Are you asking the right questions?

Chiropractic school tries its best to prepare us for the basics of the technical parts of practice. Over the course of four academic years we cover all of the bases, but there are some skills that we must pick up on our own. Many of these skills will come only with practice.

Perhaps the most important nuance you must familiarize yourself with in our daily practice life is the skill of “listening.” As a young DC, you must hone your skills of observation and listening so that you can learn information that your patients may be telling you either verbally or physically.

Of course you have learned all about asking questions and taking good notes during the initial examination and regular office visits. But the lesson to learn here is to make sure that when you ask these questions, you make eye contact with your patients and understand what they are saying.

One of the biggest complaints that patients have these days from their medical practitioner is that “they don’t listen to me.” You will become more adept at this over time, but you can apply this listening skill to other aspects of your life. Do you really listen to your friends, your spouse, your parents or other people in your life when they are talking to you? Start listening now and it will be a skill that you will continue to use all the rest of your days.

Body Language Speaks Loudly

What about that non-verbal communication? Let us not forget that when we talk to people, there is a veritable symphony of information we can learn through our powers of observation.

We can observe a patient’s physical state by watching him get up and out of a chair, walk down the hall, enter a treatment room and then sit down again. Just that action alone will tell us how smooth and symmetrical the patient’s gait patterns are, how he swings his hips and shoulders and the posture he attains when he sits.

We can watch facial expressions like smiles, grimaces, frowns and other indicators of physical or mental stress. The face doesn’t lie when words might. Watch people’s faces and you will learn a lot about how they are really feeling from the inside.

This concept is applicable not only when you are examining them and asking questions, but when discussing the treatment plan and exercises as well. You can tell immediately if someone is going to follow your suggestions by watching their eyes and their face.

It does seem like a daunting task to have to pay attention to so many facets of your future chiropractic practice, but don’t worry about perfecting these skills right at this moment. You have time to work at it and improve on them over time.

As you work with more and more patients, you will understand what types of questions to ask so that you will arrive at your diagnoses and treatment plans more efficiently. The first year of your practice will have you spending more time on procedures than you will in your subsequent years. Over time you will learn how to streamline and examine your patients with more confidence and efficiency. By working on the listening, observation and interview skills that you will use every day of your practice life, you will hit the ground running once you graduate and go into practice.

Remember that patients love to talk about themselves. The trick is to get them to talk and give you the information you need to move on to helping them feel better.

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