Recognizing Greatness in Our Teams

Posted on October 7, 2024 by Edward Petty

Synergy and the Balanced Business

smiling happy woman Linda Skiles,
Wisconsin Chiropractic Assistant of the Year 1990, 2024

We are all busy helping our patients, clients, and customers. That is what we do.

As a doctor and business owner, you have spent years learning your skills and spending fortunes investing in your business. You have sacrificed personal and family time to make a go of it. Your attention is on service, outcomes, and the bottom line. This is understandable and correct.

But sometimes, a key element of the practice gets little attention.

I have seen this in other offices as I have seen it in ours.

A business has 2 major parts. It is like a yin-yang engine. One side of the formula pushes, and the other pulls. One side is production and services, and the other is support and organization, like a car engine with driving pistons and other moving parts supported by the stable engine block.

To the degree each side, each component supports the other, the faster the engine will go.

This is synergy.

The support and organization side of the business engine does not always get the recognition it deserves. Most employees, at some point, have wanted to improve their practices and have been eager to do so.

We live in a mostly thankless world with constant negative reinforcement. We often don’t acknowledge the excellent work of our staff, our patients’ successes, or even our spouses’ contributions.

I feel that all chiropractors and their staff should take time off every month just to celebrate their successes and acknowledge their grit.

LINDA SKILES

This brings me to our Linda Skiles. Linda is our practice manager and is the C.A. to all our offices – doctors and staff. She has worked with us since 2001. She may have worked with you in one manner or another.

This weekend, in front of 400 or so in attendance at the fall convention of the Chiropractic Society of Wisconsin, Linda was acknowledged as Chiropractic Assistant of the Year.

Linda began working for a chiropractor in 1985. After he retired, she worked for another group practice here in Wisconsin. She then began working for Petty, Michel & Associates.
In 1990, Linda was awarded Chiropractic Assistant of the Year by another Wisconsin association, the Wisconsin Chiropractic Association.

In addition, she has volunteered her time to many chiropractic projects and local community activities in her small country town here in Wisconsin. She has received numerous private commendations for her good work over the years and sets an extraordinary example of team member work ethics.

She gets things done!

In 2023, she completed the Practice Manager MBA program and is now in the Practice Manager Internship and Certification Program.

Linda has contributed to the profession for 39 years and is not about to retire.

You can read more about Linda’s career here.

Let’s all take time to recognize the contributions of our support teams, without whom the engines of our businesses would not run.

Keep your motors runnin’,

Dave Michel, Linda Skiles, Ed Petty

Improving Chiropractic Patient Follow Through

Posted on August 29, 2023 by Edward Petty

The outcomes you produce as a doctor depend upon the patient following through with their care plan.

There are many procedures to help the patient follow through. But they all stem from the mission and goals of the office and the agreements made between the patient and the doctor on the initial visits.

Office Mission and Goals: Help people become healthier and function better.
Patient Goals and Plan to Achieve Them. These are discovered and defined with the doctor, and a plan is agreed upon to achieve them.

Everything in your office is based upon these goals and this plan. All staff interactions with the patient can be considered “standing orders” from the doctor derived from the agreement made with the patient. The authority to schedule patients, work out finances, and apply therapies are all based upon what the doctor has ordered based on the above goals.

Goalineering: Aligning Chiropractic Procedures with Patient Goals

Every few months, you can review the sequence of actions the patient experiences from their initial visit to completing their treatment plan. Look at all the points that influence patient commitment to their care plan. Look at what is done, what is said, and how it can be improved and better aligned with the patient’s goals.

This is engineering your procedures with your goals – or GOALINEERING!

For example:

Diagnostic procedures. (Consultation and history – be thorough; don’t be superficial. Exam, imaging) Goal: Discover what the patient wants and needs.
Report of Findings procedures. (Causes of issues. Plans: consequences of no plan, mini-plan, and thorough plan. Agreement or not to care plan.) Goal: Work out the best care plan and secure the patient’s agreement to achieve it.
Post-Report of Findings procedures. (Financial agreement, scheduling agreement, agreements to office policies with a staff member who is an assistant coach!) Goal: Work out all administrative details with the patient on their care plan so they can focus on their health goals without distractions or confusion.
Front Desk follow-up procedures. (Aggressively friendly and a demon on control as an assistant coach! Front Desk RULES the Roost!) Goal: Keep the patient on track to achieving their goals.
Daily visit procedures. (Give encouragement and reaffirm goals.) Goal: Keep the patient motivated to achieve their goals.
Progress exam/reports. (Show progress, give encouragement, and reaffirming goals.) Goal: Keep the patient motivated to achieve their goals.
Other: (Rewards, e.g., t-shirt after 12 visits. Patient education class and patient successes.) Goal: Keep the patient motivated to achieve their goals.

Review these activities, practice the procedures, and refine them as needed. Also, document what you say and do and keep your notes for later review and training.

Do this, and you will improve patient retention and outcomes and follow through.

The Phone Experience and Your New Patients

Posted on August 15, 2022 by Edward Petty

I just read about a new study sponsored by a tech company (Invoca.com*) that sought to understand the buying habits of consumers better.

It revealed that as inflation increases, the expectations of customers do as well.

It pointed out that inflation has consumers rethinking their more expensive purchases, including health care. However, almost two-thirds (63%) report that they’re still willing to pay more to get better customer service.

While consumer shopping is based on price, they’re also demanding better experiences. The survey found that more than three-quarters of respondents (76%) said they would stop doing business with a company after just one bad experience.

When respondents ranked the possible reasons why they would stop doing business with a company, a bad phone experience was second only to high prices.

Another interesting fact I noted was that most consumers ranked the phone as their preferred channel when they needed help regarding a purchase. They may go to your website, but the vital moment occurs on the phone. Not texting, emailing, or even visiting the office in person, but the phone call is the preferred method of contacting you.

And the preferred use of the phone in the 2022 survey was up 8% since 2021.

How your patients and potential patients are treated on the phone has an enormous impact on your weekly practice numbers. I would estimate that up to 20% of your volume could fluctuate based upon the great experience or poor experience someone has with your front desk.

The ebullient nature of the staff person you have plays a key role, but so is that staff member’s experience while working in your office. For example, I have seen visits go up when a new happy-to-be-hired front desk staff member takes over the front desk, only to see the numbers dip after they become discouraged a few months later.

The front desk is the most demanding role you have in your office. They need to always be “on,” eager, and interested in phone calls while at the same time checking people in, collecting money, and chatting with patients as they can.

I have spent occasions rehearsing with the front desk on answering the phone. It is simple, but done correctly, it is an art.

Even if your front desk team are pros, positively rehearse with them now and then – tell them even the experts practice daily!

Constant improvement is the road to excellence, and excellent service is needed in our post-Covid world.

And in the end, all this study points to is that common courtesy, genuine interest in and care for each other, being authentic, and kindness are more valuable than ever.

*https://experience.invoca.com/2022-invoca-buyer-experience-report/p/1

The SPARKLING Practice and How to Achieve It: Synergy is the Key

Posted on May 24, 2022 by Edward Petty

We just awarded a two-doctor chiropractic office employee the SPARKLE award for outstanding service to patients and team members for 21 years of service.

Why a SPARKLE award? Well, that was the term most frequently used to describe this team member.

The clinic owner said: “She has dedicated almost 21 years (7,440 days!) of her professional (& personal, let’s be honest) life to our practice & the pulse of our family and pediatric practice. Over those years we have walked many of life’s journeys together, and she has formed meaningful connections with our patients. We have shared laughter (SO MUCH laughter!), tears and everything in between. She has changed many lives in her nearly 21 years.”

sparkle award for teammate While she indeed does “sparkle,” so does the entire practice. And the sparkle of this office is a byproduct of its synergy.

I even feature their practice as a positive example in my book, the Goal Driven Business.

The owner, the doctors, and the staff are all committed to the goal of providing the best service possible to each patient. But their goals also include supporting each other.

According to Merriam Webster: ” ‘The whole is greater than the sum of its parts,’ expresses the basic meaning of synergy.”

In his 7 Habits of Highly Effective People, Steven Covey refers to synergy as Habit #6.

“Synergize is the habit of creative cooperation. It is teamwork, open-mindedness, and the adventure of finding new solutions to old problems. But it doesn’t just happen on its own. It’s a process…”

Much of the Goal Driven Business draws upon Covey’s work as I have seen his concepts help create a business that runs at full capacity smoothly.

His preceding two habits particularly apply:

Habit 4. Think win-win.
Habit 5: Seek to understand first, then get understood.

This chiropractic practice has formal communication systems, but they also communicate abundantly informally. And each team member has the goal of helping each other and the patients “win.”

In the end, it all goes back to goals. It always does. The owner keeps the goals, including the mission and core values, at the forefront of the team each week. Further, she sets an example by living these goals professionally and personally.

And as a result, staff are happy, patients are happy, and the office runs at full capacity, profitably and smoothly.

You can generate synergy in your office by improving communication and focus on win-win goals for the patient and for each other.

And make your practice SPARKLE!

PS. For help in creating a synergistic and sparkling practice, contact us!

How to Hire the Best in 2022

Posted on April 18, 2022 by Edward Petty

Again, its all about the goals.

On occasion, you may need to hire a new team member. We always help our clients with hiring and “onboarding” new employees on our major consulting programs.

We have been hearing a lot about millennials not wanting to work, people don’t want to work, and it’s hard to find good employees.

I don’t buy it. We have been hiring great employees.

You must understand and appreciate the seismic changes that have been occurring in society. The workplace is not what it used to be.

The Assembly Line

I discuss this a great deal in my book, The Goal Driven Business.

The Industrial Age needed an industrial mindset for a workforce. As a worker, you were a cog on the assembly line. You checked out of your life when you punched in and checked back in when you punched out. Not much was required from you…except your brawn and obedience. It was a machine world and required mechanist minds and behavior. The employee worked just as hard so they wouldn’t get fired, and the employer would pay just as little so that the employee wouldn’t quit.

We have long since passed the Industrial Age, but our work culture hasn’t changed that much. The worker at the sandwich shop asks you what you want on your lunch sandwich, the cashier totals your groceries, and the therapy tech at the hospital follows their checklist.

But a reckoning has been on its way for some time.

And that time is now.

Many factors have culminated in today’s “hiring crisis.” It is a perfect wave, of sorts.

OK Boomers

But let’s first dismiss the judgments from the “OK Boomers.”(“OK boomer” is a catchphrase and Internet meme often used by Gen Z to dismiss or mock attitudes typically associated with baby boomers.” Wiki.)

Older generations have always viewed younger generations as flighty, fickle, and poorly motivated workers. I am one of the hardest workers I know, but my dad didn’t think so when I was stumbling around after college trying to find something to sink my teeth in.

While the youthful uncertainties of work may not have changed, there has still been a dramatic shift in our culture.

Financial Changes

Millennials are in debt the way no other generation ever considered. Today’s average college tuition is 31x more than it was in 1969. (1. Yahoo) Total student loan debt is 1.75 trillion. (For comparison, the U.S. Budget in 2020 was 6.6 trillion) with the average borrower owing $29,000.

We have been in an inflationary spiral, with housing leading the way. Generally, the cost of living is rising. The increase in the Consumer Price Index for March is equivalent to an annualized rate of 15.4%, the largest 12-month increase in 40 years. (2)

So, finance is a factor—a big one.

Goals, Values, and Meaningful Work

In 2015 Gallup, surveyed over 80,000 working adults. The majority (51 percent) of employees were unengaged at work, while another 17 percent were actively disengaged, for a total of 68 percent not engaged. That means that nearly 2/3rds of the workforce were dissatisfied with their jobs and ready to make a change.(3)

COVID 19 sent a shockwave throughout the work-a-day world. It jarred employees out of their jobs and they were now free to pursue something more in line with their new values and purposes.

One office we work with recently hired a C.N.A. who had quit their prior employment because they did not want to get the COVID jab. They felt that the medical approach they were forced to follow was not aligned with their own values and goals. As a result, they took a new position at a chiropractic office we work with and now happily feel part of their new family.

Indeed, a hiring company, states:

“A work environment that possesses organizational culture is driven by purpose and clear expectations. This motivates and inspires employees to be more engaged in their work duties and interactions with others.”

One of the major processes we work with the business owners is helping them and their teams delineate their own values that they aspire to each day. Positive team culture can be better created and maintained by regularly reviewing these values.

One very competent employee we recently helped hire for an office was so impressed with the Core Values on the office website that she knew this was her place. She has since joined the team and is a high producer.

Emphasize Your Goals and Mission

Employees want security. They are not necessarily looking to become wealthy, at least in the short term. You may need to review your pay scale for your team and make gradual adjustments in these inflationary times.

But we all have intrinsic goals, which include our values, and these take precedence. Work these out for your business and nurture them often. Stay true to them. In promoting for new staff, communicate your values and just how rewarding it is to work with your practice.

Become Stronger to Withstand Future Reckonings

I anticipate more “reckonings” and seismic shifts in the not-too-distant future that your business will have to weather and overcome. The world is changing quickly. The stronger you are, the better your chances of surviving and thriving.

Read and apply my book, The Goal-Driven Business.
You can also set up a no charge appointment to discuss how we can help strengthen your business and make it more profitable. Make an appointment for a no-charge call consultation here. LINK

https://finance.yahoo.com/news/average-cost-college-jumped-incredible-122000732.html
https://www.investopedia.com/inflation-jumps-again-in-march-2022-5225599
https://news.gallup.com/poll/188144/employee-engagement-stagnant-2015.aspx

The Goal Driven Front Desk

Posted on February 15, 2022 by Edward Petty

A dynamic front desk can increase your visits by 20%, maybe more if you have the room. On the other hand, a dysfunctional front desk can constrict the flow of patients and hold your office back.

I have seen instances of both.

There is much more going on and at stake at the front desk than most doctors and staff appreciate.

Ordinarily, you would think that the billing department is the most demanding. There are hundreds of details that need to be learned and followed with excellent discipline. This position requires professionalism and expertise.

But this function is not on the front lines of the constant patient, phone, and doctor interactions and interruptions. Managing patient accounts can be regulated and organized to maintain a calm and comfortable workflow.

Therapy and adjunctive services are often undervalued, but the patient flow is usually smooth, and they are not faced with unexpected patients or phone calls.

It is interesting to note that the front desk has the highest turnover in most offices.

But properly set up and managed, this department can be an engine of growth and stability in your office.

Let’s look at some of the more important attributes of the front desk:

It represents you and your services. It is your ambassador to the world outside your office. The front desk reflects what you stand for and the quality of your services.
It is the first and the last contact – and impression –with anyone in the office.
It can convert inquiries to new patient appointments.
Rapport and relationships. The front desk can provide world-class service to patients, improving patient retention, reviews, and referrals. (The 5 Rs)
Direct marketing. The front desk can directly promote clinic services to patients, hand out coupons, and promote upcoming events to generate patient referrals.
Team member support. The front desk can support the insurance department and all team members to create a positive, upbeat day every day.
Case Management. The front desk can contribute to case management by relaying any comments or observations relative to the patient’s care to the doctors.
Fully Scheduled Day. The front desk fills the appointment book and keeps it full.

Let’s imagine an ideal front desk and put it at a “5” on a 5 Point Scale.

5. GOAL DRIVEN FRONT DESK. The appointment book is full. The front desk staff are cheerful, having fun doing their jobs, and genuinely interested in every patient and phone inquiry. They sincerely care for each patient and non-patient. They have a strong intent on helping patients complete their programs by keeping their appointments. They personally and professionally want to achieve the mission of the office and encourage patients to help them accomplish this mission by bringing in family and friends. They also help the rest of the office achieve the office’s mission. They are sending out positive “vibrations” to help more people. They are proactive and Goal Driven.

Below this level, we find the front desk that is struggling.

2.5 A COPING FRONT DESK– The appointment book is 50-70% full. The front desk is trying, but it is not keeping up, which creates a bottleneck to patient flow. (Subluxated) Even though the staff wants a full appointment book, subconsciously, they don’t want any more work until they catch up.

2. A SLOW FRONT DESK. The front desk operates at a “comfortable” 40-50% capacity. The staff is pacing themselves, keeping up with computer tasks, insurance, and following the scripts for phone and patient encounters. However, they are mostly disengaged from the front desk and office goals.

1-2. GIVEN UP and BORED. I only describe this because I have seen this condition. The staff is ignored or badgered. In either case, they feel relegated to a 4th class employee. They hide out and pretend to work, essentially having quit and just waiting until something better comes along.

You can create a Goal Driven Front Desk. It is not achieved overnight, but once it is established, you’ll be close to a dream practice and a Goal Driven Business. We will cover some tips on how to create a Goal Driven Front Desk in another newsletter.

In the meantime, stay Goal Driven,

“Your brain sends out vibrations all the time, and your thoughts affect your life and other people’s. They pick up these thoughts and get changed by them.”

– Bruce Lipton (Biology of Belief)

Special Offer from Phyllis for Parker Dallas 2018

Posted on July 25, 2018 by Linda

Petty, Michel and Associates has always been a long time promoter of the Parker Seminars. Many of their systems and beliefs coincide closely with the 3 Goals methodology and are very beneficial for building a strong chiropractic team.

Phyllis Frase-Charrette has been a long time Parker Team Speaker as well as consultant for PM&A. She has an early Bird Special that expires July 31st! Register your CA’s now for Parker Dallas Seminar and have them attend Phyllis’s session. You won’t be disappointed!

Visit Dallas Parker Seminar 2018 Special for more information.

Download the Parker Dallas 2018 Flier for more information or visit Parker Seminar Dallas web-site

The Merry-Go-Round: Planning for a Prosperous Practice in 2018

Posted on December 15, 2017 by Edward Petty

Progress in practice is made by steady persistence and passion.

In Angela Duckworth’s new book, she calls this “Grit.”

Think of evolution, think of growing crops… think of growing children! Whether it is child development or practice development, growth is achieved through steady and unrelenting nurturing and adjusting according to circumstances.

I recommend you take some time to do some planning before the New Year gets in high gear. January and February are good months to do this. Do it by yourself – and do it with your team. But…

Don’t reinvent the wheel… Just make it go faster with less effort.

The Vital Few

A few of our actions are always more productive than most of the other actions that we do. Unfortunately, we can get distracted and spend far too much time on activities that, in retrospect, just don’t give us that much of a return.

The “vital few” actions that have helped you the most will be camouflaged, even countered, by the “trivial (but useful) many.” This is a term used by Nathan Juran, famous for his approach to business and quality improvement and the Pareto Principle.

And, I would like you to consider this: In many respects, your business has succeeded in ways that – perhaps – you have not yet recognized. Therefore, I don’t recommend abandoning all you did last year and start chasing the newest “shiniest” procedures that seem appealing.

The key is to dust off all your actions from 2017 – review everything you did — and see the great things that worked and the victories you and your team achieved.

Then, just find better approaches to do more of this!

Diamonds in Your Office

The idea of having diamonds in our backyard, a story made famous by Russell Conwell (1843 – 1925) of the 1800s, applies. There are many variations, but it goes something like this: there once was a man who wanted more wealth, so he sold his house and left in search of diamonds. Years later, penniless, he happened back to his village where he roomed at a shelter for the poor. The shelter was supported by a grant from a local resident. In inquiring who the resident was, the diamond searcher discovered that it was the person to whom he had sold his house.

One day he paid a visit to his old house, now renovated into a beautiful estate. He talked to the new owner who told him that he had become rich. He said that when he bought the house, he needed to do some digging in the backyard where he discovered thousands of diamonds.

The moral of the story is obvious: you already are rich – you already have the diamonds. You just need to polish them.

Many of the components of your future success are already in your office. But we overlook them, or use them once and then forget about them, like teenagers looking for the next new article of clothing to make a fashion statement.

As entrepreneurs, creatively – we are all looking for that next dopamine high… and seek the next new “shiny” thing.

You have a show on the road. Just make it better. Make it fresh. Set a new standard, and make a new game to “level up!” Add a few new things here and there, but keep doing what is working.

Looking for Your Diamonds

Review what has been working for you. Reaffirm it and keep at it. Look at what hasn’t worked that well and fix it so that it does, or drop it like barbell that you have been holding over your head for too long.

By yourself, and later, with your team, here are some areas to look into:

____1. Review Your Mission Statement. Does it apply? How? Does it need to be customized? Beyond your mission, what is your WHY? Does the mission satisfy this?
____2. What Are Your Outcomes? For example: “People relieved of pain, healthier, educated so that they can and will continue to improve their health… and refer others?” You can also define Minimal Viable (Valuable) Outcomes, e.g., “A patient who accepts care.” Etc.
____3. How Is the Office Vibe? This is determined by your values and how everyone is living up to them. Are these values posted for all to see and check how they are “measuring up?” Are they defined? Do we need to add more, change some, delete some? Should we better define each value? Should we add:

• Trust. Are we worthy of trust with our patients and ourselves?
• Mission Oriented. Do we help each other cheerfully achieve our mission – each day?
• How well are we living up to these?
• How can we live up to these better?

____4. How Were the Numbers? Up, or down?

• When the numbers went up, what did, or didn’t we do? How can we improve upon this?
• When the numbers went down, what did, or didn’t we do? Should we improve or discontinue those actions?

____5. Individual. What can each one of us do professionally this next year to improve our ability to contribute to our team and its mission?

Some of this should be on simple, brief checklists and memo’s. Add it to your Practice Playbook. Document it so that it can be referred to for training and coaching in the future.

Merry-Go-Round

Imagine that your practice is a merry-go-round, the kind you find at children’s playgrounds.

It takes a lot of energy to push it and get it going. But… once it is moving, it takes less effort to gradually get it going faster. And faster! And faster…

Take some time to review how you are pushing your merry-go-round. What procedures worked better for pushing it faster? Focus on these… Makes these better.

Go faster… and push less.

And as you do, watch those, including yourself, hold on tighter and smile bigger.

Enjoy the ride!

With admiration,

–Ed

Phyllis To Speak at Parker Seminars – Las Vegas

Posted on December 16, 2016 by Linda

Phyllis has been on the Parker Seminar speaker circuit since before starting with PMA. She presents a powerful presentation to motivate and inspire doctors and staff alike.

Coming to you from Las Vegas Nevada, February 23-25, 2017, Phyllis will be joining other colleagues in the chiropractic profession to bring a well rounded presentation of new patient procedures, billing and coding, obtaining referrals, handling objections, creating great patient experiences, and much more specifically designed for your Chiropractic Assistants.

Don’t miss out on this amazing lineup of CA Speakers:

Kathy Mills Change, MCS-P
Phyllis Frase Charrette
Becky Walter
Heidi Farrell
Holly Jensen
Brandi MacDonald

For more information or to register visit parkerseminars.com

or download the flier here: Parker Seminar Flier

Phyllis Frase to Speak at the Chiropractic Society of Wisconsin Fall Summit on Referrals and Retention

Posted on September 20, 2016 by Linda

Welcome back to Wisconsin Phyllis!

We are excited to have Phyllis returning to Wisconsin to join us at the Chiropractic Society of Wisconsin Fall Summit.

The Fall Summit will be held October 21st through the 23rd at the Kalahari Resort in Wisconsin Dells.

Are you and your team registered? If not you will want to as Phyllis will be presenting to doctors and staff all day Friday. She will be covering the following topic:

“The Secrets of Referrals and Retention”

What’s the secret? The pixie dust? The magic potion to creating patients that stay pay and refer for a lifetime?

In this class you will walk away with what makes a patient pay and value their chiropractic care. This interactive class will help you create great customer service and learn easy, solid systems and procedures that will take your practice to the next level. Included is low stress, low cost marketing ideas that you can implement on Monday morning.

For more information on Phyllis visit: Our Experts

To register for the CSW Fall Summit visit: CSW Fall Summit 2016

Thank You Linda Skiles for 15 Years of Dedicated, Caring, and Purposeful Service to Petty Michel and Chiropractic Offices Everywhere

Posted on August 15, 2016 by Edward Petty

Linda Skiles

15 years!

Actually, seems much longer as our relationship goes back to the great and honorable Dr. Gaylord Culp of Lake Geneva. And what a grand privilege that was – he was a master Chiropractor.

And then I bumped into you again as the office manager at the renown Wheelock Clinic in Burlington. WI. A dynamic multiple-doctor office that is still going strong.

You certainly had good experiences with solid chiropractic with these doctors and at these offices so there was no doubt in my mind as to your credentials. You were Chiropractic Assistant of the Year here in Wisconsin too… back a few years it was!

A person can have credentials and training but these are minor compared to the exceptional and outstanding qualities of character that you have demonstrated. It is too rare to find people who have the personal ethics and courage and selflessness to continue to provide support services through thick and thin, day and night, when needed, as needed, year after year.

In a quiet corner of the world your industriousness has been unflagging…and directly and indirectly because of you and your work, hundreds if not thousands of people are living better lives through better chiropractic offices.

You are always ready to provide us consultants, our clients, and our company with fast service any time.

We don’t say this enough, but your continued support has made a difference to all of us and so many others. But here it is, on your 15^th Anniversary:

Thank You Linda. We love you.

🙂

8 Fast Tips on Chiropractic Team Training

Posted on March 9, 2015 by Edward Petty

$70,000,000,000.

That is 70 billion dollars and was the amount spent by corporations last year (2014) on personnel development in the United States. Corporations spent $130 billion worldwide.(Reference below.)

Large corporations recognize the value in developing and training their employees as a good investment. This fact also applies to smaller businesses but is not always acted upon.

I have often seen production held back due to poorly trained, educated, and motivated support staff. Here are some fast pointers on training your team.

1. CULTURAL BARRIER
Your team may not consider themselves as professionals. Perhaps you don’t consider them professionals either. Some doctors still call their staff members “girls.”

But we have long since passed the Industrial Age and have moved through the Information Age to the Networked Age. We are in a knowledge and networked economy and offices that do the best operate as a team of professionals.

In hiring and then training your team, you may be dealing with an unconscious cultural set of values that places health care service workers as “Girl Fridays.” The front desk, rather than having the challenging role of increasing the office visits through her or his skill, can be looked at as an underworked secretary and receptionist.

This idea can be harbored by both employee and employer and as a result, no one has the goal of training to becoming a professional.

It may take YEARS for your staff to become experts, but that should be their goal and yours as well.

As the CEO of your business, ensure that your team members understand that you want them to become experts and leaders in their field. Then, make sure they get good monthly training in-house, at seminars, receive coaching, attend webinars, and study books.

2. KNOW-IT-ALL BARRIER
This applies more to newer employees, but it can apply to all of us. When starting a new job, the new employee must understand that while their past experience may be useful, for now, they are a “freshman” and they need to learn as if this was the first job they ever had. In Japanese martial arts (taken from Zen Buddhism) there is a term called “Shoshin”, meaning “beginners mind.” Even when you are a black belt, you should always strive to learn as if you were just beginning with no preconceptions.

3. ROLES AND GOALS FOR TEAM TRAINING

Team member. (Defined by mission statement and company core values.)
Specialist. (Front Desk, Patient Accounts, Therapy, Etc.)
Marketing. (We all sell health.)Remember that each role…has a goal.

4. END IN MIND
Training begins and ends primarily on the purpose of the role as well as on the outcomes of the role. If these are really clear, the team member can better understand the details. Too often we start training a staff member on HOW to do the job rather than WHY. Train on the WHY first and often as we all can get caught up in the details and lose sight of the end goals and our mission.

5. ENGAGEMENT
You might find that many people, staff and patients, do not have the best study habits. Staff members will nod in agreement when you ask them if they understand how to do something you just explained. They will think they understand how to do a procedure, yet when the time comes for them to do the task, they don’t do it.

Because of this, training should include participation and engagement. We all learn by doing. All training should include quizzes, challenges and or practical exercises that require the team member’s demonstration of what they’re studying. For example:

Terms. Clear up the terms. You would be surprised how many of your staff cannot define even the basic words such as “health”, “subluxation”, “toxic”, etc.
Have them demonstrate a concept. Rehearsing, role playing, quizzes, or requiring demonstrations can help your team become engaged with the information and more skilled in application.
Training frequency. Ideally, team member training should take place weekly. Maybe you cannot get the whole staff there, maybe the veterans only go once or twice a month, but the rookies can get short sessions weekly. Make sure the time is uninterrupted.

6. EDUTAINMENT
All training should be entertaining, fun, and motivating. Challenging is fine, as long as each individual leaves the training with the feeling of accomplishment. OK to be serious now and then, but in the end, it should be enjoyable.

7. LENDING LIBRARY
Make sure you have a full library of books and movies about health for your patients. This is also for your staff. Give your team members a $30 bonus for a book report given at staff meetings and a $10 bonus for every report on a DVD from the library. All staff should watch Doctored, for example, and then discuss it.

8. ROI
Keep in mind that team training does take time, but it offers a positive return on the investment. Team members become more motivated and their moral goes up as their competence increases!

Team training does not cost… it pays.

[1] Forbes.com forbes.com/sites/joshbersin/2014/02/04/the-recovery-arrives-corporate-training-spend-skyrockets/

Where in the world is Phyllis speaking now?

Posted on January 27, 2014 by Linda

While we are struggling to stay warm here in the Midwest, our Phyllis Frase will be heading to sunny Puerto Rico the weekend of February 1 and 2nd to share her expertise on the Chiropractic Front Desk and better communication in a chiropractic office. Last report was the weather was 86°.

We’re certain she will “light a spark of chiropractic passion” for the CA’s in attendance and we only ask that she brings some of the warmth back home with her.

Chiropractic Team Tryouts: Tips on Interviewing Potential New Team Members

Posted on January 23, 2014 by Edward Petty

Tryout: a test of someone’s ability to do something that is used to see if he or she should join a team, perform in a play, etc. (Merriam-Webster)

We routinely help our chiropractic teams with the hiring process.

Getting the right players can make all the difference in whether you are a winning team or just a mediocre one.

It is often difficult to find the right candidate for the job. The prospective employee is trained to be sweet at the interview and have an impressive resume and you are expected to ask her just the right questions that will evoke her true character. This is usually not adequate.

In addition to interviews, practical tests that challenge candidates for the job position can be included as part of the hiring process. Much like a “tryout” for any sport team, musical group, or an audition for a play, we want to see how the prospective new employee performs.

A good management motto is: “Look, don’t listen.” This definitely applies to hiring.

After the first interview, if you are still interested in the person, have them come in again for a practical interview. This is the “tryout” or audition. For the front desk position, present them with some challenging but common situations and have them demonstrate how they would handle each. Have them demonstrate as in role playing, not just tell you how they would do it.

In the examples below, the doctor can be in the role of the patient, or prospective patient, or have another team member in that role.

For the Front Desk position, you can have the candidate take on the following situations:

Appointment book is full. Patient calls in and wants to see the doctor.
Patient calls in and is in pain.
Calls but is skeptical of chiropractic
Calls, asks how much for an adjustment, and then says it costs too much
Patient is leaving after an adjustment, needs to be scheduled, and the phone is ringing.
Patient owes $37.67. Collect it.
Promoting upcoming talk, next Tuesday at 6:30 on “Spinal Fitness.”

Someone applying for Patient Accounts could role-play the following:

Perform a patient financial consultation on a new Medicare patient who also has a secondary.
Call for chiropractic benefits.
Receive a letter “not medically necessary.” What actions to take?
Promoting upcoming talk, next Tuesday at 6:30 on Spinal Fitness.

Other situations can be presented that are appropriate for your office, depending on the position, such as therapy, external marketing, etc. Be creative and keep it fun, but challenging.

You can give the candidate a few lines to help them, but tell them you want them to improvise to the best of their ability. It doesn’t have to be perfect and probably won’t be that smooth as they are new to your office.

What you are looking for is their ability to be genuinely interested in the patient. You want to see how much in command they are of the situation, their friendliness, compassion, and general quality of their communication.

If you want a winning team, when hiring, use “Tryouts.”

JUST RELEASED: New Chiropractic Music Video – “Munson Style”

Posted on April 24, 2013 by Edward Petty

Just released: A new professionally recorded music video by Dr. Cindy Munson, a chiropractor in Plymouth, Wisconsin. It features her staff, family, and some of her patients.

The more times you watch it the more little clever trivia you can find. The scenes were well thought out.

What is remarkable about this office, which is actually demonstrated by this video, is the exceptional leadership provided by Dr. Munson. With her great staff, she has created a true chiropractic “Dream Team” – a group of professionals working together for the betterment of their patients and their community.

Feel free to let Dr. Cindy know how you liked the video or any thoughts or questions you may have.

We are proud to say that we have worked with Dr. Cindy and her team for many years.

www.drcindymunson.com

Monthly Goal Setting for the Chiropractic Team

Posted on January 31, 2013 by Edward Petty

Chiropractic Team Goal Setting

At the beginning of each month you want to see that your team sets new TEAM GOALS. You can also set individual goals privately at a different time, but TEAM goals are most immediate and important.

Each goal setting session always begins with a REVIEW of the past month. This gives the opportunity for the group (or individual in individual goal setting) to explain how they did and how they did it. And it gives you the opportunity to listen and then give some feedback. The feedback could be praise, or otherwise.

After the review, set the goals. Group goals should be simple, usually just Office Visits and New Patients, though Collections can also be included. IMPORTANT: Let the group set the goals. You should negotiate the goals, but it has to be theirs. Once these goals are set, ask the group (or individual) how they/we plan to achieve these goals? Get at least 3 action steps.

The last goal should include a “greater purpose” goal or two. This could be a party at your house next Thursday night, Betty, the Front Desk Coordinator will give a book report on one of the books in the Lending Library at next month’s Team Goal Setting meeting, and a check to see who is going to volunteer for working at the food bank next Saturday evening.

Why? You should also spend some time discussing why you have these goals. This takes you back to your MISSION. Numbers for numbers sake is a soulless and goalless pursuit.

In sum:

Review last month’s numbers. Were they up or down from the prior month? Ask.
Then, ask why? Get the team to figure it out. Let it be a brainstorming session if possible.
Let them tell you and you listen and question as needed.
Acknowledge. Praise or show disapproval, as appropriate.
Then ask for action steps to achieve goals.
Then, get a few “greater purpose” goals.
Then, continue with the rest of the staff meeting, such as announcing upcoming events, miscellaneous, etc. Include some discussion about WHY these goals are important.
Do the same for individual team member’s right after the Team Goal Setting, or soon after.

For more information on how this procedure is done, refer to the webinar called the Fast Flow CEO.

5 Levels of Administrative Support in a Chiropractic Office

Posted on October 10, 2012 by Edward Petty

Someone in your office needs to be responsible for the administrative duties that fall outside of the usual functions in a chiropractic office of:

Front Desk
Patient Accounts
Hallway/Therapy.

This someone is usually the chiropractor – at least at first. But as the practice grows there is more administrative work to do. The doctor can do it, of course, but he or she should be spending time on adjusting patients and building the office.

The smart doctor knows this rule:

Do what you do best,
And delegate all the rest.

Some offices have a chiropractic assistant that is called an “office manager.” The role of the office manager is often vague and the duties are varied. Usually the “office manager” has had very little, if any, management training.

The growth of the business will eventually stall because of this.

Most chiropractic team members are bright and industrious and whoever is assigned the role of office manager usually does her best for the office. Unfortunately, this is not enough in most cases for the office to achieve its capacity and goals.

In 2013 we will be launching a number of new office manager training programs to help doctors and office managers achieve their full potential.

In the meantime, the chart below may help clarify the general range of duties of an office manager. It lists an approximate hierarchy of responsibility for someone delegated by the doctor to perform administrative functions.

A staff member who has another job in the office, for example, front desk, may take on a part time role of Administrative Assistant. As the office grows, she could take on more responsibilities as the Administrative Coordinator, and then finally as an Office Manager. She may have to delegate some of her front desk duties to give time for the extra admin work she now has.

The titles below are intended to demonstrate that there are different levels of administrative responsibility and are not exact. Your office might just need an admin assistant.

However all doctors need to delegate their management and administrative duties and more offices than not, suffer for lack of well trained and effective office managers.

5 Levels of Administrative Support

Administer = from Latin administrare, from ad- + ministrare to serve, from minister, servant

5. Practice Manager – Similar to a general manager. This role is for a larger office with 15 or more staff.

4. Office Manager – About 5 hours per week or more, but takes on a majority of the administrative duties and some of the management functions. Supports the staff and the doctor to give better service. Is accountable for office growth and performance.

3. Office Coordinator – Works 5 hours a week on administration. Helps the doctor with management duties, including human resources (hiring, training, etc.), marketing, coordinates with the staff on training, marketing, and other special projects.

2. Administrative Coordinator – Works about 3-5 hours a week on administration. Clerical duties, some important. Helps the doctor with management duties, including human resources, marketing, etc.

1. Administrative Assistant – Works about 3 hours a week on administration. Mostly clerical duties.

He Fired the Office Manager

Posted on April 18, 2012 by Edward Petty

A few months ago a chiropractic office manager called me. She said that her doctor had fired her.

Her primary role had been that of Billing and Collections Coordinator, but she was also the office manager part time. I had worked with the office for a few months and knew the doctor and Dorothy (not necessarily her real name.) I had gone over the role of the Office Manager with her and the doctor. They both felt that they understood the situation and would let me know if they ever needed any help. I was pretty certain they didn’t know what their roles were, or how to execute them, but their minds were made up.

Months went by and then late one Monday morning I got a call from Dorothy. She told me she had been fired. I asked her why? (Knowing her and the doctor, I had a pretty good idea.) She told me that the number of new patients had been dropping for some months and that the doctor was not happy about this.

She said that she couldn’t believe it. “He fired me for that? I am not even in charge of new patients?” She was upset and went on about how new patients weren’t her responsibility.

What do you think? Was she right? Or, was the doctor right?

Let’s look at this: the doctor is ultimately in charge of marketing. As the Chief Executive Officer for the business, marketing is a key component of his or her job. But since he is also so busy as a doctor, he needs to delegate most of the marketing activities. But to whom?

First, to all of the staff. It is each team member’s responsibility to “sell health.”
Then, a staff member could help coordinate all the marketing activities as a Marketing Coordinator or Marketing Manager.
You might also delegate different marketing activities to different staff: someone for external events and screenings, someone for the internet, etc.

But behind it all, is the Office Manager’s role to make sure everything is running smoothly.

Actually, no one should have been fired. Instead, they all should have been trained on marketing and especially on MARKETING MANAGEMENT.

This is one of the reasons for our monthly webinars. We just completed a very informative webinar on the key duties of the office manager (now posted on our members site) which can help clarify the role of the office manager.

The purpose of business is to create a customer, patient, and practice member. I didn’t say that. Peter Drucker did. You should know about Peter Drucker as he is the granddaddy of all management consultants.

“Because it is the purpose to create a customer, any business enterprise has two – and only two – basic functions: marketing and innovation. These are the entrepreneurial functions. Marketing is the distinguishing, the unique function of the business.” Peter Drucker

Doctor, you are busy. Your #1 focus should be on quality patient care. But as the CEO of your business, you HAVE to drive the marketing. To do this effectively, you can and should delegate the marketing activities to others. The office manager is responsible for making sure all office activities are being done effectively, and this of course, includes marketing.

Whatever your office mission states, it has to include the concept of marketing. It is your job, and everyone’s job, to tell the chiropractic story – and to communicate the value of your services in such a way and often enough that thousands of people come in to get better.

Don’t get fired. Get fired up!

A Short History of How Everything Else Has Cost You Hundreds of Thousands of Dollars and (nearly) Killed Your Dreams as a Chiropractor

Posted on April 8, 2012 by Edward Petty

When you started your chiropractic practice, you took on 2 roles: “Doctor” and “Everything Else.” As your practice grew, you became busier in your role of doctor. That is what you wanted. That was good.

But as your practice grew, your role of “Everything Else” also got busier. This was a distraction from your role of doctor, so you delegated front desk, billing and therapy duties. You still kept the role of “Everything Else.”

As your practice continued to grow with more staff – your role of “Everything Else” expanded geometrically. This concerned you.

You didn’t think about it much because you enjoyed being a chiropractor and loved your patients, but when you were very busy, you made more money. You could take a vacation with your family, put money aside for your kid’s education, and pay off debts. Sometimes, you could see yourself producing even more, helping more people, and being even more prosperous.

These dreams didn’t last long. Your role of “Everything Else” became more demanding. There were more “everything else’s” crying for attention. There was too much to do and soon you saw your patient volume dropping. Patients were dropping out of care and new patients became scarce. You had lost control.

Other doctors who were experiencing lowered income blamed insurance companies. Or the economy. Or the modern culture. All you knew was that it wasn’t fun anymore and there was just too much work to do. Work that wasn’t chiropractic.

The fact is, you were never too sure of this role of “Everything Else” and never really liked it all that much. You didn’t have any training in it like you did as a doctor. And when all of the “everything else’s” starting coming at you, you felt like things were getting beyond your command.

You experienced some staff turnover and now with patient volume down, you didn’t need as many staff. Gradually there was less to do in your role of “Everything Else.”

This cycle may have occurred to you a few times: numbers up, then more stress, then back down. A roller coaster.

MONTHLY OFFICE VISITS And here is where you may be now.

If you were to add up the amount of revenue you could have made had you stayed at your highest level, or been able to go even higher were it not for your role of “Everything Else”, you might be surprised how much this “Everything Else” role cost you. Hundreds of thousands of dollars.

= = = = = = =

If this is your story so far, don’t go away. The last chapter hasn’t been written. In fact, your next one might be completely different. Here is an introduction to it:

You read about the chiropractic Executive Freedom Package and started it.

You discover that the “Everything Else” role is really the role of the business executive. It is the role of the CEO.

You realize that all major businesses have an executive and that there are certain skills and tools as a CEO to be learned. These skills have to do with leadership, management, and marketing.

So you learn these skills and get coached on them. In time, you get better and better at applying them.

You find a staff member and give her the role of chiropractic office manager. You get her continuously trained and give her lots of your less important CEO duties. As she gets better, you give her more.

You get someone to help you coordinate all the marketing. You give him continuous training.

You have staff meetings and get the team on board with managing the office.

All the “everything else’s” are organized into systematized procedures and delegated to your team.

Numbers go up. Your team continues to improve. They are happy about this as they are sharing in the management of the office and its success. Now that all the “everything elses” are packaged up into nice neat systems, you have time to focus more on patient care, future planning, personal studies, and other pursuits.

You are now a better leader, better manager, and a better marketer, and your business continues to grow. Your team is happier, more people are getting served, and you make more money.

If someone had only told you about the role “Everything Else” and what it really was all about years ago you would have avoided losing so much money and wasted time.

On the other hand, now that you know what the secret is, you are on your way out of the rut you have been in and on your way to greater freedom.

You can learn more about the “Everything Else” role and how to create the business structure that puts you in command with our new chiropractic business Freedom Package here.

Improving Team Performance and Developing Community Services for a Chiropractic Office

Posted on March 5, 2012 by Edward Petty

This month we cover a couple of import topics, both of which can bring you more income if managed correctly: Chiropractic Staff Performance and Community Relations Marketing.

TEAM PERFORMANCE

How well does your staff perform their duties?

Studies show that there are 3 primary methods to improve performance:

Deliberate Practice
Expert Coaching
Family and social support.

Natural talent is a factor, but is never enough by itself and is often overrated.

So, how well does each member of your team perform? Are they experts? Are they ready to teach their own seminars?

And how about your how team? How well do all of you work as a team? Will they go to the Super Bowl or World Series this year?

Your office responds to training like any athletic team or musical group. If the scoreboard shows that the numbers aren’t where they should be, then individual performance or team performance is a likely reason why.

What is the fast and economical solution? Training. Coaching. This is something you and your office manager, and each team member can learn.

Team training is not done by just one person; it is done by the team. One member helps the other member, and back and forth until both improve.

Our webinar this week covers just this topic.

10 Tips on How to Be An Effective Team Trainer

Tools and Tips for Fast Team Training That Pay Off

Thursday, March 8^th, 12:30 CT

Don’t miss it. Excellent for Clinic Owners (CEO’s) and Office Managers.

===============

COMMUNITY SERVICES: External Marketing

We all live in caves.

We live in a cave house. Then we get into our cave car and drive to our cave office and stay in our cave rooms.

Meanwhile, there is a whole world out there with thousands of people that need your care, but don’t know it. And the main thing you have to do is to just … SHOW UP and do something.

What’s so hard about that?

You all have done screenings and you all have done some kind of external events: workshops, school presentations, visiting medical offices. The hard part is not the presentation. The most difficult (and it is not difficult) is getting these events scheduled.

Ideally, you should have your community services calendar scheduled with a few external events of one kind or another every month.

This is the subject of our next marketing webinar.

Scheduling Effective External Events and Generating External Referrals

Learn how to schedule effective events in this short webinar.

Thursday, March 15^th, 12:30 Central Time.

How to Register

For guests, you may register for all of these webinars, plus full access to our extensive practice building library for one low introductory fee of $250/mo for all classes.

Guest Registration Form

For all active PMA clients register immediately for these classes at: Active Client Registration. (Register for each webinar separately. You will automatically receive your special log-in access number where you can participate via computer, or by telephone only.)

If you’d like more information visit our website HERE, or contact Linda via email at Linda@pmaworks.com, or call her at: 888-762-8808

You can also download a calendar for upcoming webinars: LINK

Observations

observations from our travels in the world of chiropractic

Category Archives: Chiropractic Assistants