FEATURE care is not only becoming more pop-ular – it’s becoming what patients are asking for in our results-oriented so-ciety. EDUCATION CLINICAL Educate and demonstrate How to make your patients trust in your care BY ANTHONY LOMBARDI If you watch any of my YouTube vid-eos and especially my EXSTORE and Acupuncture Clinical Videos, you will see that I explain concepts simply in terms the patient will understand. I explain what motor inhibition means, and how acupuncture works, and why the clinical trial is twice per week for three weeks. In fact, when they fill out the patient intake form online, a 90-second video plays explaining the importance of completing care. Every concept – from findings during assessment to types of treatment, and the concept of tissue healing – needs to be explained at the intellectual level of a 13-year old. It’s because if you do this, then everyone understands, and people who under-stand feel better about themselves because they feel smart. If they feel better about themselves they will feel better about you performing your treatments. DEMONSTRATION T he key to any patient acceptance of a concept is education and demon-stration. This combina-tion develops confidence in those who witness and experience it. Having said that, the best way to retain new patients is to show them you are different by getting tangible results on their first and second visits. In Ontario, the population has not grown as fast as the number of chiro-practors has. The utilization rate has remained unchanged from 1990-2013. In 1990, there were 10 million people in Ontario compared to 14 million in 2013 – an increase of 40 per cent. In 1990 there were 1,600 chiropractors in Ontario compared to 4,300 in 2013 – an increase of 169 per cent. So es-sentially there are now more chiro-practors competing for the same pa-tient pool. Thus, if you give patients a reason to believe that you are different from everyone else, then they are more likely to follow your recommenda-tions. Many chiropractors and chiroprac-tic students ask me what my game plan is when I approach a patient. Naturally, I’m happy to share. The neurofunctional approach to patient DR. ANTHONY LOMBARDI, DC, is consultant to athletes in the NFL, CFL and NHL, and founder of the Hamilton Back Clinic in Hamilton, Ont. He teaches his fundamental EXSTORE Assessment System and conducts practice-building workshops to health professionals. Visit exstore.ca for information. 22 Canadian Chiropractor July/August 2015 I preach this often and only because I have been doing it with great success. You need a consistent, reproducible assessment system if you are going to get outstanding clinical results. I’ve seen an average of 12 new patients per week for the last four years. The first visit is not only key – it is an absolute necessity because it’s here they realize I’m different. For my practice, I use EXSTORE – but it can be any sytem that is func-tional or that clearly demonstrates dysfunction to the patient. From there, you need to reveal and demon-strate a tangible limitation – some-thing anyone could recognize as dif-ferent. For example, you test one gluteus maximus and it’s strong, and then test the other and it’s very weak. Patients of all ages and any walk of life can appreciate the difference in their strength. You need to demonstrate how you correct the functional, mechanical limitation. I use acupuncture and or myofascial release because it’s easy to www.canadianchiropractor.ca
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