The "CAM No Mo'" article on the front page of this issue informs you that the number of people who have tried various forms of complementary and alternative medicine (CAM) has almost doubled in the last 10 years. When compared to the 1990 and 1997 surveys conducted by Dr. David Eisenberg,1,2 we see an exciting trend for alternative care, but a rather disturbing one for chiropractic.
In 1990,1 Dr. Eisenberg shocked the medical establishment with his findings: one third (33.8 percent) of U.S. adults had been to an alternative care provider. (At that time, Dr. Eisenberg called it "unconventional medicine.") During that same year, his figures showed that 10.1 percent of the adult U.S. population visited a doctor of chiropractic.
Dr. Eisenberg conducted his survey again in 1997.2 He noted that the use of "alternative medicine" (his "new" term) had risen dramatically from 33.8 to 42.1 percent, an increase of almost 25 percent; and visits to alternative care providers had increased from 36.3 to 46.3 percent (a 27.5 percent increase). In short, about one out of every two people had visited an alternative care provider.
Ironically, while alternative care increased a whopping 27.5 percent, the percentage of the population who had visited a doctor of chiropractic over the last 12 months had only increased from 10.1 to 11 percent, an increase more than offset by the number of chiropractors graduating over the seven-year period.
A new survey3 conducted via the internet by InterSurvey tells us what may sound like good news, but it is really bad news: Thirty-seven percent of the U.S. population has "tried" chiropractic, but the number of these people that see their doctor of chiropractic every year is still somewhere under 15 percent.
Think about the survey's implications: If over 68 million people have tried chiropractic, that works out to 1,141 patients per doctor (not including pediatric patients)! Based on these figures, I pose these questions about the chiropractic patient population:
I ask these questions to encourage or remind you to take the necessary actions to educate your patients about the lifetime value of chiropractic. No matter what your philosophy, your patients should be seeing you at least once per year. (For most of us, the appropriate frequency is closer to once per month.) Spines have to be as important as teeth.
"What's My Motivation?"
Let's look at what drives people to your office. The InterSurvey study tells you something that you could pay thousands of dollars to learn from a consultant:
Reasons People Try Alternative Care (including chiropractic)
1. Encourage and empower your current patients to refer. 2. Teach people how chiropractic is an integral part of a healthy lifestyle. 3. Network with other doctors of all specialties in your community. 4. Write and submit articles to your local newspaper or community magazines. 5. Establish an informative website.
This survey isn't a consultant talking, but an unbiased survey that is delivering good and bad news. Millions of people are trying different forms of alternative care, however, the chiropractic profession in the U.S. still lacks an effective, coordinated marketing campaign to take advantage of this trend. (This doesn't hold true for chiropractors in a number of other countries.)
I've given you just a few things you can do to increase your patient base and your number of visits per month. It takes extra work, but the trend is undeniably going our way. It's up to you to take advantage of it.
References
When sports chiropractors first appeared at the Olympic Games in the 1980s, it was alongside individual athletes who had experienced the benefits of chiropractic care in their training and recovery processes at home. Fast forward to Paris 2024, where chiropractic care was available in the polyclinic for all athletes, and the attitude has now evolved to recognize that “every athlete deserves access to sports chiropractic."
It is estimated that 61% of patients with CTS avoid taking surgical options due to postoperative complications and costly surgical procedures. Chiropractic care offers a comprehensive and effective treatment for carpal tunnel syndrome, addressing the condition from multiple angles. Recent studies also have unveiled a game-changing adjunct to chiropractic treatments for CTS: nerve flossing.
Some doctors thrive in a personality-based clinic and have a loyal following no matter what services or equipment they offer, but for most chiropractic offices who are trying to grow and expand, new equipment purchases help us stay relevant and continue to service our client base in the best, most up-to-date manner possible. So, regarding equipment purchasing: should you lease, get a bank loan, or pay cash?
