Commitment and Consistency: The Heart of MD Referrals by The Evidence Based Chiropractor

Commitment and consistency are two of the most important aspects of interdisciplinary outreach.  In Robert Cialdini's book, "Influence: The Psychology of Persuasion", he outlines these factors as part of a 6 step system to influence.  Additionally, he touches on building Authority.  At The Evidence Based Chiropractor, we believe these factors play a crucial role in developing referral relationships.  Commitment and consistency with your monthly outreach (case notes and our Monthly MD Research Brief's) establish a continuity of outreach and drive the establishment of your local Authority on conservative spine care.   Case notes alone provide some degree of social proof, but monthly outreach with research is a key aspect to establishing authority as the local expert.  

By reaching out with commitment and consistency and positioning yourself as the local authority on conservative spine care, physicians will be much more likely to establish referral relationships with your office.  You may choose to accelerate this process by setting up some MD Meetings and building rapport through personal interaction.  Regardless of the path your choose, reaching out to other physicians in your community through research is the first step towards building long lasting referral relationships. 

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-The Evidence Based Chiropractor is the leading DC/MD marketing and outreach group in the world.  Our service is dedicated to increasing chiropractic utilization by showcasing research.  Marketing to medical doctors through research is efficient, cost effective, and can dramatically improve your incoming referrals.  Join us.  Lets grow chiropractic together.

The Importance of Sending Case Notes- by The Evidence Based Chiropractor

On nearly every implementation call for members of The Evidence Based Chiropractor I receive questions about case notes.  Doc's are concerned about the how, what, when, and where about sending them to other physicians.  

Download a FREE Case Notes Template!

Often, they have been reluctant to do so because they don't want to send something amateurish or incorrect.  (Top priority is always to be in compliance with HIPAA and government law regarding sharing protected health information)

Research shows us that Primary Care Physicians received case notes approximately 70% of time when referred a patient to another MD.  PCP's only receive case notes 50% of the time when a patient is referred to a chiropractor.  

By sending case notes you are able to:

1. Show off the results of your care

2. Show that you are co-managing with the Primary Care Doctor

3. Get an additional touch point of communication for branding/name recognition  

We recommend our members send case notes at 3 different times- Initial Evaluation, Re-Evaluation, and Discharge from Active Care.  Often these notes can be process and faxed directly from your EMR/EHR.

Your Case Notes should include:

• Who- who is the patient? (patient name, DOB)

• When- when did they visit your office? (date of service)

• What- what did you find? (diagnosis)

• How- how are you going to move forward?  (treatment plan)

As you can imagine, these items will usually take up less than a full page.  If a doc requests additional information, then you can by all means supply it; however, a vast majority of physicians prefer just the basics as they will look at this page in the patients record prior to entering their exam room.  

By supplying case notes you are increasing communication and "touches" with PCP's in your community, they can see the progress of your shared patients, and you are assisting your patients with keeping an accurate health record.

If you would like more information regarding case notes I recommend reading my book, "Marketing Chiropractic to Medical Doctors" which is now available worldwide on iBooks and Amazon. 

Download a FREE Case Notes Template!

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-The Evidence Based Chiropractor is the leading DC/MD marketing and outreach group in the world.  Our service is dedicated to increasing chiropractic utilization by showcasing research.  Marketing to medical doctors through research is efficient, cost effective, and can dramatically improve your incoming referrals.  Join us.  Lets grow chiropractic together.

The Facts Behind MD Referrals- by The Evidence Based Chiropractor

A few years ago, BioMed Central produced a wonderful paper which examined the referral habits of Medical Doctors.  Specifically, they looked at how PCP's refer amongst themselves, and also how they refer to Doctors of Chiropractic.  What they found may be some of the most important information currently available on building interdisciplinary referral relationships. 

Over 500 Primary Care Physicians took part in the study.  Surprisingly, over 80% of Primary Care Physicians reported that their patients requested information regarding Chiropractic.  Additionally, close to 75% had patients request a Chiropractic referral.  This is very good news as it shows the public has significant interest in Chiropractic care despite the fact that Chiropractic utilizations stands at a woeful 10% (on a good day).  

When referring to other Medical Doctors, the studies participants reported initiating a formal referral 99% of the time.  When referring to Chiropractors, the PCP's initiated a formal referral in only 11% of cases.  This proves that nearly all PCP's are comfortable making formal referrals, however, they are not making these formal referrals to Chiropractors.  

Finally, and most significantly, the researchers found that roughly 25% of PCP's have referred a patient to a Chiropractor.  Again, while this number is exceptionally low (considering the research on the safety and efficacy of Chiropractic care), it provides us with the information that-

1) Patients are asking their PCP's about Chiropractic care

2) 1/4 of PCP's have referred patients to Chiropractors

3) Only 10% of these referrals are "formal" referrals

In my opinion this study emphasizes the need for chiropractors to reach out to other physicians in their communities and build referral relationships. The public is inquiring about our services to their most trusted health professionals; their family doctor.  The onus is on us to build the relationships necessary for these PCP's to make the referrals to our offices'.  We have the research to substantiate our place in the health care world; now its time to reach "across the aisle" and make sure our neighbors are receiving the best conservative care possible.  

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-The Evidence Based Chiropractor is the leading DC/MD marketing and outreach group in the world.  Our service is dedicated to increasing chiropractic utilization by showcasing research.  Marketing to medical doctors through research is efficient, cost effective, and can dramatically improve your incoming referrals.  Join us.  Lets grow chiropractic together.

Healthcare in the United States: Expensive and Ineffective- by The Evidence Based Chiropractor

The Commonwealth Fund recently released an executive report on the state of the US healthcare system when compared to nearly a dozen industrialized countries.  The report places the US last in overall score and first in overall expense.  With hospital systems, insurance organizations, and pharmaceutical companies recording record profits; the results of this report are a shameful reminder of the current state of healthcare.  

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I strongly encourage you to review the full report here- http://www.commonwealthfund.org/publications/fund-reports/2014/jun/mirror-mirror

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-The Evidence Based Chiropractor is the leading DC/MD marketing and outreach group in the world.  Our service is dedicated to increasing chiropractic utilization by showcasing research.  Marketing to medical doctors through research is efficient, cost effective, and can dramatically improve your incoming referrals.  Join us.  Lets grow chiropractic together.

3 Trends for the Future of Spine Care- by The Evidence Based Chiropractor

Dani Gordon (Becker Spine) recently reported on the top 3 trends for the future of spine care.  These ideas were generated from the 12th Annual Spine, Orthopedic and Pain Management-Driven ASC Conference in Chicago on June 13th.  She reported the top 3 key concepts to be-

"1. Data importance is increasing. Data on outcomes, patient satisfaction and cost of care is not only what drives payer preference but also patient preference.

2. Minimally invasive techniques have become increasingly more popular. Not only has technology paved the way for less invasive techniques, but it has also created a more informed patient. Patients look for technology advancements in anesthesia, shorter procedure times and shorter recovery times. Outpatient support, effective implants and MIS technology were cited as the main focus of the spine industry, usually most prominent in ASCs.

 3. Change in healthcare is widely based on IT, cost and quality of care. Although Dr. Hochschuler stresses the fact that healthcare is "fifteen-years behind the IT world," much of what improves customer care and quality is based in IT, especially with regard to education, cost of care and patient satisfaction."

As chiropractors, number 1 and number 3 are of particular importance.  Patient satisfaction and cost of care are two areas which chiropractors have historically had great success.  As third party payers begin to transition their reimbursement models towards satisfaction, cost, and patient outcomes, chiropractors should be in a good position to maximize reimbursement (with adequate lobbying).  Additionally, while some chiropractors still cling to their travel cards, a substantial amount of chiropractors are already using technology to their advantage.  Find a list of my top chiropractic iPad applications HERE.  

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-The Evidence Based Chiropractor is the leading DC/MD marketing and outreach group in the world.  Our service is dedicated to increasing chiropractic utilization by showcasing research.  Marketing to medical doctors through research is efficient, cost effective, and can dramatically improve your incoming referrals.  Join us.  Lets grow chiropractic together.