By Dr. James W. Parker

Editor’s note: Dr. James W. Parker, the founder of what is now known as the Parker College of Chiropractic, was a regular contributor toChiropractic Economics. The following column, reprinted in its original format and editing, appeared in the March-April issue of Chiropractic Economics.

Civilization is the slow process of adopting the idea of the minority.
Victor Hugo said: “No army can withstand the strength of an idea whose time has come.”

Sydney Smith observed that it would be an entertaining change in human affairs to accept ideas of minorities, for they are almost always right in the long run.

It is gratifying to see the increased coverage our associational publications are giving to the subject of practice building, office procedure, personality development, and Chiropractic salesmanship with the basic ideal of bringing the majority to the acceptance of Chiropractic. On every turn we are happy to see practice building and office procedure being incorporated into our seminars, symposiums, homecoming and conventions.

Chiropractic colleges and associations on national and international as well as the regional levels are recgognizi9ng the necessity of practice building and office procedure and are to be heartily congratulated for this fact.

PALS, (Parker Associate Lecturing Staff) a group of men and women trained in Ft. Worth, Texas, are available for state and national conventions to afford practitioners the opportunity of growing with this new and dynamic phase of bringing to the public the values of this, the second largest healing profession.

Economic magazines such as this excellent sharing medium, The Digest of chiropractic Economics, as well as Chiropractic Ethics and Economics, edited by Dr. Les Cheal of Leitchfield, Ky., have been quick to see the need of practice building and office procedure and are doing an excellent job of filing the need.

Of course, imitators show up on the scene as expert teachers which tend to deceive some doctors for a while into believing they’ve had all they need, but truth soon appears when concrete results are lacking and one recalls that a little knowledge is a dangerous thing.

Indeed, civilization may be slow to accept the ideas of a minority group, but as history has proven, it is inevitable.

In the preface of the fourth edition of one of our major practice building textbooks, you will find The Baker’s Dozen.

It reads:

“Parker Proven Professional Practice Procedure Positively Prevents Problems and Produces Paying Patients Permanently.”

Let us continue our article in the last issue of the Digest, and SHARE (Save our Hallowed Art by Renewed Enthusiasm) more proper procedures with our friends.

1. Dr. M. F. Decker, Salina, Kansas, gave me this clear aid, applicable as a personal note or regular printed reminder. “Take care of your spine, it belongs to a special fiend (patient) of mine. I wouldn’t want to see anything happen to it that would cause you suffering, pain or shorten your life.”

2. Dr. Edward L. Kramer, of St. Louis, Mo., created a good-will producer in a pamphlet. Inside this pamphlet you clip or paste cuttings from newspapers and other publications and send them to friends or patients with a personal memo such as: “I am proud of you;” Your daughter is certainly love;” thanks for a good job done for your community.”
A Canadian doctor told me recently he searched for opportunities to send three of these daily, concentrating on news items about patients. “Jim” he said, “I know I’ve sent out over 300 of these during the last year, and it has done a terrific job in creating a close feeling between those receiving them and Chiropractic and this office.” A small record book I keep on referrals showed a direct return dollar wise of 20 to 1.”

3. Next time you begin a consultation with a patient try this procedure and watch the results. Star the conversation with the question:

“Mrs. Jones, who told you Chiropractic was so effective for the treatment of headaches?”

“…Mrs. Mary Brown, who came to you last fall,” may be the answer.

“Good for her! We are grateful to people who are interested in our health, aren’t we? When you begin to feel better I am sure you will want to tell your friends about Chiropractic also.”

Then continue quickly with the consultation and examination. The main point of this 30-[second quip is, of course, to instill the referral concept, during the consultation, for this increases the anticipation of results and encourages a healthy patient-doctor relationship.

4. Dr. Norma. Gabriel, of Brenham, Texas, drove to Fr. Worth to visit and bring us an idea that nearly produced $400 within three months and cost less than $5.

It was simply this. Using a dignified envelope and an announcement card, he wrote these sincere words, “Dear Mrs. Johnston: It has been a long time since your last adjustment. I hope you are feeling fine! Yours sincerely, Dr. Norma. Gabriel,”

Normal told me he went through his file and picked out about 115 people he had not seen in over six months and whom he felt were satisfied with their results. Try it!

Before closing this article, I’d like to mention HELP, GIVE and LOVE, PALS.

HELP stands for helping Every Lost Practitioner … Helps Every Losing Practitioner. It has been organized to obtain funds o HELP new chiropractic graduates get into practice. During the history of chiropractic there has been over 100 chiropractic schools that have come and gone and only a few left are successful. Estimates of the number graduating from these schools during the last half century run as high as a quarter million. We have found in our studies and observation that there are two particular intervals when young D.C.’s fail. Either between the time they get their diploma up to hanging out a shingle or the first five years of their practice. HELP will be designed to not only furnish necessary Practice-Building, Office-Procedure and Chiropractic salesmanship, but the money to get into practice as well as a concerted advertising and/or public relations program for their first 90 das to six months. We feel that you give a you8ng graduate 100 new patients during his first 90-days or so, and he’s off to a lifetime of successful Chiropractic practice.

PALS stands for PARKER ASSOCIATE LECTURE STAFF. We are harnessing talents of North America’s most capable successful doctors, who can teach and channel these talents into our Practice-Building school classroom demonstration and action principle phases. We have already secured the services of a dozen excellent men, and will add another 100 or so by the end of 1959.

GIVE stands for GROUP OF ITINERANT VICTORY EDUCATORS. This group will be made up from PALS. They will be available for chiropractic conventions throughout North America. Practice-Building, Office-Procedure and Chiropractic Salesmanship will be their subjects. They will be top-notch speakers with a subject that will interest chiropractors more than any other subject. Up to four hours of “take home and use immediately” material will be presented. Every program of every chiropractic gathering everywhere on the face of the earth should have this subject thoroughly discussed by an expert.

LOVE stands for LAYMEN’S ORGANIZATION for FICTORIOUS EDUCATION. All chiropractic organizations, associations, etc. need to work together to educate the people about chiropractic. If all chiropractic groups designed to enlist the help of organized lay groups worked together, we could only scratch the surface of the potential of this link of chiropractic activity.

But more about HELP, GIVE, PALS and LOVE in later issues. Now back to SHARE. Not being able to ‘sell’ themselves and therefore chiropractic is the biggest single reason for failure. Wouldn’t it be wonderful if the 20,000 chiropractors of North America would join together in 2000 small groups of 20 each, or 500 groups of 40 each one night a week, or at least once or twice a moth, just to SHARE successful procedures? I can name over 200 failing D.C.’s that proper practice-building teachings saved from failure. Don’t you think that it would be good for the human race in general and chiropractic in particular, if a concerted, organized plan could be successfully engineered year by year, so these failures could be stopped? Talk it up, won’t you?