Rebuilding Our Chiropractic Associations

By Donald M. Petersen Jr., BS, HCD(hc), FICC(h), Publisher

All across America, companies are rebuilding themselves. The influences of total quality management (TQM) and a highly competitive market are causing large and small corporations to become more customer oriented.

Probably the best example of this new trend is the book Moments of Truth by Jan Carlson. The book reveals the dramatic changes that were needed to revitalize Scandanavian Airlines. Mr. Carlson relates his many experiences and lessons learned as the company's president and CEO.

Moments of Truth should be read by chiropractic association leaders. It makes many important points that can apply to the management of chiropractic associations. While the book provides "new strategies for today's customer-driven economy," chiropractic associations can look to the challenge of becoming more "member driven." These are just a few examples:

Flatten the Pyramid! Many chiropractic associations have an internal hierarchy that insulates the decision-makers from the membership. The typical example is a three-tiered structure where the board is elected by representatives who, in turn, are elected by members. The membership must be the ones to elect the top decision makers. There should only be two tiers.
Empower the Membership! Most associations are run by individuals who take great pride in what they have accomplished for the association. While this is noble, it bypasses member participation. Chiropractors want to be an active part of the team, not just sit on the bench. They want to experience the victory, not just hear the players recount how the game was won.
Communication is Critical! One of the main reasons for low participation is limited communication. As long as members are treated like mushrooms (left in the dark and fed manure) they will feel powerless. Effective constituent communication should be a requirement for holding any kind of position within an association, and should be mandated under the organization's by-laws.
Facilitate Involvement! It is easy to turn a job over to the paid staff and get it done. While this empowers the staff, it disenfranchises the membership. Association staff need to be retrained to facilitate and let membership committees be the decision makers. This will also increase the association's effectiveness and reduce the need to add staff for each additional project.

These are just a few of the applications that can be derived from the current trends in "today's customer-driven economy." If you are a chiropractic association leader, you will easily identify numerous other strategies that will apply to rebuilding your association.

With the health care world changing with break-neck speed, the chiropractic profession needs all the unity it can muster. United we have a voice that will be better heard. Our state and national associations are our best hope of this unity.

If you are an association member concerned about the fate of chiropractic, you might want to purchase a copy of Moments of Truth for your delegate, director or even for the entire board. Give them a few weeks to read it, then call and ask them how these concepts can be used to rebuild your association.

Do it now, for most assuredly, this is chiropractic's moment of truth.

DMP Jr., BS, HCD(hc)

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