Getting Away – Rule No. 9

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Sometimes you got to get away.

It could be for an hour, fifteen minutes, a week, or more.  To be fully engaged in your chiropractic practice, studies have confirmed, you also have to fully disengage every now and then.

One of my favorite books on this is by Dr. Jim Loehr and Dr. Jack Groppel, The Power of Full Engagement.  Disengaging from work, and engaging in other activities, adds more power and insight when you return to it.

More than 80 years ago, this subject was discussed by B.J. Palmer, known as the Developer of Chiropractic, with insight and character. His advice is completely supported by modern research and is worth reading and applying today.

Rule No. 9 ( PDF version to download.)

(720 words; about a 4 minute read)

Rule #9 by B.J.Palmer, Developer of Chiropractic

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The average businessman has long since forgotten Rule No. 9, “Don’t take yourself too damn seriously.”

Thousands of businessmen have one fault in common. They are so close to their own thoughts, their own minds, their own selves, desk, office friends, employees, clerks, detail, correspondence that they suffer from the illusion of the near.

They are with what they think, see and do so much at a time that they take it all too seriously and thus suffer from the nearness of themselves to themselves.

I now live in a town where I am sold to everybody. They call me “B.J.” everywhere. I live in an immediate family of some 5,000 whom I bring to that city, who love me and I love them. These people appreciate what I do for them. They tell me and I listen to the plaudits of deeds well done. People come from far and near to thank me for what I have done, via some salesman. All of which makes me take my detail seriously. I suffer from it.

YOU need the vision of the far. I need it. I keep my grip (suitcase) packed and when I begin to take my reform work seriously, right then is when I book a few Rotary, Kiwanis and other club talks and hide myself away from my thoughts, ideas, work, students, school, friends, that I might get myself away from myself, that I may walk the streets of strange towns, see strange faces, listen to strange tongues, that I may get the proper perspective of myself.

Many people suffer with a constipation of thought and a diarrhea of words. Many a man has the eyesight of a hawk and the vision of a clam.

Going away from home makes a man shut up and think. It also teaches him to overlook the hawky detail and gain a distant vision of himself, his service and his Big Job.

Every man owes it to himself, his people and his service to go away about every so often. The more detail he has, the oftener he should go. The more worries, the more he needs to go. The bigger his work, the longer his vacation should be.

He should go to conventions, attend luncheons, go fishing or hunting, anywhere that he may get away from himself; that he may sit on the banks of the river and there see himself at his desk, with his people, on the job. It is surprising how foolish all of us look when we gaze at ourselves after we get away from ourselves and see ourselves as others see us.

Many a man realizes without analyzing. A certain clothing merchant of our city is noted for his ancestral business qualities. Business and money are his gods. Yet this same man told me but recently that he is now playing golf two afternoons a week. I inquired as to how he could get his mind into that state where he could make it pay. He tells me that the next morning he works three times as hard and accomplishes more than three times as much work. He comes home tired, sleeps sound, wakes up refreshed and piles in solid. Playing golf, he realizes the vision of the far without the mental analysis that accomplishes the end. He stumbled upon the conclusion and even yet doesn’t know. You and I can go into this with comprehension and intention.

I am told that John D. Rockefeller rarely went near oil fields; that Mr. Carnegie knew little about steel itself; that John Patterson spends months in Europe away from his huge plant to know better how to run it when at it; that James Gordon Bennett managed the New York Herald from Paris; that Mr. Pulitzer manages the New York World from afar; that Mr. Wanamaker spends and Marshall Field did spend four months out of twelve in Europe for the express purpose of gaining vision; that a Boston department store manager is responsible for this statement:” I must study other business at least THREE MONTHS every year in order to manage my own business properly the OTHER NINE.’

We should get away from ourselves, our office, our business to get the proper perspective on its services.

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What Do You Think About When the Phone Rings?

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You are sitting there, trying to finish your notes. You hear your phone ring. You are a bit behind. Maybe slightly irritated by an arbitrary denial of an insurance company and you haven’t yet planned out tonight’s evening with the family, spouse, or friend.The phone rings again.

What are your thoughts? What are your feelings?

Do you kinda wish it wouldn’t ring? Is it a bit of an interruption? Do-you-just-want-to-answer-the –dang-phone-to-stop-the-ringing-so-you-can-get-back-to-your-work?

Essentially, your thought is “Stop.”   It is: “Don’t call me.”  “Phone, don’t ring, don’t interrupt me!”   I am sure this has happened to you – even if ever so slightly or subconsciously.

Now, imagine if your front desk has these thoughts when the phone rings?

To some degree, even the most devoted and hard working staff can reactively feel put upon by phone calls. Or, in fact, by walk-ins. Or, in fact, by any patient encounter. I have seen this happen on the front desk when the doctor was busy with patients.  But remember, this can happen with even the most ethical team member, including you!  I have seen doctors do this too. (Extreme examples: “Oh, only two people for the spinal care class – cancel it.” “Oh, just Jim is coming in, reschedule him. I am going to leave early. It is MY office and I can do what I want.”)

Our thoughts can and do determine our behavior and affect how we treat others. Our environment actually mirrors our thoughts.

You may have heard or read about this scientist in Japan. Fascinating experiments. The fellow’s name is Dr. Masaru Emoto and was also in the movie, “What the Bleep Do We Know?”

According to the movie, Dr. Masaru Emoto claims that crystals formed in frozen water reveal changes when specific, concentrated thoughts are directed toward them. He says that he found that water from clear springs and water that has been exposed to loving words shows brilliant, complex, and colorful snowflake patterns. In contrast, polluted water, or water exposed to negative thoughts, forms incomplete, asymmetrical patterns with dull colors.

You can check out Dr. Emotu’s new book, The Hidden Messages in Water.

So, if our thoughts can affect the formation of water crystals, they probably can have significant effect on our office.

Going back to your front desk, realize that the staff on the front desk have tremendous control over the office, nearly as much as the doctor does. The front desk can be a magnet for your patients, and attract, or repel them.

When the phone rings, you want your front desk, and all staff thinking “YES.”  “Call me. Phone –  ring now.”  “I can hardly wait to talk to this person and see how they are. I am interested in them and how they are doing. I want to help get them come in for care — and their family too.” “They must be really really cool and nice if they are calling us.” “I WANT to know more about them.” “I am grateful for their call and appreciate the effort they made in calling us.”

These are good thoughts.  These are positive thoughts that can help bring in more patients.

You can practice this with your staff at a team meeting.

ACTION STEP. As an example, someone acts as the prospective patient calling. The person acting as the front desk assistant should answer the phone with the attitude of really not wanting to talk to the person. Act it up. This can be funny. Try it a few times.

Then, do the same rehearsal with the front desk assistant positively anticipating the phone call, wanting the phone to ring, and then eagerly answering and talking to the prospective patient.

Keep it the role playing brief. You can and should do it again. It should be fun and act as a reminder to one and all that we should want to meet new people, talk to existing patients, and look forward to phone calls. We can always dismiss the occasional telemarketer or wrong number.

This can also be rehearsed in other types of patient encounters, from taking the new patient back to the exam room, sitting down to do a financial consultation, or checking a patient out and collecting their payments.

(Note to PM&A clients & members: Your PM&A Coach is experienced in these types of trainings. Have one of us facilitate one of these trainings next time we visit your office.)

ACTION STEP. And speaking of how our environment does mirror us, here is a little trick you can use.  Get a real mirror, about 4 inches by 4 inches, and put it at the front desk counter so that the team member can see it. You can write something on it like: “Are My Teeth Showing?” “Am I Smiling?” And staff, you can also put one of these in your doctor’s office on any day that he is feeling grumpy. It applies to us all.

So, the next time the phone rings, smile. Be interested and curious in who is taking the time to call.  Make your thoughts happy so they help create an office that is brilliant, colorful, and full of happy patients.

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[Petty, Michel & Associates offers special practice development programs designed to help you achieve your goals. Give us a call for more info: 414- three three two -4511]

3 Goals Management Introduction

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3 Goals Management System

How to Achieve Financial Abundance and Practice Freedom
A unique practice development strategy and process created by Petty, Michel & Associates

An Introduction

Goal Driven
We all have goals.  When we were younger, they might have been brighter than they are now, they might have been clearer, or seemed closer.  Maybe yours still are. Or, maybe, they have become dulled with wear and tear, with disappointments and frustrations.

But we are goal driven creatures and our goals stay with us. The better we can define these goals in concrete terms, the more likely we are to achieve them.

What All Doctors Want — The 3 Goals
Ultimately, all doctors would like to create a practice that allows them to provide the highest quality care to the most people for the most profit.

Most doctors want to do this with professional and personal integrity. Maybe most importantly, they want to be able to do this in such a way that they are not chained to their practice, slaving at their work at the expense of their personal and family lives.

This is a fundamental goal for all doctors, so fundamental that we call it Goal 2.

Even more fundamental, however, is basic survival and solvency. We call this Goal 1.

But nobody works just for money.  Whether it’s saving the planet, helping your grand kids, assisting the poor, or funding your church, we all have higher goals.

Goal 3 are your higher purposes.

All three goals can and should be achieved, and with over 20 years of experience, we have put together a practice development system that allows doctors, and their teams, to achieve all three goals.

The 3 Goals Practice Development System is a step by step approach to help your practice grow naturally to its full potential and stay there.

Goal 1
Goal 1 is survival. In business, this means solvency. Are you making enough profit to pay your bills? To achieve Goal 1, solvency and survival, you have to move fast.  It requires passion, energy, and an aggressively friendly approach to getting your services known and delivered. For the patient, you can think of Acute Care. For a staff position, you can think of 20 – 30% proficient.

Goal 2 and the Practice Development Process
Goal 2 is a fully functional, franchise-able, sale-able, and sustainable business that is very profitable.   For a patient, it is a maximum spinal correction. For a staff position, it is 100% proficient and competent, rain or shine.

After you have achieved Goal 1, you can now start identifying those procedures that worked best. You can write these down on checklists. These checklists will become your Practice Playbook.

With more staff training, you can delegate more procedures to staff. As you continue to grow, you refine your procedures and continue to train your staff so that they become more competent.

Every 2 months, or as needed, you assess your list of successful procedures and add to them, or revise them.  Every week you work on improving them, and train your team on them.  Much like any athletic team, you practice and review your plays and procedures.

We call this process the Practice Development Process. It helps you to continually improve the practice and gradually take the office to Goal 2.

Getting Organized: The Baseball Diamond
To get to Goal 1, organization is not vital. Production, speed, and promotional activity is. However, getting to Goal 2 requires good organization.

Imagine a baseball team that stands around the pitcher’s mound with the pitcher. A batter hits a fly ball to the right field. The whole team goes to chase it. Once they reach it, they realize that no one is on the first or second base to throw the ball to in order to stop the runner. They are all out in right field.

Many offices operate this way. For example, in some offices the front desk does insurance, the insurance department does therapy, the therapist schedules appointments, and the doctor takes time off to buy office supplies.

Moving the office upward to its peak capacity includes all areas of the office improving: first base, third base, centerfield, etc.  If you only have a few of the departments doing well, the other departments will hold down the entire growth.

Goal Three
Our greater goals give us meaning.  These are the accomplishments we want to have said we achieved at the end of our lives. They are based in love, hope, and faith. They are for our heritage, our parents and those upon whom we owe so much; they are for our legacy, our children and their children; they are for our community and the fellowship we share with rich and poor.

Goal three is your “Give Back” goals, to your family, to your community, and to yourself.

All Three
This is your road map up and out of the roller coaster. These three goals form a sequence, but you have to keep all of them in mind as you travel up your road to success.

This is directed to a business owner, but also applies to team members and how they can improve their competency. It applies to patients, and how they travel from acute care, structural care, to wellness.  It actually applies to many activities.

You have to be willing to shift between goals, and if you find yourself suddenly in the poor house, you have to lose your self-important attitude and run like a rookie again until you build your business back up to Goal 1.

Where many doctors fail is that they are not willing to shift, either up, or down, as needed. Having achieved Goal 1, they are two insecure to delegate their duties to staff and procedures, or work on improving themselves. Many doctors, having achieved Goal 1 who should be working on Goal Two, feel the need to keep doing what they did to get to Goal One and so, quickly find them selves back down struggling just to survive.

It is easy to get lost, but now, with the 3 Goals Management System, you have a road map.

We have seen too few doctors achieve financial abundance and practice freedom. Hopefully, with the tools provided in the 3 Goals Management System, more doctors will be able to reach their dreams and help others do the same.

For information on our coaching and management consulting programs. LINK

(3 goals image copyright 2009)

Case Management in a Chiropractic Office

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Chiropractic Case Manager Job Description Summary

In many chiropractic offices the majority of the attention on patient care is on the first 5 to 12 visits. In some offices, it is only on the first 5 visits, or less. It can get so bad that the primary concern is only on getting more and more new patient first visits.

An old maxim in dental consulting is that the biggest cost to the dentist is the incomplete dental program. A patient who discontinues care after the first $1,000 of a total program of $10,000 just cost the dental office $9,000. This also applies to the chiropractic office.

Actually, many chiropractors are producing incomplete cases. This is not in the best interest of the patient’s health or in the viability of the office. Imagine a hygienist that only cleaned the upper teeth, or a baker that only baked his bread half way through. Yet, many offices are only getting their patients partially through their treatment programs.

The job of your clinic is to get your patients to complete their entire treatment program and on to a Wellness Program. During the course of a patient’s care, the doctor and staff may concentrate only on their specific duties with the patient, such as scheduling, treating (adjusting), collection, etc.  Usually no one has the job of overseeing the patient’s progress along the entire treatment pathway, through all the adjustments, scheduling, therapy, education, payments, until they finally “graduate” and go on to a Wellness Program.

Yet a full Wellness Program takes some of the pressure off of the need for a constant stream of new patients and makes for a smooth running office.

To help ensure that patients get complete and comprehensive care, the position of Case Manager should be held by someone in the office.

Who should be the case manager: It can be fulfilled by the doctor, or the therapy or back office assistant, or the front desk or even the billing and collections staff member.

Time spent as a case manager: It should take no more than one hour per week.

Mission: The mission of the Case Manager is to ensure that all patients move through the various departments of a health care clinic smoothly and quickly, ensuring that they get excellent service such that they complete their treatment program as quickly as possible.

Duties and Responsibilities

1.  Coordination. Once a week, or daily before treating hours, the case manager should get the doctor and essential staff together for a Case Management Meeting. A great time to do this is 20 minutes before the first patient for the day, or weekly for one hour. During this time, the appointment book or a list of active patients should be reviewed.

    This is the most important tool the case manager (or case coordinator) has. During these meetings, the following points, among others, can be reviewed on each active patient:

    • Patient’s Progress
    • Patient’s Satisfaction
    • Re-exam (last/next)
    • Re-x-ray, or other diagnostics
    • Re-x-ray, or other diagnostics
    • Re-reports (progress report of findings)
    • Supplements
    • Exercises, nutritional or other recommendations
    • Financial conclusion (Initial, subsequent, and transitional to Wellness.)
    • Education programs, such as spinal care class, special lectures, pamphlets, etc.
    • Awards, compliments, thank you for referrals, good attendance, etc.
    • Family and friends referrals
    • Transition or adherence to a Wellness Program.

    2.  Outcome and Statistics. Keep a statistic of “Completed Treatment Programs”. Once a patient reaches a maximum level of improvement they are ready to go on to Wellness Care. One way to keep this statistic is to track the number of patients beginning a wellness care program.

      3.    Patient Progress Card. Make up a general treatment plan for every patient in the form of a simple checklist. This would include all service procedures, therapy, diagnostic, as well as educational actions. The last steps would include transitional consultations onto a wellness care program. This could be called a Patient Progress Card, and placed in the patient’s folder.

      4.    Day 1 & 2 Procedures. Ensure that day one and day two procedures are well documented and kept up to date with current procedures, and a simple flow chart outlined.

      5.    Regular Visit Procedures. Ensure that regular patient procedures are documented, and a simple flow chart outlined.

      6.    Staff Training. Staff walk-throughs for day one and day two procedures, and other flow procedures rehearsed at least on a quarterly basis. The best offices practice monthly.

      7.    Financial Consultations. Financial consultations done on all patients as often as is needed.

      8.    New Patient Orientation. New Patient Orientation done on each patient.

      9.    Patient Satisfaction. Ensured patients are very happy with service.

      10.    Pathways. Pathways for different types of cases documented and reviewed by all.

      11.    Flow Charts. Flow charts for first three day procedures outlined and rehearsed.

      12.    Conversion. All patients completing services are converted to wellness or other programs.

      Outcomes. The major outcome of the position of Case Manager is “Completed Treatment Programs.” That is, patients who have completed any acute or chronic treatment programs prescribed by the doctor and have reached maximum improvement. This definition could be extended to include: a patient who has completed their active care program and is educated so that they will continue onto a wellness program.”

      Performance Monitors

      • Number of Completed Treatment Programs
      • Number of Patients Beginning Wellness Care Programs
      • Number of Wellness Program Visits

      It is easy to drop out important but not urgent actions with patients during their care. Ultimately, this leads to poor quality and a deterioration of results. With a Patient Progress Card, and the Case Manager System in place, quality and patient results will improve, and your volume will increase. Often it is not what we see that hurts us, but what we don’t see. It is the gradual omissions that eventually add up to an empty office. Ensure each patient completes all of the steps of their treatment programs.

      For better patient retention, increased referrals, improved treatment compliance, and more revenue, implement the Case Management System!

      Spinefest

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      Dr. Don Warren and his happy team of professional chiropractic assistants created one of the greatest and most fun special promotions I’ve seen a long time. They call it Spinefest.

      One type of an effective Special Promotion  ties into a donation program, which in this case, was a food drive. Not only were they able to generate money for the “Feed the Hungry” program and get great publicity doing so, they also fostered good will in the community and as a result, saw their new patient numbers head skyward.

      They do this every fall. A recent magazine article just came out featuring Dr. Warren on the back cover. (Note: The article states that Dr. Warren is president of his state association which is incorrect.)

      Chiropractic Special Promotions

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      • What is a Special Promotion?
      • How often do you use them?
      • Why do you use them?
      • Are there times that you shouldn’t use them?
      • What is the key to their success?
      • Plus- 14 Questions for each promotion.
      • Plus- 24 examples of special promotions.

      What Is a Special Promotion?

      A special promotion is a promotion that is not a regular part of your standard patient marketing procedures.  Every clinic should have routine and recurring procedures that serve to promote its services.  This would include different forms of patient education, recommendations to patients to bring in family members for a check-up, the manner in which the phone is answered, newsletters, etc.

      On occasion, however, you may want to celebrate a special event, like the anniversary of our clinic, or hold a party for all of your patients for the holidays, or take part in a community wide donation program with your patients.  This is called a special promotion.  They can be targeted to your entire patient base, or just a section of it. For example, you could set aside a special day for just for kids or an after hours “Girls Night Out.”.

      How Often Are Special Promotions Used?
      Because these promotions can be directed at select groups of patients and non patients, you could have as many as one or two per month.  However, they do take up staff time to prepare properly and to execute each promotion effectively. Therefore, a special promotion every 2 to four months is usually adequate.

      Why use Special Promotions?
      There are a number of reasons to do special promotions.  First, of course, they can generate new patients.  But there are other reasons as well.  For example, handing out carnations to mothers on the week before Mother’s Day is done just for the goodwill– because it is a nice thing to do.  Another reason is that it can add fun for the staff by providing them with an activity outside of their usual patient services and admin duties.

      Another benefit of special promotions is that it draws attention to your office. Patients and non-patients see that there are extra exciting activities occurring with your office in addition to the great service you provide.  It helps create marketing “buzz,” or conversations about your office.

      When Not to Use Special Promotions
      If you or your staff are already stressed with extra work, major in-office changes, or have repeatedly done new patient promotions recently, do not schedule a special promotion soon.  You need to build up your routine and recurring internal and external promotional procedures for a while in order to “grow” more new patients.  A special promotion is like a special harvesting… you can’t pick apples off a tree more than once in a season.

      Special promotions can act like an artificial boost.  Often, the real energy has been built up in the office or in the community and a special promotion just “releases” it.

      You may have seen other doctors trying to run a special promotion in the newspaper over and over, usually for something free.  It may have worked once, and may work again, but probably not right away.  Continuous “specials” poorly targeted and improperly timed will grind your other promotions down to a halt.

      Preparation Is The Key
      Plan ahead.  At least 70%, of the work of a special promotion is in preparation.  Avoid “too little too late”, a common mistake with  many promotions.

      Plan several special promotions for the next six months.  You can always cancel them later if you have too many. You can tie them into seasons, holidays, special events, or anything that might be of particular interest to your community, to your patients, and … to you and your staff.  They should be kept fun and creative.  Everyone should be involved.  The event should be discussed at staff meetings, and different projects delegated to different staff, even the doctors.

      Different promotions can be delegated to different team members.  You can give each person the option of creating their own event.  In one office the Billing and Collections Coordinator took on the month of August and organized a  “Flea Market” on a weekend in the clinic’s parking lot.  Patients rented booths and a food vendor set up a shop, and health screenings were provided by the office. It was a resounding success.

      Lastly, someone should act as the Special Promotion/Event Coordinator to help keep things organized.

      14 Questions to Ask for Each Special Promotion

      1. Why are we doing this event and how does it align with our mission
      2. Who exactly is the special promotion for?
      3. Is the event just internal to the office, or just external, or both?
      4. Is the event designed to directly generate new patients, just generate good will, or both?
      5. What does the target market get out of it?  Why would they want to participate?  What is in it for them?
      6. What are we going to get out of the event?  How will it benefit our clinic?
      7. When are we going to have it?
      8. What is the duration of the event?
      9. What is our budget?
      10. How are we going to promote it?
      11. What needs to be done?
        1. Before the event
        2. During the event
        3. After the event.
      12. Are all of the duties listed above delegated to individual staff?
      13. Who is the coordinator for the event?
      14. Do they have time scheduled to prepare for the event?

      Examples of Special Promotions
      (I-Internal, E-External)

      1. Senior’s Day (I&E)
      2. Valentine’s Day (I)
      3. National Correct Posture Month (May) (I&E)
      4. Mother’s Day (I)
      5. Father’s Day (I)
      6. Kid’s Day (I&E)
      7. Back to School Day for Kids (I&E)
      8. Patient Appreciation Day (I)
      9. Community Appreciation Day (E)
      10. Open House (I&E)
      11. Grand Opening (E)
      12. Anniversary (I&E)
      13. Spinal Health Care Month (I&E)
      14. Food Drive (I&E)
      15. Toy Drive (I&E)
      16. Other donation drives, such as YMCA (I&E)
      17. Christmas gifts, coupons and health certificates (I&E)
      18. General referral coupons for friends and family members of patients
      19. Teacher’s Appreciation Day (I&E)
      20. Care to Share (Internal)
      21. Doctors with a Heart
      22. Girls Night Out (Internal/External)
      23. Cinco de Mayo Party
      24. Fireman Appreciation Week
      25. Blame Someone Else Day

      Example of One Doctor’s Successful Promotion

      For more articles on practice development for your chiropractic office.

      To learn about our Marketing Manager System.

      Family Referral Procedure

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      A systematized procedure for generating more chiropractic patient referrals.

      How many more patient referrals could you generate if you simply asked for them?

      Sure, your patients refer others to you now, but how many more could you generate if you asked for them?

      One of the best times to ask for referrals is at the beginning of care, just when they are starting to see some benefit. At this time, patients are excited about discovering your office and are more willing to tell others about your services.

      This usually occurs between visit 3-8.  After about 3 weeks, the ”newness” of the experience can wear off and the patient can settle into a routine.

      One procedure that we have seen effective is talking to the patient about a “Family Check-up Plan.”  We recommend that you present each patient with a “Family and Friends Guest Pass”, or “Get Acquainted Gift Certificate” for his or her family, and friends, good for a free spinal check-up as a routine procedure, usually on the 3rd visit.

      Below you will find an example of a script for your chiropractic assistant, procedure notes, and an example of a gift certificate. You can edit the gift certificate and insert your office name and other information so that it is customized for your office.

      SCRIPT AND PROCEDURE

      Front Desk Chiropractic Assistant: After the 3rd visit, as the patient checks out, the Front Desk C.A. asks the patient:

      “Did Dr. ABC mention our Family and Friends “Health Check-up Program?”

      Patient: Responds.

      C.A.: Explains or re-explains the program:

      “Well, Dr. ABC wants to make sure that the family members of our all patients are properly checked for spinal related problems. We call it our Family Check-up Policy.

      So many times he sees patients who come to us, in pain, who have spinal problems that could have been more easily corrected had we seen them sooner before they were in pain.

      Now, there is no charge for this. Dr. ABC just wants to make sure your whole family is checked and healthy.

      Any questions?

      Patient Responds.

      C.A. O.K. Here is a Gift Certificate you can give to a family member. It is good for (whatever you want to offer.) an 8-point spine and neck check-up and a consultation.
      And, (smiling), as a bonus, we are offering a 15 minute massage from our massage therapist as well.

      Patient Responds. That sounds pretty good.

      C.A. Well, it gets better. This coupon is also good for any family member. You can even use it for a friend of yours too.

      In addition, this makes you eligible for our Massage Therapy “Care To Share” Credit Program.  Every person you bring in allows you to receive a credit 15 minutes free massage on your account. This is our way of thanking you for sharing the benefits of chiropractic.

      Patient Responds. Wow. That’s great!

      C.A. Let me go over the card with you. (C.A. goes over how to fill out the card). Now, how many do you want?

      Patient. Well let’s see, my son, my sister, and her husband. That’s three.

      C.A. Great. Here they are. Let me initial them and get them numbered. Now they are good for 60 days. So try to encourage them to call and make an appointment before then.

      [Makes a note on a log, usually kept at the Front Desk. Ask the patient about who the gift certificates are for.  Try to become familiar with the family and friends of the patient. Make a note of whom they are. In the following days, you can ask about these people again, showing interest and helping to remind the patient to bring their family and friends in for a health check-up.]

      Patient. I will do it. Thanks!

      NOTES:
      Print the gift certificate on card stock and cut with a paper cutter. Your local copy shop can do this for you or you can in your office. The better you make the coupon, the more valuable it will be to the patient.

      Only hand the gift certificate out to the patient personally. Never let them lie around or on the desk. Treat them as $100 bills.

      If you miss the patient on the 3rd visit, ask them on the subsequent visit. Usually the 3rd to the 6th visit is the best time. The patient should start to benefit, and still be excited about the services he or she is receiving.

      (For customizable samples in Word format, active PM&A and Marketing Manager System clients and members can go to the MMS Members web site.)

      SAMPLE FAMILY & FRIEND HEALTH CHECK UP GIFT CERTIFICATE FILLED OUT.

      Much more of this information can be found in the Marketing Manager System computer program.
      Also, look for more free tips and tools to grow your practice. Link. Link.

      It's Summer. Get Outside!

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      Summer is a great time to promote your services.

      While all marketing starts from the “inside” and internal marketing can be very effective, so can external marketing.  Internal, or in the office marketing, is a form of networking. The most effective form of external marketing, or marketing to non patients outside of the office, has also been networking.

      In our world today, we are “spammed” to death.  It is estimated that we are hit over 2,000 times each day in the US with advertisement impressions. There is just too much “noise.”

      One of the reasons social networking on the internet has grown is that it allows people to bypass the noise and network on a more personal basis.  But real world local networking opportunities exist right in your back yard: summer “block parties”, church socials, Lions Club pancake breakfasts, parades, 10-Ks and other walk/runs, donation drives – the list goes on and on.

      You can just show up and meet people. Let them meet you.  Much like an elected official does when she runs for office.  You can also get a picture taken of the event and then use this in your internal promotions.

      Here is a picture of me waving to the crowd with our state representative, Dr.Sheldon Wasserman, at our local 4th of July parade.

      Get a list of upcoming community events from the Chamber of Commerce and schedule a screening, talk, an information booth, your own participation (volunteer your help), or just a visit. Be neighborly.

      There is often a run or walk as part of a donation program during the summer months in which you and your staff can participate.  We have seen offices proudly wear their office t-shirts and recruit many patients to do the same.

      When you are networking, you get to know people. Be interested in them and thier interests. Then you can hand out your cards. You an also hand out coupons for a screening or workshop at your office. And then, of course, there are on site screenings.

      Screenings still work. You better believe it! But they have to be well organized. Most importantly, the people doing the screenings have to want to be there and have fun doing them.  We have been doing screenings for over 20 years and they can be as effective now as they ever were.  But whether you do a screening, or run, or just show up with your friendly conversation and cards, there are many summer events for you to get out and do some networking.

      Here are just some of the benefits:

      • Meet new people who can eventually become new patients or new referral sources.
      • Meet active patients and strengthen your relationship with them in a different setting.
      • See inactive patients and reactive them, or encourage referrals from them.
      • Get out, get some sun and have some fun!

      As Woody Allen is to have said:

      Eighty percent of success is showing up.

       You can’t loose. It’s Summer. Get Outside.

      #  #  #

      Promotions: Just Schedule Them

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      As we have said MANY times before, the number one problem with the marketing in most offices is that— it just doesn’t get done.What is the solution?A big part of it is just scheduling them.

      To help you with this, you need a marketing calendar.

      Once a month, take an hour off and plan some internal and external events over the next several months.

      If you wonder where your patients are, make sure your front desk has them scheduled to come in.

      Next, you better make sure you have your promotions scheduled to encourage new people to come in.

      To help you with this, here are 4 great resources:

      1. Essential elements about your chiropractic practice marketing plan.
      2. Sample three month planning calendar for download.
      3. Sample 12 month marketing calendar for down download (81/2 x 11).
      4. Large, 2 foot by 3 foot marketing wall calendar for purchase.  Post this in your break room and to plan and coordinate your upcoming promotions with your team.

      Protecting Your Patients From Negative Press

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      Just caught a minute of CNN Wednesday morning (June 25) about chiropractic and strokes.

      The news anchor interviewed CNN’s resident M.D., Dr. Sanja Gupta, who reports on a specific stroke victim, Britt Harwe. He refers to an “advocacy group” for other stroke victims of chiropractic, and uses the term “Chiropractic Stroke.”  He also interviews a representative from the American Chiropractic Association who gives a pretty lame presentation.

      So, to start off with, the piece is slanted negatively.

      Then, the M.D. recommends that viewers only see chiropractors who have been licensed and who have attended chiropractic colleges, which are 2-4 year programs.  I may have missed something, but I have never seen, or heard of a chiropractor who has attended a two year D.C. program. Again, another slant covertly snuck in.

      But then I checked: this  lady had a stroke FIFTEEN years ago! CNN is Cable NEWS network.  What about this is news?

      To be fair, Gupta had a nice piece about chiropractic a few years ago.  And, not to pick on CNN, as I saw at least one negative article at another network’s web site.

      While a stroke can be tragic, as in the case of Ms. Hawre, a quick glance at at least one study shows that chiropractic patients are no more likely to suffer a stroke following chiropractic treatment than they would after visiting their family doctor’s office.

      Stroke victims deserve all the help, understanding, and care possible.  The chiropractic profession needs to always honestly review their standards of care for improvement, as does any profession or business.

      But for a negatively slanted piece to come out 15 years after the fact belies the real motivation of the report. We have seen the medical establishment try to contain chiropractic in the past. This has been proven in the Wilk’s case.

      The chiropractic profession is, and has been, the leader in the Wellness Revolution.  But it has not been easy.  There are and will continue to be sucker punches thrown at you and your patients.

      Not supported by pharmaceutical funding, the responsibility of chiropractic public relations has to be shouldered by chiropractors and their professional staff.

      I thought I would bring all this up because of your patients.  They hear garbage like this and it can dull their appreciation for chiropractic and what it and you have done for them.

      You have to know what you are up against, as do your staff, as do your patients.

      Educate them. Stay in the fight. Get a little outraged. It is good for you. Makes you strong. Tell your story and the chiropractic story. Improve your services and pursue your greater purposes.

      This is the real point of this post: protect your patients by educating them.  Get them through their care and onto wellness care. Have them join the fight.

      We put together a poster regarding strokes in case they bring it up to you for your use in patient education. Down load it and use if you want. You can get more data at the A.C.A. site here.

      CNN link


      How Do You Start Your Day?

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      How do you start your day?

      The fact is, the way you start your day will determine, largely, how you end your day.

      Start it right and you’ll end it right.

      Start late, flustered, groggy, moody, cranky, and your day will be longer, harder, and less productive.

      Time and time again, when we work with doctors and their teams on starting their day off correctly, we notice that the patients become happier, the appointment book fills up,  and the doctor feels more in control of her patients.  Just last month, as a matter of fact, one doctor implemented this procedure and hit her highest new patients – ever.

      Another doctor gets to the office before his staff and associate doctors and reviews the day’s schedule.  Before the patients come in, he reviews each patient, as needed, and makes sure all patients are set up for the right procedures that day. In spite of the fact that he has several clinics, and a handful of associate partners, it is no wonder he still averages over 1200 visits per month. So can you.

      You can start your day any dang way you want, the choice is yours. Actually, you have two choices as diagrammed below.

      Some offices call this their morning “huddle”, or “case management” meeting. Whatever you call it, here are some successful procedures to start your day:

      1.    Discipline. Make sure that it starts on time. Only have it 2-3 times per week to start with. Keep it simple, FAST, and fun. This will be the biggest hurdle. But, just schedule it and make it happen.

      2.    Humor. A staff member should start off with a good joke. For example, the front desk has the first Monday, the doctor on Wednesday, the Accounts CA has to bring a joke for Friday, and so on. It goes on a rotational basis. If this is hard to do, then that is all the more reason to do bring a joke. If you are bad at jokes, again, all the more reason to bring a joke. 🙂  Need a joke? We have a few over here.

      3.    Patients. Then, go over each patient that is coming in that day and decide, as needed, what extra should be done with him or her.  For example, does Patient A need a progress exam, need to be scheduled for the care class, another financial consultation, or be seen to schedule her family for no charge “check-ups?”  If your office is seeing over 800 patients that day, probably best to just check over some of the patients — no need to cover each one. Just see if any of the doctors or staff have any input on anyone.[We have seen an 800 visit day. Lots of fun!]

      4.    Office. Then, review how the office is progressing towards its goals for the month.

      5.    Goals/Visualization. Then, set realistic daily goals, and look at and even visualize not only achieving them, but achieving the weekly and monthly goals as well.

      6.    Miscellaneous. No more than two quick minutes for a miscellaneous announcement, if needed.

      7.    Motivation. Finally, the clinic director should end off with a patient success story, or something inspirational and motivational. A quote, a story, etc.  We have lots of quotes in the Marketing Manger System computer program. You can also take one Chiropractic Principle each day, discuss it with the staff, and work out ways to apply it that day.

      The whole meeting should be done BEFORE patients are seen, and last no more than 15 minutes.  Use it in your group, and use it on your self, and watch your practice grow.

      Chiropractic Newsletters

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      Newsletters to Your Patients

      Pity the poor practice newsletter!

      So misunderstood. Forgotten, neglected, and ridiculed.

      Scorned as too expensive, dismissed for eating up too much staff time, and disregarded because they just don’t “work.”

      But is any of this true…?

      Not necessarily.

      Too expensive? They can be. Fancy paper, color photos, six pages,  and sent first class can cost thousands.

      Take too much time? Oh boy, how true this can be!  Who is going to get the information and write it, format the newsletter, get the mailing list, organize the mailing, do the printing, add the postage, and take it to the post office?  That is a LOT of work, and costly staff hours.

      Do they work? After spending so much time and money on any other promotion, you would expect the new patients to come in for a good return on your investment. Often, this does not occur.

      BUT WAIT… it doesn’t have to be like this. IN FACT:

      Patient newsletters can cost as little .50 cents per newsletter. That includes, postage, paper, printing, and taking them to the post office.  The offices where we see them used regularly have shown an increase in patient referrals and in reactivated patients.

      Before we outline how to do it, here is why you should.

      Why You Should Do A Newsletter
      When a patient starts care with you, you and that one person, old, young, male, female, it doesn’t matter, that ONE person and you – have started a conversation. They confided in you about some things about which, outside of close family friends, no one knows. It is personal. Professional, yes, but the fact is, you and your patient have started a dialogue.

      It is your job to continue it. It is not their job to do so – it is yours.

      You are the doctor and they came to you. They reached out for help. All you have to do is to keep the conversation going. It may be one sided for a while, but they are listening.

      We are all spammed to death. It has been estimated that each one of us receives up to 3,000 to 5,000 separate advertising impressions each day in the U. S. People are numb to advertising. It is no wonder that your ads in the local paper just don’t have the pull they used to.

      Patients who have once been to you already know who you are. When they receive a letter from you, it is from someone who knows them.  You are communicating to someone who already knows you and knows that you know them.

      Statistics tell us that it is much more profitable to invest in keeping the patients you have, and marketing to them, than trying to procure new patients that do not know you.

      Patients stop seeing you because sometimes, Life gets in the way. Finances, personal problems, work, and after a while, they kind of just loose touch.  But you are mistaken if you think that your relationship with them is over.  Once someone tells you intimate details about their personal condition, a relationship has started. Think about who you have confided in personally. You feel a special connection to them, right?

      So, a conversation has started and by simply maintaining it, you will find that the patients stay with you longer, come back to care more frequently, and refer more of their family and acquaintances.

      How To Do A Newsletter
      For those of you who have the Marketing Manager System (sm)  computer program, there are a number of sample templates and examples that can be easily reformatted for your office.

      Newsletters are thrown away, of course,  but they are reminders and brief advertisements about your services. They should not look like another pamphlet – homemade newsletters work very well. Too fancy is too expensive and look like the regurgitated pulp that gets thrown in most health articles and brochures.

      Add a column just from you. We have a sample doctor’s column which you can use. On our members site for our clients, we have others.  Add some news, maybe one of Margie’s favorite non fattening brownie recipes, a snapshot, a testimonial, and a list of upcoming events. That’s about it.

      Put it on one piece of paper that gets folded over twice and become self mailer. Bid it out to local mailers and you will find that the printing, paper, postage, and mailing all comes out to about fifty cents each.  If you have 1000 patients to whom you are mailing, that comes out to $500. If you do the mailing every 4 months, it averages to be $125 per month.

      Make sure that one person is delegated to oversee the newsletter. It should not take but a few hours to do.

      Email newsletters are nearly free, of course, and can be effective.  You can capture the email addresses from your patients and send out personal newsletters using services such as constantcontact.com, aweber.com, or a new one icontact.com. There are many others that have simple templates where you can simple type in the information and send out.

      Homemade Newsletters versus Preprinted Newsletters

      There are a number of companies that will print and mail newsletters out to your patients for you.  There are also a number of chiropractic commercial websites that will send out prefabricated electronic email newsletters to the email addresses you supply them.  The advantages are obvious – someone else does all the work and patients receive a professional good looking copy in their mail box, or their email in box.

      We have seen these work, however we prefer the home made newsletter.  The reason is that professionally done newsletters are a bit like pamphlets – they look nice, but they are generic and soulless.  This can be particularly true of email newsletters. Some prefabricated newsletters make room for your customized inserts.  In this case, these might work well.

      The primary problem with the preprinted newsletter, whether “hard copy” or electronic, is that it can take you out of the loop. You cannot really delegate all of your patient communication.  You can delegate some of your communication, but the point is, you want to maintain a personal relationship with your patients.

      There is more to it than this, but don’t worry about getting it too prefect or too fancy. Funky, friendly, and funny is good.  Just do it and keep the conversation going. You will see your old patients returning, referrals increasing, and established patients coming in to thank you for that the recipe you put in your last newsletter.

      #  #  #

      [Petty, Michel & Associates offers special practice development programs designed to help you achieve your goals.  For more information on our 3 Goals Seminars, coaching programs, and products: Services Products]

      "Good balance of hard facts and philosophy."

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      We just finished our Minneapolis seminar and WOW! Not trying to exaggerate here, but it was great.


      Highlighting our the seminar was Dr. Peter Kevorkian who gave a rousing presentation. Dr. Peter’s animated talk interwove science, chiropractic history, and practical patient education procedures that both inspired and informed.

      Like many of you, I have been to scores, if not hundreds of chiropractic talks (not counting listening to Dave go on and on about insurance companies on our long driving road trips). Dr. Peter was masterful at integrating philosophy and science with the practical nuts and bolts our clients could use to develop their practices. One of the best presentations I have heard.

      And like a true leader, he practices what he preaches, seeing well over 3,000 visits per month with his wife, in three days per week. He actually is achieving all three goals and represents our 3 Goals Program well.

      Phyllis Frase gave specific tips for staff team members and doctors in her presentation that was energetic and passionate. Dave Michel and I also gave talks that provided sound business and marketing advice.

      One doctor almost complained to us that the day after the seminar his staff were so on fire and motivated he could hardly recognize them.

      One of the most glowing reports stated that the seminar was a “Good balance of hard facts and philosophy.”

      New seminars coming up in Chicago and possibly on the East coast. Stay tuned…

      Photos here.

      Here are some comments:

      Good balance of hard facts and philosophy.

      There were many ideas that we could apply in our office.
      The information was incredibly useful. We need to recognize that we are in a business.

      I also liked the fact that you were punctual. This leaves a huge impression on your company.

      Great seminar.

      Learned many new ideas. Loved the focus on service — there were many example we can implement that were new and many great reminders. The information was absolutely useful.

      Speakers were dynamic and to the point.

      Information was entirely useful. I liked the 3 Goals Process and the 9 roles on it. It was a practical seminar – not too much info, not too little. Easily refreshed on some things and good reminders on what to implement.

      Great speakers.

      Information was very useful. Great job!.

      Like the marketing ideas and positive energy.

      Information was simple but useful kept short as not to lose focus. Great energy and from the heart .. can feel the passion.

      Thank you for a great day of learning how to be better than yesterday. I have really enjoyed going to work so much more since we have joined PM&A these last few months. And, we have gotten busier – so fun!!

      It Gets Better Each Time!

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      What a Seminar! Our second 3 Goals seminar which was held in Milwaukee was SO much fun that if we knew it was going to be like this, we would have been doing seminars years ago.

      With over 60 people attending,with veteran doctors and staff, and rookies as well, the place was rockin’.

      Just a note from all of us at PM&A: For those of you who attended – Thank You! We had a great time sharing our information and meeting you all.

      Hope to see you again.

      Some comments below and pictures here.

      First, a kind letter from a veteran office manager of 4 offices:

      Dear Ed, David and Phyllis,

      Wow!! I was blown away by you guys yesterday, this was information that every chiropractor and chiropractic assistant needs! I have been a C.A. for 23 years, Office Manager for 17 years, and still viewed your seminar as a beneficial learning experience. I have several procedures and marketing ideas that I will be implementing. In my opinion, The 3 Goals Seminar should be a must for any new D.C., the content was invaluable! You guys truly made my experience for the day extraordinary, thank you!

      Sincerely,

      Cindy S.

      Here are some more comments:

      “Very energetic , lots of ideas, the CA information was wonderful.”

      “The marketing info is going to be helpful.” “Information was clear.” “Lots of energy and like the experience of the presenters.” “Great for new doctors.” “Patient education info was great. Good info on systems and how to keep them in place.” “Great marketing ideas in and out of the office.”

      “Financial planning and collections very helpful.” “Marketing strategies were good.” “Liked most how to systematize your office.” “Liked the different types of marketing meetings.” “Information was practical, well organized.” “Clear and numbered structure.”

      “I thought it was a great seminar.” “VERY HELPFUL. Lots of information and ideas that can/should be implemented in our office and mission.” “Enjoyed the overall enthusiasm of all speak sand their excitement for wellness/chiropractic.”

      “3 Goals System as overall guide for practice success strategy.” “Informative and interesting. I can leave here and work on many things in the office tomorrow.” “Awesome presentation!”

      No Soup For Dr. Steve and Staff — One Year!

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      Last week I was in Elgin, Il, working with a chiropractor and his staff.

      The doctor has a patient who is doing an independent film and used his clinic as a location for filming. The movie includes the actor, Larry Thomas, who is famous for his part in the Seinfeld comedy sitcom as the “Soup Nazi.”

      Besides being a reminder to a very funny skit, the lesson here is that a chiropractic office has many uses besides chiropractic care. It can be used for meetings of local associations, workshops, yoga classes,  and many other types of events.  All of these position your facility as an inclusive public location and can get you better known. This film, even if it tanks, will definitly draw attention to Dr. Steve and his services. And if the film becomes a blockbuster… soup and adjustments for everyone!

      Watch a clip from the Seinfeld series with the Soup Nazi. Clip.

      New ABN Form Coming Soon

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      As some of you have already heard, Medicare has revised the ABN form that patients sign. [What is the ABN form? From the American Chiropractic Association.]

      The revised form, with a new title, “Advance Beneficiary Notice of Noncoverage,” can be found here.

      Although the use of this new ABN form is not mandatory until September 2008, you can start now if you know the rules, have the new ABN form, and implement it properly.

      So far, WPS Medicare (for Wisconsin, Michigan, Illinois, and Minnesota) has not mentioned the new form or implementation, but other states have already started the process.

      Thanks to Bev for alerting us to this.

      If you are aware of anything new about this form, or any insurance issues affecting chiropractic care that other offices might want to know, please feel free to post a notice here or email us at pma@pmaworks.com.

      Organic Health Week

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      Special Promotion:  Earth Day and Organic Health Care Week

      Earth Day is celebrated this year on Tuesday, April 22.   As general awareness increases about the harmful affects of toxins on our body, as well as on our planet, chiropractic continues to rise as the shining star in the world of true health care solutions.

      Earth Day is a great opportunity for you to promote the benefits of your chiropractic services.

      You can set aside one week as a “Buddy Week” and encourage your patients to bring in family and friends for a discounted check-up and introductory service.  The discounted fee that they pay you for the introductory services can be used as a donation to a local park fund, or earth related charity.

      You can place posters in your office and at key locations around  town, such as coffee shops, hair salons, etc.  A simple press release or notice can also be placed on your web site, newsletter, patient statements, newspaper and community calendar.

      You can also order some buttons for you staff to wear. 300 of them cost about $120 and you can use them next year as well.  For a sample button provider, go here (www.affordablebuttons.com)

      Here are some sample buttons:

      This is an excellent time to take pride in your profession.  Chiropractic:  always organic, healthy, and ahead of its time.

      Sample Posters

      Spring and Meaning

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      Spring.

      And almost three months into the New Year.

      It was just 3 months ago when the New Year began. What about those goals you set? Those resolutions you made? How are you doing on achieving them?

      You know, it is just amazing, working with the great doctors and staffs that we do. It is so evident that success is so attainable. It is just peeking around the corner, waiting for you to do just that next key action that will propel your office to pick up the speed needed to take you to the next level.

      One doctor we are working with, after being in practice nearly 20 years, is hitting his best ever days and highest ever weeks this month. His staff have been emailing us their successes as if they are texting us from a rock concert!

      We live for this stuff, by the way – your successes. Many times after years of gradual improvements, it is so gratifying to see an office take off with stability.

      Another doctor who has been in practice for years has been breaking collections records. And volume…seems like it is nothing to have a 1000 visit month – with many if not most new patients coming in from referrals.  One doctor we work with routinely sees over 1000 visits each month, and each month works with his colleagues and associates to help them hit their best-evers. Another doctor had over 150 on the books for him to see yesterday (Wednesday).

      From our perspective, it looks like chiropractic is having a renaissance.

      Of course, this is not the case with all of our clients. Some are still laying foundations for future growth. Success can come, but sometimes only after years of implementing the right procedures.

      But what are these “right procedures”, and where do you look? Insurance department, clinic management and organization, marketing?

      Some of you may feel that you are in a rut,  that you and your practice are stuck. If so, take heart and have hope. Things can change and you can do better. We have seen it happen with many doctors in these last three months.

      There are so many distractions in our lives, and many of them are negative and disheartening. Demoralizing. Frightening. Discouraging. Yet, we see doctors who have been stuck, finally get things going and do better. After years of stagnation, we see them do their best ever.

      Practice development success is dependent on the quality of your systems and organization.  That’s 50%

      What’s the other 50%?

      Part II

      The other 50% is an “Inside Job.”  That is, your success is dependent upon the structure of your office, but also on the function of your behavior. The quality, and quantity, of your energy, your attitude, and your creativity is easily 50% the cause of your success, or not.

      So, if your numbers are down, you should spend half your time improving your systems, and half your time…improving yourself.

      Are you frightened stiff? Have you developed “hardening of the attitudes”? Are you resentful, a seething caldron of anger? Do you feel burned out, frustrated, or feel like you just can not make the changes needed?  Believe me, this manifests one way or another in your practice. And in all areas of your life.

      We all experience these feelings, among others, at times. Sometimes they are acute. But after you have been in business for a while, you may not even notice that you have become less than enthusiastic about practice.

      Yet, even if you were locked up in solitary confinement, you would still have the power of choice. You could still be creative.  Even if you were shackled, starved, beaten, imprisoned, you could still find meaning and purpose in your life.

      This is the basis of an entire branch of psychology as developed by a former prisoner of the Nazi death camps, Victor Frankl. His observations lead him to identify what he saw as the basic principles of living, including:

      1. “Life has meaning under all circumstances, even the most miserable ones.
      2. “Our main motivation for living is our will to find meaning in life.”

      Successful people have meaning in their lives.

      If you can find purpose and meaning in this very moment, in this day, with your next patient, with this year, your probability of success will be greatly increased. More importantly, you will find that what you are doing is more satisfying.

      Fear will vanish, hardened attitudes will become flexible, and your energy will return.

      Structural changes will need to take place, of course. Better clinic systems and organizational procedures will then take you to the top. And keep you there.

      We can help with all of these, by the way. But you should know and be reassured that chiropractic is happening. It is hip, it is popular, and it is growing, probably more so now than ever before.

      Naysayers say otherwise to promote their goods or services. They are sell outs. Don’t buy what they are peddling. Chiropractors have always been challenged and it is actually what has helped you be strong and survive.  Insurance cutbacks are not new.

      After more than 20 years in business,  we are still amazed each day when we hear of the stories patients tell of their success.

      Chiropractic works. It has, does, and will for at least the rest of this year. So, find your meanings and purposes, get help to upgrade your clinic procedures and organization, and make those yearly goals you set for 2008.

      Heck — why not beat them and make this year your best ever?

      Spring has its own meaning, its own purpose: to grow and create. This can be your purpose too.

      Every moment, every day. Right now.