Modern Patient Care is Revolutionizing Chiropractic

If you’re feeling frustrated with your practice – be it with patient retention, overhead costs, or time away from family – try a new approach.

In the last decade, we’ve seen huge changes in the way businesses serve customers. Those that put their customers first thrived, and those that stuck to traditional models died. It sounds dire, but it’s an industry trend that we as chiropractors must pay attention to.

Do you remember the image of an empty JC Penny at an abandoned mall? Newspapers were calling it a retail apocalypse, when in fact, commerce shifted online to better serve customers. Those that adopted e-commerce survived, while those that resisted struggled.

Car mogul Elon Musk puts it this way: if you’re shopping for cars and you’re not buying a Tesla, you’re going to feel like you’re driving a horse and buggy 5 years from now.

That’s the attitude I have towards patient care. I’ve switched my chiropractic practice to put patients first because that’s what patients are demanding we do. Upholding a traditional model that supports the business of health care over patient outcomes is quickly going to be akin to driving a horse and buggy.

There’s a meme going around right now that drives the point home.

Uber didn’t kill the taxi business – limited access and fare control did.
Netflix didn’t kill Blockbuster – ridiculous late fees did.
Amazon didn’t kill the retail industry – poor customer service and experience did.

Putting your customer first is the biggest disruptor in any industry.

Now we’re seeing it across healthcare too. Warby Parker mails you your glasses. EverlyWell mails your allergy testing kits. Talkspace matches you with psychologists online.

These companies all evolved to make their services super convenient for patients, and that’s exactly is needed in the chiropractic space too. If you don’t adapt to this patient-first trend, 10 years from now, you could wind up broke like Blockbuster.

Your patients want to be treated in a different way.

They don’t want to be sold a corrective care package when they just want a quick adjustment.
They don’t want to schedule an appointment, days or weeks in advance when they’re seeking immediate pain relief.
They don’t want to be restricted by insurance when they have an option to pay a low cost in cash.

What they want is convenient, affordable care from someone they trust.

If you prioritize these patient needs, I promise you will gain long-term clients. You don’t need a corrective care plan to guarantee patient retention. New patients can’t be bought- they have to be earned.

I shifted chiropractic practice model about 9 years ago to put the patients at the core of my practice. Since making the switch, I see about 8-10 new patients a day, and I’ve even noticed a recent uptick.

A student of mine also listened to her patients, adopted the Future Chiro model to serve them better, and has experienced steady growth in her practice because of it.

Are you noticing other chiropractors becoming more patient-centered?

Or have you implemented some of these changes in your own practice?

Let me know in the comments!