office flow, staffi ng schedules, training and protocols, some aspects of marketing, ad- mission sequence, patient care packages etc. and make suggestions on how to establish, change or build on these protocols. This may require some days of observing the current work environment before offering assessments and suggestions for the DC to employ. Following that, the consultant may assist in implementing new strategies and following their progress to evaluate whether these strategies are effi cacious for that DC or not. Strategies can be tweaked as necessary until a formula is arrived at that ensures ef- ficient fl ow within the offi ce but adheres as closely as possible to the consultant’s guide- lines – the purpose here is to streamline the administrative structure of the practice. A DC’s relationship with a consultant is usually much shorter than that with a coach – its goal is to be fi nite with the end- point being the successful implementation of practice management protocols that facil- itate staff profi ciency and practical business structure and effi cient patient flow.4 The career point when a consultant might be extremely helpful to a chiroprac- tor is usually somewhere near the begin- ning – fi ve years or less in practice. Many technical aspects of practice management are being taught more in chiropractic col- leges, in order to prepare graduating stu- dents to run the practice they plan to build. In Canada, the chiropractic program at the Universite du Quebec at Trois Rivières (UQTR) offers courses in practice manage- ment and administration in the last year of the program.5 The Canadian Memorial Chiropractic College (CMCC) will, as of this year, also be offering this to its students. However, a boost in effi ciency, guided by a practice consultant, might be helpful when a young DC is trying to get a practice “off the ground” or at any level along the subse- quent journey. In contrast, the impact of a coach may begin at the business and administra- tive level but will extend beyond this to touch on many other aspects of being a chiropractic practitioner. Coaches are usually equipped and trained to address broader issues such as the chiropractor’s paradigm, approach and communication with patients – especially new/potential patients – staff fulfillment and satisfaction, approach to marketing, overall life balance and the practitioner’s confi dence and satisfaction with his/her own work. These are issues which crop up, www.canadianchiropractor.ca of course, with new graduates but which also are faced by practitioners at all levels of their career. Furthermore, the right coaches can benefit those chiropractors who are in- volved in the profession beyond their prac- tice in activities such as teaching, association positions, business/franchise development, community programs, etc. A DC’s relationship with a coach could be fi nite – if that is the appropriate direction for that DC’s situation – or can become a permanent fixture, benefi ting the practitio- ner until he/she retires. CHIROPRACTIC COACHES – CULTURE OR CULTS Because the relationship a DC establishes with a chiropractic coach can be long and touch on issues and practice aspects that are deeply important, it is crucial that coaches respond to their individual client’s needs by setting reasonable, practical and attainable goals. Conversely, since the relationship is built on trust, it is imperative that the DC ensure the coach’s values reflect his/hers, and if lifestyle and professional goals can be addressed by that coach. 6 In addition, chiropractors are advised to enter into a coaching relationship with lon- gevity in mind as much time and energy can be lost when one skips around from coach to coach. This “jumping around” leads to a hodge-podge of approaches that lack con- tinuity, precluding the DC from mastering systems that are meant to serve for years and years.7 A good coach must be able to provide personalized formulas that will empower the chiropractor to fulfi ll his/her role as a practitioner, a business person and an em- ployer, while recalling the DC’s accountabil- ity in all practice-related situations. Finally, a coach must be able to access the key to a particular client’s fulfi llment and satisfac- tion in order to establish balance at work and play, while enriching each individual practitioner’s commitment to excellence in his/her practice. Many coaching services aspire to these – and perhaps other – results when work- ing with their clients, and this makes them, one would think, a desirable entity within the profession of chiropractic. Why, then, is there still some cynicism toward chiropractic coaching? Detractors of the coaching culture may be concerned with the empty “cult-like” potential of some coaching paradigms as well as whether these may project a nega- tive image of the profession’s direction to its critics. For example, the all-encompassing “guru” coach, or coaches that promise ex- orbitant fi nancial gains or expound on how to exponentially multiply patient numbers, are considered less than credible entities of which practitioners should be wary. The concerns are twofold. The fi rst is that the individual DC will waste time and money and then be disappointed with the results. The second concern is that this type of coaching casts a bad light on the profes- sion, making it appear that a lucrative busi- ness is the foundation to the chiropractic purpose and that pushing as many patients through clinic as possible – thus reducing the amount of time and attention avail- able per patient – is the paradigm of the profession as a whole. A good coach will note that no one coach can help meet all the challenges for every chiropractor. This is where the DC must be discerning in choosing a coach who is aligned with his/her practice and lifestyle goals and values and will help to meet these through a customized and real- istic program. Furthermore, although salary is a real, and global, consideration for any field – and, in fairness, chiropractors cannot be expected to be considered an exception to this – chiropractors, as a group, and regard- less of practice paradigm, realize income is only part of the raison d’être for any health professional. As well, most DCs know that a lucrative practice does not, alone, make a successful or happy chiropractor. Success and happiness are also related to excellence, practitioner effi cacy, wellness-oriented pa- tient-centred care, life balance, and fulfill- ment, both personal and professional. And, with this, a good coach will also agree. For those chiropractors who feel lacking in the latter considerations – and who might also, in fairness, need some help boosting practice numbers – the right coach can be most helpful and, in fact, necessary for the practitioner to stay afl oat, maintain staff consistency and morale, and prevent burn- out for him/her self.8 Dr. Janet Hughes is a CMCC graduate and has recently re-established herself as an independent chiropractic coach. Previously, Hughes ran a successful coaching company in Canada – called WowCoach – based in Brantford, Ontario. Following that, she spent one year at Palmer College coaching senior students through the Palmer Insti- tute, and then joined The Master’s Circle, CANADIAN CHIROPRACTOR | OCTOBER 2008 • 9
Chiropractic + Naturopathic Doctor October 08: Page 9
