Please don't get me wrong. I think it is wonderful that the chiropractic profession raised nearly a half million dollars in less than a month to support the Red Cross. The generosity and efforts of Foot Levelers' President Kent Greenawalt and the hundreds of DCs that contributed is commended and celebrated on the front page of this issue.
But is the Red Cross the only organization that can get this profession to stop bickering and come together for a common cause? Why are we so willing to give to the needs of others, yet are apparently incapable of doing the same for ourselves? What is keeping this profession from donating $500,000 a month to make the public aware of chiropractic?
The math is not that difficult. To make it even easier, let's assume that only 50,000 of the 60,000 DCs are full-time doctors.
Ready? Here's the formula:
50,000 DCs @ $10 per month =
$500,000 per month =
$6,000,000 per year
Think about $6,000,000 per year to teach and inform millions of potential patients about the importance and benefits of chiropractic care. We could generate thousands of new patients every month. If you get at least one new patient, you're ahead financially. If you get more, you're way ahead!
Even if you were one of the few who doesn't get a new patient, what would it cost you? You'd up the cost of a couple of "happy meals" per month so that chiropractic could impact the health of more people. You could take pride in making a difference in the health and lives of thousands of people.
What will it take for us to figure this out and make this a reality?
Donald M. Petersen Jr., BS, HCD (hc), FICC(h)
Editor / Publisher of Dynamic Chiropractic
don@mpamedia.com
