Research comes in all shapes and styles. It can cover countless treatment techniques and compare the results of the clinical tools that today’s chiropractors use to refine the wonderful healing art we all know as chiropractic. A highly overlooked form of research revolves around how one creates, orchestrates, and implements the business systems of their practice.
This case study will show how a typical chiropractor has grown his practice while reducing expenses and overhead, ultimately becoming more profitable.
Case study
Client: Dr. Brady
Practice location: Pennsylvania
Years in practice: 16
Practice style: Chiropractic, multiple related services, and rehab.
Monthly patient volume: 625 visits.
Monthly new patients: 8
Patient conversions: 55 percent to 60 percent (estimate)
Reimbursements: 35 percent/65 percent — (cash versus insurance)
Facility size: 1,900 square feet
Goals: The doctors goal was to transform his practice into more of a wellness model, increase services, increase volume, have the practice become less dependent on him, reduce stress, and increase profitability. His desired short-term growth (one year) was 25 percent. His long-term goal (two years) was to double his services. He contacted Davlen to determine how much space he would need to achieve his goal.
Challenges: The doctor’s lease was nearing its end. The rehab he was offering was not the model he believed was in the best interest of his patients. The insurance companies were still impacting his care plan and reimbursements. Rehab did nothing to attract new patients. He was unable to do healthcare classes. He had inconsistent results from his report of findings. He had no room to add the additional services he required.
Dr. Brady knew that instead of reinventing the wheel, he chose to add the systems and strategies of the “8 Weeks to Wellness” (8WW) program to his practice. Upon Davlen’s design study, a short- and long-term plan were developed that allowed Dr. Brady to increase his chiropractic volume while being able to incorporate additional services without having to expand or relocate.
Approach
As an authorized designer of the 8WW program, Davlen modernized the patient flow and working efficiency of the office to support systems, strategies, and services of the 8WW model.
The majority of the changes would be made by streamlining patient flow and control and providing a multifunction approach to several areas in the clinic. This resulted in more space becoming available to add more services.
By relocating his front desk into a previously oversized waiting room and creating a “New Patient Intake” area, patients no longer waited in a waiting room, but were pampered through the new patient intake process. Converting three closed treatment rooms into a semi open treatment area increased his adjusting volume potential by 225 percent.
Utilizing portable T-bars allowed the doctor to do special educational classes for up to 30. The “Chiropractic Patient Curriculum” concept taught by his management company also became geometrically more effective. This increased patient awareness resulted in increased PVA. This also improved automatic internal referrals.
By consolidating the front desk, reception room, administrative areas, and report of findings rooms, waiting time of the patients was reduced and patient flow was streamlined. By modernizing the décor, patient’s perception of wellness began as they first entered the practice.
Added benefits: Careful planning and minor remodeling negated the need to move or expand. As is common practice, Davlen’s creative design allowed this transformation to occur around patient hours so there was no impact to patient care. Due to the modular approach of Davlen products, the investment that the doctor made can be relocated to a new facility and can be added to or rearranged if the geometry or flow of the new location mandates modifications.
Results (within 7 months)
By having a sound business model and a highly efficient and productive working environment designed to produce the intended results, Dr. Brady was able to make the following improvements.
New practice style: Chiropractic wellness practice
New patient volume: 815 visits (up 190)
Monthly new patients: Up 50 percent
Average services: Up 20 percent
New patient conversions: Up 16 percent
Reimbursements: 45 percent/55 percent — cash versus insurance (up 10 percent)
Total growth: Up 30.4 percent
Time to pay for changes: Six months
And he got to do so without having to expand or relocate.
What the future holds
Based on his current projections, Dr. Brady is looking to purchase a building capable of attracting more than 25 new patients a month. The intended 1,800 patient visits per month should generate more than $1 million in collections with a dramatically higher profit margin. Davlen, like chiropractic, works. To follow along with this and other results, click on the “Case Studies” tab at www.DavlenDesign.com.
This research was provided by Davlen Associates Ltd.
