Chapter 6
Public Relations

Since the days of B. J. Palmer, marketing has been a part of the chiropractic profession.  It has been an important effort, to spread the news about chiropractic’s benefits.  The popular support gained provided the momentum needed to gain legitimacy in the legal, educational, and insurance arenas.

Nevertheless, the marriage of health care and marketing has always been an uneasy one.  Ethical standards are a must for professionals.  Until recently, the written and unwritten guidelines for advertising in the medical and legal fields were rather severe (they remain stricter in Canada than in the US).

There is no question, from a business standpoint, that marketing is essential to build and maintain a practice.  There are several important differences between the medical and chiropractic professions that necessitate a greater degree of PR for the latter:

What’s Your Goal?

When it comes to public relations, the answer to this question seems obvious:  to get more patients!  While this is true on one level, let’s look a bit deeper.  Along with what, we have to consider how.

Look through any chiropractic trade magazine.  Most of them contain advertisements for marketing consultants.  Usually, the biggest ads focus on one thing:  money.  You’ve probably seen the type—full-page, lots of copy, appeals to “frustrated chiropractors.”  These ads are glitzy and rather unprofessional.

What’s the message here?  More new patients are all that matter, regardless of how you get them.  I ask you to consider this very carefully; as a doctor, you are a professional in your community.  While some gimmicks are profitable, questionable PR practices may damage your reputation among other professionals, and the public at large.

In the Introduction, we talked about goal setting.  Michael Cessna, DC, DABCI, questions the traditional PR goals of chiropractors, with the typical focus on number of new patients.  Goals of this sort are based on external circumstances, requiring a lot of time and effort to achieve.  He suggests instead focusing on internal goals—things over which you have direct control.  Follow each new patient visit with a phone call to see how they’re doing.  Write brief reports to patients’ primary care physicians.  Read journals and attend seminars.  Participate in community activities.  All of these things will enhance your position of respect, knowledge, and credibility.