There has never been a better time to be a chiropractor – especially an evidence-based chiropractor. In the past several years, a preponderance of positive research supporting the benefits and safety of the chiropractic package of treatment has emerged. Simultaneously, research has highlighted the lack of benefits and increasing harms of the most common interventions used by U.S. medical doctors to treat nonspecific neck and back pain.
This creates an enormous opportunity for evidence-based chiropractors. Our national and state organizations and chiropractic colleges are doing their very best to promote chiropractic with their limited resources. But individual practitioners need to step up and lead the cause. Yes, we need to actively support our institutions. But we also need to take charge of our own practices and take steps to positively influence our communities.
Share Health Tips
Our individual practices can become tipping points of change. Current research can utterly transform our practices while enhancing our reputation in our communities. The key to unlocking these changes is for us spread the word about current research.
An effective way to do this is to share with patients one brief research synopsis per week in the form of a current, evidence-based "health tip." The health tip should be concise and easy to understand. For example, "A scientific review published in the Journal of the American Medical Association found that spinal manipulation was effective in patients with acute low back pain for improvements in pain and function, and found no serious harms.1 That is a strong endorsement from the top medical journal."1
The manner in which you deliver this communication is critically important. If you want to have a positive influence on your patients, you must show them you care. If they do not know you care, they will not care what you know.
Patients have clear expectations of their doctors. They expect you to be professional and caring, to deliver good results, and to be "up-to-date." Your weekly evidence-based health tip will ensure you not only meet these expectations, but also exceed them. Note that patients prefer to receive health tips not via a paper handout or email, but by verbal communication from their doctor or chiropractic team member.2
Hold 1-Minute Team Huddles
RESEARCH-BASED HEALTH TIPS:A FEW MORE EXAMPLES TO SHAREWITH YOUR PATIENTS
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In your 1-minute team huddle, you will first say a positive comment about how one of the team functions can positively affect patient outcomes and satisfaction. For example, "When you interact with any patient with warmth and compassion, you help create patient satisfaction. Your thoughtful communications are valuable to our patients. Thank you for your contributions! "
This demonstrates to the team members that you recognize their value. It elevates morale within the practice and motivates excellent team members to continue their employment with your clinic long-term.
After your positive comment, share the health tip of the week with your team. This ensures you and your team are on the same page. Knowing you care about them, the team is now ready to extend that same level of caring to your patients.
Communicate With MDs
In our communities, we need to be proactive in meeting and communicating with local medical providers. You should focus on internal medicine and general practitioners. These MDs are desperate to find alternatives to opioids for their neck and back pain patients. They are very receptive to evidence-based chiropractors who can share with them the best research of the day and provide research-based alternatives.
The opioid crisis has provided our profession with a rare and precious opportunity – a wide-open door to collaborate with our medical colleagues in solving an urgent, major health care issue.
An Opportunity We Can't Ignore
As chiropractors, we are in a unique position to inform our patients, inspire our teams, and highlight our profession's ability to provide safer, more effective treatment for neck and back pain. Armed with evidence, each of us can take the following steps to positively influence our practices and our communities: 1) support our national and state associations and colleges; 2) provide weekly evidence-based health tips to patients; 3) start every Monday morning with a 1-minute standing team huddle; and 4) provide local MDs with current research about our effectiveness and safety.
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?
