Blog: The Profitable Chiropractic Staff

The Profitable Chiropractic Staff

By Dr. Michael Perusich

 

How many patients can you see in a week?

Some of you may answer 40 patients.  Others may say 80 patients, while some may indicate they can see 200 patients per week.  We’re all different and there are certainly a multitude of variables when answering that question, and there’s no wrong answer.  But there is one constant that affects all of us - it’s the capacity ceiling.

So how do you keep the profit-growth curve going up if capacity is limited?  In some ways, it’s quite the conundrum 

You could just keep raising your fees.  However, in an insurance-based practice, this won’t have much of an effect on profitability, because it will just create more write-offs.  And there’s only so far at any given time you can increase fees on your cash patients before they begin to fade from the practice.  This is especially a delicate issue in today’s economy.

You could focus on increasing capacity and see more patients.  Overhauling processes and procedures, modifying hours, and moving to a more wellness/maintenance-based model to help increase your patient visit capacity.  The downside is this can be more physically challenging, your clinic space may only accommodate so many, and adjusting hours can have a potentially negative impact on staff and work-life balance for the entire team. 

A better option is to add more revenue centers. Unfortunately, you may still fall into some of the same traps with insurance and cash patients when it comes to fee structure.  

However, some added services could be managed by your staff. 

The reality is this creates a viable option for bending that profit curve to the positive.  Staff can help you increase capacity by adding an extension of the provider if your state practice act allows it.  

For example, in many states, staff can assist with therapies, x-ray, and rehab.  Hiring a radiology tech or exercise therapist can be a great way to focus doctor time on high-yield physician-based services such as adjustments and exams, allowing you to have more capacity for those services, while staff performs other revenue-generating services.  

Ultimately those additional areas of production that are managed by CA’s then become more profitable as lower-paid staff are operating those services.

When you look at the value of staff-induced revenue generation, there is real profitability developed without putting all the work on the doctor.  Plus the patients enjoy the added service, value, and outcomes of broad-based care options.  It’s a win-win for everyone.  

 

Dr. Michael Perusich is a solutions-focused advisor with more than 25 years of success across the healthcare and consulting industries. His broad areas of expertise include coaching, training, content development, and motivational speaking.  Dr. Perusich is the CEO of Kats Consultants, LLC. where he and his team offer a unique platform of business knowledge and tools for today's Chiropractic entrepreneur.

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