Be prepared in 2025. The trend in chiropractic is shifting; you will either grow or contract. Based on two years of market research, I believe the likelihood of maintaining the status quo is unlikely. In this shifting environment, you must understand it to compete and succeed.
Ten to 15 years ago, the goal was to make other DCs irrelevant, which was easy and not difficult for any provider to see the path and succeed. Five to 10 years ago, the strategy shifted to making medical specialists (orthopedists, neurosurgeons, and pain management) irrelevant as the first referral option for spine, which also worked. It involved advanced academics involving both chiropractic and medical academia – another easy path because it was easy to identify in the marketplace.
Today, the landscape is invisible because the competition integrates disciplines, unlike multi-discipline practices in the past (medicine, physical therapy, and chiropractic – in that order) in a corporate environment, focusing on technology, statistics, and credentials (again, in that order).
These aren’t those cut-rate chiropractic corporations that have tried to bastardize our profession by cutting every corner. It also isn’t the chiropractic or medical entrepreneurs looking to build a better “mouse trap” for referrals. This is Wall Street private-equity firms investing hundreds of millions of dollars into the musculoskeletal health care sector, and they only want two things from you: all your referrals and all your money.
Spoiler Alert
Today, they are winning because they were the first to properly position themselves with technology already developed; and Ivy League-caliber MBAs at the helm as the corporate CFOs. I have spoken to many of them nationally, and they are getting over 200 new musculoskeletal cases per week into their networks with offices under two years old. Private-equity firms in this space do not want a 40-50% return on investment (ROI); they want a 1,000% ROI … and are getting it.
Validation
What I have learned from corporate is that it does not start with the doctor; it starts with technology and ends with the doctor. If you don’t believe me, go to an emergency room twice – you will not see the same doctors. The same applies to most urgent care centers, which are privately owned or run and equally successful.
The Solution
The solution begins with technology. Leading corporations prioritize substantial investments in their digital infrastructure first, which lays the groundwork for achieving a 1,000% ROI. In contrast, the chiropractic profession often hesitates to invest in technology, focusing on cost-cutting instead. This approach contributes to the persistent 7-10% utilization rate within the field and solidifies the failed business practice of “rinse and repeat.”
By relegating technology to an afterthought in their business strategies, much of chiropractic remains stuck, unable to keep pace with the rapidly advancing health care industry.
Those who practice wellness (you) often think they are insulated because your practice is long-term patients who understand the value of staying well vs. getting well; but you are not immune to this new trend. The lifeblood of every chiropractic practice is pain and is the “top of the funnel” with most new patients. How you educate those patients to stay long-term is the “magic” in your practice.
However, those referrals at the “top of the funnel” are being diverted due to the messaging and ability to communicate to the masses regarding who they should trust in their care. You will not feel this overnight; it will slowly, but steadily impact your practice.
Beyond technology – which addresses essential tasks like documentation, compliance, marketing, patient management, and billing, corporations prioritize hiring highly credentialed doctors. While doctors may be the final piece in their success formula, they recognize that advanced credentials are essential to thrive in today’s competitive marketplace.
These organizations specifically seek out doctors with superior qualifications, leveraging their expertise as a cornerstone of their marketing strategies. Higher-skilled doctors also make better clinical decisions, reduce errors, and excel in compliance-focused documentation. This results in higher reimbursements, fewer audits, and reduced risks of lawsuits.
As we move into 2025, the focus shifts to thriving in an evolving marketplace by surpassing corporate competitors and capturing greater market share. This mandates utilizing advanced technology and leveraging AI (artificial intelligence) for many manual tasks necessary to compete.
In 2024, many offices teetered on bankruptcy by trying to compete without using technology. The overwhelming labor costs forced them to abruptly contract their practices and cut staff in a cost-saving move; a knee-jerk reaction that lowered everything, including income.
For example, corporate practices ensure that every evaluation and re-evaluation report is automatically sent to all relevant MDs, specialists, and attorneys in personal-injury cases. They understand the importance of maintaining "top-of-mind consciousness" in the referral process, following a best practice model of care coordination.
This process is entirely automated in corporate practices because the absence of automation severely diminishes ROI. Unfortunately, most chiropractic-based software lacks the capability to perform this task. With AI-driven automation, these reports are sent without any staff involvement, saving significant time (and money) compared to manual methods like email, fax, e-fax, or snail mail.
In non-automated offices, the burden of meeting the 30-day reporting requirement for E&M services becomes unsustainable. As a result, corporate practices capture more referrals by demonstrating top-of-mind marketing and positioning themselves as collaborative team players in the health care ecosystem.
Without this action step, you will be overlooked – and ultimately, invisible – in this competitive landscape. Automation will resolve this task and should cost you $0, as this simple task is built into most advanced EHR systems that corporate practices use.
To effectively compete with "corporate" practices, modernizing your digital infrastructure is just the beginning. You must also strategically invest your time in maintaining a competitive edge over other DCs and MDs. This requires following the blueprint for achieving the 1,000% ROI that corporations utilize, which includes:
- Advanced Academics: Continuously enhancing your credentials and clinical expertise to provide superior care and stand out in a competitive marketplace.
- "Best Practice Models": Embracing proven strategies for care coordination, documentation, and patient management to build trust and increase referrals.
- Academic Marketing: Positioning yourself as a health care community thought leader through data-driven marketing strategies that highlight your expertise.
Combining these elements allows you to remain at the forefront of your field and thrive in an evolving chiropractic landscape in 2025 – and beyond.
