Why Chiropractors Should
Be The Gatekeepers
The case for making
DCs the leaders of the alternative health community
By Dr. Eric Plasker
There has never been a better
time for chiropractors to positively impact healthcare in our nation than today
as both providers and patients move away from allopathic answers and toward
more comprehensive and integrative health solutions. In fact, the role and visibility
of chiropractors is undergoing a quantum evolution, as DCs become the “gatekeepers
of health” for the children and adults in their communities.
As a frequent first “point of contact” for their patients, today’s
chiropractors have become primary healthcare providers and valuable resources
for their communities when it comes to family health care issues. If you haven’t
already done so, you should be thinking about how you can refer to, support,
and integrate the services of other holistic health care providers in your area
into the active care plan recommendations you are making for your own patients.
Not only will the recommendations benefit your patients, they will also open
the door for dozens of referrals to roll into your practice each month as these
same providers begin to respond in kind.
In fact, most chiropractic offices around the country are becoming “gatekeepers”
and wellsprings of knowledge to assist their patients in finding the care they
need, whether it be from one resource or from a combination of care options,
including acupuncture, massage, homeopathy, biofeedback or traditional medicine.
Networking with other providers in your area will demonstrate to your patients
that you support their complete healthcare and the service you provide doesn’t
just stop when they walk out of your door. Keeping your patients connected with
providers that subscribe to your same health paradigms will keep your patients
committed to their chiropractic plans and reinforce the lifetime care health
concepts you are teaching them.
The time when health care providers were competing against one another is ancient
history, and today the goal is to unify and integrate services in order to achieve
optimum health for our patients. As a gatekeeper of health, you can capitalize
on this new climate of cooperation or CAM (Complementary Alternative Medicine)
by creating a cross-referral system that will consistently bring you new lifetime
care patients. Make sure that you network with businesses that will support
your vision and patient care plans.
Visit these establishments in person and introduce yourself and your services.
Show them the value of what you can offer them and vice versa. It doesn’t
matter whether your practice is already established or you are just beginning,
you are going to have lots of patients, and they will be needing other services
and products in the community, whether it be from nutritionists, herbalists,
exercise outlets, spas or homeopaths. Some mutually beneficial promotional ideas
you can offer these providers include:
Once you’ve introduced yourself, here are some great questions you can ask that will help you build a relationship that will deliver results for everyone involved:
This type of partnering with other providers is helping DCs around the country create a holistic health care marketing force that is generating quality referrals and producing more results with less energy and effort. Remember, referrals are the bread and butter of any profitable practice, including chiropractic. So don’t pass up the opportunities that are waiting right inside your own front door to build your practice. Be a “gatekeeper of health” in your community and position your practice and chiropractic to move into the future as it becomes the number one health care provider for the nation.
About the author: Dr.
Eric Plasker is the founder of The Family Practice, a chiropractic coaching
and training organization. To reach Dr. Plasker, contact him via The Family
Practice toll-free at (866) 532-3327, ext. 118, or visit thefamilypractice.net
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