What Are Your Blockages

We have often thought how powerful it would be if you could sit in our chair and listen to the personal and practice symptomology from doctors throughout the chiropractic profession. We are sure that your perspective would undergo a radical change, if you would spend just one day listening in. As we hear from you, we find that questions and concerns have stayed basically the same for years, even in light of the more recent and seemingly insurmountable changes in health care induced by managed care.

Do any of these sound familiar?

• Why can’t I find a balance between my practice, my family, and myself?

• If I could just get more new patients, my financial problems would be solved.

• I am a better doctor than anybody around me, why am I the least busy?

• I have been doing this for several years, why is it I never seem to get ahead financially?

• We turned over our fifth front desk C.A. this year. Is it us or is it just the area?

• Managed care has hit us hard. Is there any place I can move that still has good coverage?

• I am tired of this low collection ratio. What computer program will fix this?

• Most new patients say they want corrective care, but they drop out of care when the pain is gone.

• I’m not getting the good quality patients that I use to. Is my market changing?

• What promotions are working today?

 

As you can see by this short sampling, the questions are age old, and all too common. You may have even related to some of them, or perhaps remember when you felt the same way. Over the past thirty plus years we have found only a handful of questions or symptoms that represent major difficulties and even less that are unfixable. The reality is that most difficulties are imagined or induced by ourselves and usually are an effort to keep us safe or predictable. Some blockages exist because of our limited perspective , and it seems as though what we are doing is the right thing. Some may exist because an influential person has said this is how it should be. Consciously you may know better, but subconsciously there is another story. In diagnosing growth blockages, we have uncovered three major categories.

1. Procedural Blockages are the “how to’s” of practice building, or the systems and dialogues used in delivering care. This information is readily available and in fact, most of you have more procedural information than need. The problem is the lack of effective implementation of that information, not a shortage of know-how, procedures, and systems.
2. Personal Blockages are unique in that they seem to control your practice more readily, and will keep you locked into a no change pattern. We find that present experiences may conflict with past information.  This may have a disabling effect on your practice. Personal blockages are frequently present and most common. They generate fear and disbelief in yourself and your ability to change and grow. These blockages are easy to detect, and solutions are readily available.
3. Practice Design Blockages are the most often undiagnosed, unidentified and untreated blockages. Determining what style of chiropractic you want to deliver is key. You must determine what you are willing to take responsibility for as the patient’s doctor. If you are unclear about Practice Design, Personal and Practice Building is an uphill climb. By experience, we have found that there are several practice styles. These sub-chiropractic styles are the essence of how you practice. Each is different, and each has it’s own patterns and objectives. There are five main categories of styles which are identified as: Pain, Whole Health, Function, Spinal Change, Subluxation

 

These styles are basics to our industry. We have spent the last thirty years identifying these treatment patterns and how they dramatically affect practice growth. We find that most doctors are confused about their Chiropractic product and have difficulty identifying it. There seems to be some shame in admitting this. Consequently, patients can’t help but be confused about what they are buying from you. But worse yet, practice building gets very confusing. How you design your fee system, treatment protocols, staff, patient processing , and many other systems should be in direct relation to what you are trying to accomplish with your patients. We recognize that some combinations of these may be necessary to fit your practice style. Typically, other management consultants will teach you a practice design that has worked for them. Then they will try to make it fit with all of their clients regardless of each Doctor’s personal belief. Many consultants have strong technical preference and will lead you to their style, which may be appropriate if that style is a direct fit for you. However, this is seldom the case.

Remember:  “You can’t sell what you don’t believe”. All practice design should be unique to your personality. Personal and practice blockages should never be diagnosed without first understanding how this important factor of who your are and what you believe is identified and understood. Consulting should look at you…your beliefs…your wants…and your needs. Consulting must help you obtain the practice of your dreams, not the dream your consultant may have had.

Now more than ever you should evaluate your position in this profession. There is a deepening concern about the future of Chiropractic. We see a splintering effect in philosophy, technique, and the role you play in health care. Those most bothered by this chaos are those who are not clear about who they are, what they do and what they believe. Personal and practice fulfillment begins with finding congruency with your value system and how you’re now living. We promise that understanding practice design will reduce stress in your life and allow you to build the practice of your vision.

Chiropractly yours,

Capacity Management