Give your senior patients an advantage

/Home/Professional Resources for Chiropractors/Chiropractic Practice Management

Give your senior patients an advantage
October, 2007
By Anthony Lauro, DC
Chiropractic Economics


Like most healthcare professions, chiropractic has diversified into many specialties, such as pediatrics, sports, and geriatrics.

Although the objective of chiropractic Û correcting subluxations Û has not changed, the ways that objective is achieved have changed Û and for good reasons. Chiropractic must be delivered differently to a small 1-year-old child than to a 25-year-old, 250-pound, professional football player.

Post-adjustment recommendations may also be different. The 1-year-old may need to rest and nap, while the professional football player may need to stretch or alter his exercise routine.

Most chiropractors care for everybody who comes into their office, but they probably have a preference for the types of people they want to treat. If you desire to specialize, consider the 60-plus age group.

THE SENIOR ADVANTAGE

Catering to the needs of the 60-plus crowd is appealing for a number of reasons:

Ô More care needed. This group needs chiropractic care more than any other group. Spines of individuals older than age 60 who have never experienced regular chiropractic care have a degree of degeneration and loss of normal spinal mechanics that necessitate chiropractic care.

Most people in this group also take medication(s) for a variety of health problems. The need to take medication indicates poor health, and anyone who is in poor health can benefit from chiropractic care.

Ô Large demographic. This group also has large numbers. According to the U.S. Census Bureau, individuals age 60 and older comprise more than 16 percent of the total population.

Over the next 15 years, approximately 40 million baby boomers will become senior citizens and they will be able to afford chiropractic care.

Ô Great amount of disposable income. Baby boomers control more than 70 percent of all disposable income, with $2 trillion in spending power and more than $1 trillion of that spent on goods and services.

Ô Compliant. This group is more likely to follow the recommendations of their doctors and follow through with care plans. They also prefer morning or early afternoon appointments, when most chiropractic offices are not busy.

Ô Interest in alternative healthcare. Lastly, this group has shown a growing interest in utilizing alternative healthcare. A study recently published in the Annals of Internal Medicine found that chiropractic was not only the most sought after form of alternative medicine for osteoarthritis, rheumatoid arthritis, and fibromyalgia, but was also among the most helpful for these conditions.

Chiropractic was at the top of the list of alternative forms of care used, with nearly 31 percent trying chiropractic care at least once and 73 percent of patients finding chiropractic care to be helpful.

PROBLEM:
INSUFFICIENT EXERCISE

Although most seniors benefit greatly from chiropractic care, many have become weak due to inactivity and have slowed down because of spinal degeneration that they canÌt experience the maximum benefits of a spine free from nerve interference.

The solution is simple, but it is not easy: Exercise to get fit.

Research is showing that everything from heart disease to AlzheimerÌs can be helped through exercise. The National Institutes of Health, many gerontologists, and researchers have found exercise to be the closest thing to an anti-aging pill that exists. People who are physically fit measure 10 to 20 years younger biologically than their chronological age.

Seniors are responding to this information. The International Health, Racquet and Sports Club Association (IHRSCA) reports the willingness of seniors to exercise has increased 350 percent during the past 20 years.

Although seniors are willing to exercise, getting fit is not easy for them to accomplish because the fitness industry has left out seniors. Most communities offer numerous health clubs and gyms, but most cater to younger clientele. Seniors prefer to exercise alone or with people their own age.

A SOLUTION FIT FOR SENIORS

A solution fit for seniors (and practices) is free circuit training to all patients age 60 or older who are receiving regular chiropractic care. This is a win-win situation: Seniors win because they get regular chiro-practic care and exercise; you win because you gain lifetime patients and an excellent source of referrals.

To provide an exercise program:

Ô Consider your office space. What type of equipment can you accommodate?

Suggestion: Install a circuit-training system that allows seniors to do a variety of aerobic and strength exercises.

Ô Learn to use the equipment properly. And train your staff.

Ô Establish program parameters. Who is eligible? How often can participants use the equipment?

Suggestion: Open the program to all patients age 60 or older, provided they are receiving regular chiropractic care. (Define Ïregular.Ó)

Ô Make the atmosphere appealing and educational. Play nostalgic music that appeals to participants. And run video on flat-screen TVs while they exercise to educate them about chiropractic and the importance of having spinal checks.

HOW THE PRACTICE BENEFITS

When you provide seniors with the opportunity to become fit, you score a home run for your practice, too.

Ô More referrals. Because patients perceive they are getting value for their dollar, they are eager to refer others in their age group who need exercise.

Ô More lifetime-care patients. These referrals convert to lifetime chiropractic care because everyone who comes in for exercise already accepts they should exercise for the rest of their life.

Ô More first-time chiropractic patients. About half of the new people that come in for this program have never been experienced chiropractic care before; they come in because of the ability to exercise with other seniors.

But to participate, they must be chiropractic patients. So, you tap into the approximate 90 percent of the population that doesnÌt utilize chiropractic services.

Ô Better cash flow. Lifetime patients are cash patients. They pay upfront.

Ô Better office morale. Exercising has a synergistic effect. The energy of the office staff increases.

Ô Differentiation. In these economic times, it is important to try to stand apart from the crowd and do things differently Û while at the same time delivering real life-changing benefits to your patients. Providing exercise as a value-added service to seniors is one way to do this.

As the old saying goes, ÏThe more you give, the more you get,Ó and if the law of tenfold return has any truth at all, we can never give too much.