A collage of surveys shows the big picture

When you take a photograph, the camera only captures a small portion of what the eye can see. Sometimes, what the camera doesn’t capture — the bigger picture — is more important than the picture.

When you conduct a survey, it is like taking a photograph. The survey only captures a moment in time, part of a much larger and more telling picture.

The results of our 9th Annual Salary and Expense Survey — the snapshot in time — tell us that salaries are down from last year. Net income is down. The number of new patients per clinic is down.

What the survey does not show is the overall “big” picture, which is perhaps more important in the long run.

To see that big picture, we put together a collage of our past surveys to identify trends. I think you will find the results interesting.

When you examine the chart that shows highlights for the past nine years, you’ll see something you already know: You are working harder and getting paid less for the time you put in seeing patients.

Why is this? The survey holds the answer: Managed care is exerting extreme influence on your financial success.

Our survey shows that 38 percent of a practice’s income is generated from healthcare reimbursements and about 26 percent comes from Medicare, auto insurance, and workers’ compensation (all forms of managed care). Only 29.5 percent of income comes from cash payments.

So much reliance on reimbursements puts managed-care organizations in the driver’s seat.

Chiropractic is not suffering alone. The medical profession is also feeling the effects of managed care’s influence. According to the last salary survey conducted by Medical Economics magazine, compensation for all respondents has plateaued. The magazine points fingers at managed care.

Of course, pointing fingers does not solve the problem. Taking action through professional involvement does. Mark Sanna, DC, CEO of Breakthrough Coaching, reviewed our survey findings and said, “Stop volunteering for the slaughter! … Getting involved is the way we’ll all survive. Join your state and national associations.”

We couldn’t agree more.

Until next time,

Linda Segall, Editor-in-Chief