IT’S SURVEY TIME! I sent out an anonymous survey to 130 non-chiropractic patients from Canada and the United States. As a chiropractor, I am com-mitted to evolving and growing and I want to know what patients want. Aside from the obvious questions surrounding gender and age, I touched on the root of some of the issues that we face every day. Here’s what I found. The biggest reason people do not go to chiropractors is fear. Out of those surveyed, 64 per cent confirmed they were scared to see a chiropractor; 16 per cent said they have an issue with “cracking,” or adjustments, and the remainder were swayed by the negative perception of chiropractic. A few perceptions based on comments from participants that stood out were the following: there is fear the treatment will do more damage; they don’t believe it will work; they don’t view a chiropractor as a professional; they say a chiropractor is not a real doctor; there is a concern that chiropractors use procedures that can cause more harm than good if not used correctly; patients don’t understand the treatment options available and do not un-derstand what chiropractors can do for them. CHOOSING THE RIGHT HEALTH PROfESSIONAL When non-chiropractic patients were asked what, for them, was the single most important factor in choosing one health profes-sional over another, 70 per cent replied, “Reputation for attaining excellent results.” Less than three per cent said that location played a factor and eight per cent stated that price was a deterrent. EGO VERSUS SUCCESS In tough economic times, there is only one way to make yourself recession-proof and it’s simple: learn to achieve consistent out-standing clinical results. Not only is this obviously good for your patients, and the reason you went into chiropractic (right?), but also this will keep people coming back for more whenever they need you again. Furthermore, they will tell all of their friends, fam-ily and co-workers about the great work you did for them! So why isn’t everyone taking this advice? In order to achieve these goals you need to do more than oth-ers are willing to do. Not just one month out of the year, but every day, you need to go beyond what you think you already know and learn something new – this will assure you keep growing and developing and will translate into great results for your patients. I challenge you to learn something new every single day. Never let ego get in the way of your development as a health professional. WHAT’S IN A NAME? One of the single most powerful things we can do for our practice is communicate what it is we do in our business name. Here is a ques-tion that I included in the survey, to try to learn what, in your busi-ness name, tells people what you do. I have included, in parenthe-ses, the percentage of respondents who found the name informative: From this list, which office name do you most associate with having a chiropractor who works there: • XYZ Wellness Centre (1.5 per cent) • LA Performance Centre (6.2 per cent) • Healing Touch Centre (21.5 per cent) • None of the above (I don’t think chiropractor when I look at any of the titles) (70.8 per cent) The results are clear. Whether we like to admit it or not, the people most likely to be looking for your services have back pain and most of them will be looking for a place with the name chiropractic, spine or back in the title. BACK IN BUSINESS I want to encourage chiropractors who might be feeling like giving up because they’re paddling upstream to reconsider – don’t leave what you have invested so much time in! This is what you were meant to do and will be successful in. Here are two key points, which will ensure you continue to stay on track in a career choice that is the right choice and a rewarding one. 1. Find a mentor It is so important to find someone you look up to in the pro-fession. This should be someone who takes pride in their care of patients and who works diligently to improve their skills on a con-tinual basis. This shines in the work they do on their patients and is evident in the excellent results that they achieve. Make it your goal to find a mentor to improve your clinical skills. 2. Take continuing education workshops, seminars or courses It is important that you take workshops, courses and/or semi-nars not only to satisfy your licence requirements but also because it is vital to the development of your skill set. Improving your manual skills should be as high a priority as anything else in your practice. Remember, every chiropractor graduates from a recognized school. But, that is only the beginning. In general, we’ve all taken the same courses. To succeed, you need to do more – to be differ-ent, you must do the things others are not prepared to do. You’ve made it this far, so keep it going and stay motivated. • 30 • CANADiAN CHiROPRACTOR | APRiL 2013 www.canadianchiropractor.ca
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