If you haven't done so already, you should begin thinking about things you can do to expand your practice in the post-COVID-19 era – at least once the "new normal" has been established. To say this pandemic has changed our society would be a gross understatement. The cultural impact will linger long after the threat of the virus is a memory. Similarly, our society will be more aware that such a pandemic could occur again.
Chiropractic is the only profession that focuses on the maintenance and enhancement of health and wellness. But to effectively deliver that care requires us to be proactive. Here are some ways to get ahead of the curve (while it's still flattening):
Make Your Practice Highly Visible
Now is the time to let current patients and the people in your community know you are open (or will be soon) and ready to serve their health needs. You can do this by increasing your presence at community events, through email newsletters and via social media.
Continue Maintaining a Safe Practice Environment
Your patients will expect you to continue to use many of the precautions that have become common practice. This is a way to visibly demonstrate your efforts to maintain a safe, sanitized office that protects their health and the health of their loved ones.
Reach Out to Existing Patients ... and Even Your Most Inactive Ones
The world has changed. Optimizing health is a recognized goal for the vast majority of people. You can help them understand chiropractic's role in enhancing health through email and social media. You'll be surprised at how receptive the public will be – even patients who haven't made an appointment in years and haven't responded to previous reactivation outreach– to your ability to maximize their health and protect them from infection / disease.
Educate Your Patients & Community
Never forget that the word doctor is derived from the Latin word docco, meaning "To teach." Educate people about how they can optimize their health through chiropractic care. Again, e-newsletters, lay lectures, social media, writing articles for the local paper, etc., are all ways to educate your community.
Share Information on Health-Optimizing Products and Services
You offer additional products and services that can also enhance patient health, but many of your patients may not be aware you do so. You and your staff should make it a priority to share this information during every visit through in-office videos, brochures and word-of-mouth. If this pandemic has taught us one thing as a profession, it's that we need to do more than put some supplement bottles, a few orthopedic pillows, or other ancillary products on a stand in the corner of our waiting rooms and "hope" patients will buy them. Health promotion requires much more.
Explore Tele-Chiropractic Care as a Future Practice Strategy
How can you best serve your patients, both now and in the future? While you can't give an adjustment over the Internet, you can provide a certain level of needed care. Please look at columnist Sam Collins' article on billing for telemedicine (May issue) and consider how your practice could expand to care for more patients using today's technology.
The Future Is for Those Who Prepare
It is not unreasonable to expect another pandemic in the future. In fact, we should all expect the "next" one sooner than later. While COVID-19 has prompted the most severe reaction, no one can be sure what may happen next.
Take some time to evaluate how your practice has fared in the past few months. What can you do now to increase your practice and get it back to full steam? If you are like some doctors I've been talking to, you may be in for a dramatic increase in visits from patients with unaddressed ailments.
How should you reshape your practice to be more profitable in the foreseeable future and under the restraints of a future pandemic or similar scenario? Are there ways to serve your patients outside your office? The future belongs to those who prepare.
Read more findings on my blog: http://blog.toyourhealth.com/ wrblog. You can also visit me on Facebook and Twitter (donpetersenjr, @donaldpetersen).
Click here for more information about Donald M. Petersen Jr., BS, HCD(hc), FICC(h), Publisher.