together with educational and inspiring information.

5. Build enthusiasm for chiropractic.

Satisfied patients don't always refer, but enthusiastic patients always do. They become chiropractic ambassadors for life! Playing testimonials in your office in an on‑going manner will do a great job at boosting the energy and enthusiasm and will result in an increased number of referrals and a better PVA. We also encourage doctors to get patients to listen to the greatest speakers in the profession and Brican has a program available for that purpose. Imagine what would happen to your practice if you could take your patients to a Parker seminar!

(Laurent Goldstein is president of Brican Systems Corporation. He can be reached at 800‑644‑1055.)