Whenever I am consulted by a clinic that is new to the challenges of hiring a chiropractic associate, one of the first questions I get is how to structure the compensation. There are many great ways to set up the pay and bonus structures so that it will optimally motivate your new chiropractic associate. In this article I will attempt to discuss some of the best compensation arrangements I have encountered and setup over the years.

However, before we jump into those payment structure scenarios specifically, let’s spend some time reviewing some of the obstacles and mindsets encountered so that you are well up to speed on the realities of working with associates.

Reality Checks

I first want to address an issue that I see so often on blog posts, forums and so on concerning the hiring of chiropractic associates. We have all heard it before “… chiropractors eat their own …”

Now I realize that in chiropractic, as in all professions and all areas of life, there are doctors that will take advantage of a chiropractic associate and visa versa. Nevertheless, upon further reflection it must be remembered that this is a free society. No one is forced to work anywhere and hence always has the ability to seek a better paying position elsewhere. In addition, supply and demand most often dictates what a chiropractic associate doctor is paid. This is out of our individual control. These are market forces at work, not the greediness of every chiropractic business owner.

If the average chiropractic associate’s base salary in a certain area is 4 thousand a month should I pay 6 thousand because I am a good guy? Not if I am a good business man I wouldn’t. Now, of course this does not take into account a myriad of mitigating circumstances. What is this particular doctor’s experience? Does he bring a patient base with him? Has he in some way demonstrated or do you have some assurance that the candidate can build up and manage a large patient base on his own – verses just wanting to show up and treat whoever is placed on his schedule?

A common scenario that I have seen arise when a chiropractic associate has been working for a clinic for a good period of time, usually a few years, and they know the numbers that they bring in and the collections that result from their efforts, yet they do not feel their pay has grown relative to those numbers. In fact, in most situations where I see a disgruntled chiropractic associate this is usually the case. The underlying cause of this is often poor communication on the part of the owner (or fear of honestly communicating) and a lack of understanding on the part of the associate.

1. Chiropractic Has Been Proven Safe

Chiropractic is one of the safest therapies available if you are suffering from any neuromusculoskeletal issues such as back, neck, joint, or head pain.

What exactly does safe mean? If you want to talk numbers, then the risk of injury is 1 in 286,000,000, or 0.0002%. Compare that to standard treatments such as medication and surgery where the risk of injury is 1 in 1428. That’s right – chiropractic manipulation is that much safer, and as you’ll learn later in this report, more effective as well.

The most common issue involving chiropractic isn’t an injury at all. It is simply some mild soreness after adjustment. Think about how your muscles feel if you’ve done something you don’t normally do. You feel sore because your muscles, bones, and ligaments have moved in ways they are not used to moving. This is what happens during a chiropractic adjustment but on a minor scale. Any soreness you feel will be gone within 24 hours and most patients feel immediately better with no soreness whatsoever.

Why is chiropractic so safe? There are four main reasons:

Chiropractors have years of schooling with coursework that includes classes on all aspects of the spine.
Chiropractors have been trained, doing clinical work long before becoming licensed.
Chiropractors continue their education long after graduation, completing courses yearly in order to maintain a license to practice.
Finally, and most importantly, a chiropractor’s basic philosophy is that the body is capable of healing itself. The purpose of a chiropractor is simply to remove the subluxations, or blockages, that occur in spine so that the body can do its job.

Chiropractic is so safe that agencies unassociated with chiropractic tout its benefits. For instance, the Agency for Health Care Policy and Research (AHCPR), part of the US Department of Health and Human Services, found that complications are rare. Not only that, they suggest that chiropractic should be used before surgery is considered. And finally, they state that prescription drugs are not recommended for most back pains.

2. Chiropractic Has Been Proven Effective for Pain

If you have pain, chiropractic may be just what you need. Studies in the United States and other parts of the world show that chiropractic manipulations are effective. One study in California found that chiropractic was effective 86% of the time for general lower back pain.

But what of acute lower back pain? A report released by the Agency for Health Care Policy and Research recommended chiropractic as the best treatment for this ailment. A study from the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center and the Jefferson County (Missouri) Rehabilitation Center showed that there was immediate improvement when chiropractic was used to treat acute low back pain.

Any business owner can attest to the fact that there are times when you need to find some help. This can be particularly true in the field of chiropractic because most chiropractic offices are run by chiropractors-most of whom have no business training or experience.

Let’s face it, chiropractic college does not prepare its graduates for owning a business. This is not a negative statement against chiropractic schools, because the job of a chiropractic school is to prepare its graduates to be doctors of chiropractic, not necessarily business owners. It just so happens that most chiropractors work in private practice and therefore, if they own the clinic, they must also wear the hat of business owner. This is the reason we find so many chiropractors hiring chiropractic coaching such as business consultants, or practice mentors-not because they are struggling with their hat as the doctor, but because they are struggling with their hat as business owner. If you give this some thought, nearly every pro athlete has their own coach to help maximize their talent, so chiropractic coaching can be viewed in the same perspective: to maximize your talent.

So, how do you find the right help that will fit your needs? Well, although there may not be a perfect way to find the right chiropractic coaching help, there certainly ARE very specific actions you can take to find the right consultant for you.

Chiropractic is a natural healing science, art and philosophy primarily concerned with detecting and then eliminating interference to your nervous system. Since your nervous system controls every aspect of your body, chiropractic can have a major impact on multiple areas of your health. Founded in 1895, it is the world’s largest drug-free healthcare system and the 3rd largest primary healthcare system in the USA behind medicine and dentistry. Over 25 million Americans will see their chiropractor this year.

Yes Virginia, chiropractic is the real deal! Chiropractic is firmly grounded in science and has an ever-growing body of research showing it to be safe, effective, comfortable and affordable. The latest estimates show that over 85% of Olympic athletes utilize chiropractic care to enhance performance and stay healthy as do most professional athletes. No question that it works!

Chiropractic is based on the fact that every structure and function of your body is controlled by the nervous system. If there is interference to the nervous system, then whatever body part or function that nerve was controlling will stop working at 100%.

For example, if a person suffers a pinched (irritated) bundle of nerves in their lower back they frequently experience back pain and muscle spasms. What most people do not realize is that the nerves in the low back not only control the muscles but other organs as well including the colon, bladder and reproductive organs. Irritation to the same nerve bundle can, in addition to muscle spasms, cause symptoms such as constipation, diarrhea, bladder control issues and menstrual cycle problems. What surprises many is that a person with a pinched nerve bundle in their low back may have the other symptoms but no pain and no muscle spasms! Only about 10% of your nervous system tells you about pain so you can have a problem in 90% of your nervous system and NO PAIN.