August 2007

A great patient referral source: Your patient's MD

by Dr. Charles Annunziata

Let's face it; there's nothing better than the referral of a new patient. No offense to the weekend Wal‑Mart warriors who spend every Saturday doing spinal screenings at their local convenience store, but that was never my cup of tea. Don't get me wrong, spinal screenings are something that we all should have done, at least once, almost as a rite of passage, but there's a better way to get new patients.

I wanted to build my practice through referrals, and not just patient referrals, but MD referrals. I noticed a strange phenomenon in my office. My most compliant, never‑miss‑an‑appointment patients were the ones referred to me by medical doctors. How do chiropractors get patient referrals from medical doctors? Just ask them.

These referrals are not the patients with the multi‑level disc herniations that you receive from neurologists or orthopods. You want your referrals to come from general practitioners. There are a growing number of patients all sharing the same affliction that your neighborhood general practitioner doesn't want to treat. The common ailment these patients all share: headaches!

To general practitioners, headache patients are just that... headaches. The most prominent treatment they prescribe for headaches is pharmaceuticals. When the pills don't work, these patients are back in the office wanting another option that does. Chiropractic is that option! Most headaches are cervicogenic in origin. So, after ruling out a more serious diagnosis, the proper cervical adjustment and myofascial release work will reduce a patient's headache.

The next question is how do you convey this knowledge to the MD?

We all know chiropractic treatment helps many different conditions. Despite this fact, if you try to explain all the possibilities to the medical doctor, you may lose his or her interest ‑‑ and your credibility. It's been my experience that when speaking to a medical doctor, it's best to talk about one particular condition that you can help, and I recommend talking about headaches.

There's a fairly simple theory as to how cervicogenic headaches may arise and how we can treat them favorably. In 1995, the rectus capitis posterior minor muscle, which connects from atlas to occiput, was discovered to have a connective tissue bridge with the dura mater ("Anatomic Relation Between the Rectus Capitis Posterior Minor Muscle and the Dura Mater," JMPT, October 1999). The dura mater surrounds the entire skull and contains many pain receptors. If the rectus capitis posterior minor muscle has a trigger point or atlas is fixated, it is going to cause a shortening of this muscle.

When this muscle shortens, it may tug and irritate the dura mater because of the connective tissue bridge they share. Chiropractic adjustments and myofascial release will help to lengthen that muscle and remove any irritation to the dura mater, thereby relieving the headache. This explanation is simple ‑‑ yet scientific ‑‑ and lends credibility to the service you provide. I put together a Power Point Presentation explaining this theory with diagrams as well as pictures of my office to use in our meeting with the medical doctor. I recommend doing the same for your meeting.

The final question is, how do you get that meeting?

Obtaining face to face time with a medical practitioner is a very difficult task... for some. Have you ever been in a medical practitioner's office around lunch time? There are usually one or two attractive, well‑dressed young professionals sitting in the waiting room waiting to visit with the doctor. These people are pharmaceutical reps and they come bearing gifts of lunch and other goodies. You're going to take a page right out of their book and do the same.

First, you locate the medical doctors who've also treated some of your existing patients. Next, you contact one of those offices, explain to the office manager who you are, that you treat one of the doctor's patients and would like to provide lunch for the doctor and staff to formally introduce yourself. This may require some persistence, but in the end the reward is well worth it.

You'll give your presentation at this luncheon. At the end of your presentation, ask the doctor if he or she is treating any patients who have recurring headaches and if you can have them referred to you for an examination. If the medical doctor is a little apprehensive, ask for his or her toughest headache patient, the patient that makes the MD cringe when he or she walks through the office door. The doctor will refer this patient to you as the ultimate test to see if you practice what you preach.

The above strategy requires persistence and intelligence about your presentation, as well as public speaking ability. Practice your presentation in front of your friends, family and other peers until you master it. Then watch your practice flourish with medical doctor referrals.

(Dr. Charles Annunziata is a national lecturer with DC Seminars and speaks on such topics as Myofascial Release Technique, Rehabilitation of the Spine, and Clinical Documentation. DC Seminars provides both live and on‑line approved continuing education seminars throughout the country. For more information, go to dcseminarsinfo.com or contact Dr. Annunziata at 800‑897‑2476.)