Turn Patients' Smartphones into Genius Phones with Spinal Specific Marketing

A s the original Chiropractic "Tcchnogcck". I feel obligated to make the lives of Chiropractors easier and more productive through the use of technology. One age-old issue screaming out for a technological solution lias piqued my interest. It is well known that patients retain only 5-20% of what the doctor communicates: even less at a screen­ing. Without being able to reinforce the message we convey, and do so quickly and effectively we lose our patient's attention. Traditional solutions have relied upon everything from general pamphlets and videos espousing the value of Chiropractic, to expensive celebrity endorsements. We have struggled for decades attempting to "sell the invisible" and still only appeal to 8% of the population. The emergence of Static sEMG in the early 90 "s attempted to provide a user-friendly technology that produced patient-friendly graphics, but was limited by technological and reli­ability issues. This technology not only forged the way for cvidcncc-bascd practice, providing objective data that Chiro­practors need and patients want, but also provided an effective tool for internal marketing and spinal screenings, a mainstay for generating new patients. Yet the problem still persists. What docs a NASA researcher do? Seek out data, and ob­serve. So that is what I did. Instead of interviewing doctors. I spent four months interviewing patients. In the process of interviewing patients, an issue with signifi­cantly greater impact on the profession was exposed: Those in pain easih garnered the support of friends and famih members in choosing Chiropractic as the treatment of choice. Those not in pain seeking Chiropractic care for general health and well-ness, clearly expressed one common challenge: Each and every­one admitted they found it extremely difficult to justify their Chiropractic visits to famih and friends. More important than this was the emotional response I re­ceived from patients who had taken home their Static sEMG test as it validated their complaints to cynical family members. One patient actually cried saying "My husband didn't believe me until I showed him my print out". You go to the doctor when you're sick. You sec the Chiroprac­tor in pain. Why would you possibly go if not in pain? We've been attempting to implement the dental model of "pre­ventive care" for years with little success. But to a Tcchnogcck, this is just another fun problem to solve. In reviewing the scientific literature on patient communicatioa I found some clear trends '2Xi. If you don"t reinforce the message immediately, you can assume your patient will forget your advice making the interaction unproductive at best. A follow up call or some form of personal communication immediately after each visit is ideal, as a reminder may help reinforce the importance of their visit. Any report of findings provided the patient via "internet patient portals" or email is significantly more effective as the patient not only can review it at their leisure, but can show family members and friends their results. In addition, it docs not get lost as docs paper. Visual data is significantly more effective. The more objec­ tive and personalized the data, the more effect it has on the patient and their family and friends. Making the communication "Smartphonc Friendly" is cru­ cial, as the proliferation of Smartphoncs requires that your communications be easily readable on them. Main use iPads and Smartphoncs more than computers for "skimming" their electronic communications. My girlfriend's trip to the auto mechanic lead to the solution. She kept complaining of engine roughness. I didn't notice it and to be honest thought she was a bit paranoid. Instead of the mechanic listening, touching, feeling and expressing an opinion. the>- plugged her car into a computer. On the screen was a visual image showing her "mass airflow sensor" was defective. They even faxed the results from the computer directly to me know ing that I would need to be convinced also. I know she got great pleasure in using this data to show me how much more right she was then I. I"m happy tliat makes her happy. In the days prior to objective data, we would pleasantly say "thank you", and go off to get several opinions potentially put- ting off fixing the problem for months or even years! Sound familiar? We in the Chiropractic Profession share the mechanics dilemma, and may learn a lesson from their approach. We live in a data driven society. Show them why with "instant" indisputable, objective data and we overcome not only their objec­tions and reinforce the need for care, but overcome family members objections. In a data driven world, objective data rules, and those with it have the power to con­vince. Whether it be mass airflow sensors or w ellncss care. The key is finding a way to transmit this data in an electronic, in­stantaneous form which is visual in nature for maximum effectiveness. I realized that it would be most intel­ligent to meet the patient where they lived... on their smartphonc! Nielsen reports that more than 50% of mobile consumers arc using smartphones. Ac­cording to Nielsens monthly analysis of cell phone bills for 65.000+ lines, smartphonc owners - especially those with iPhoncs and Android devices — arc consuming more data than ever before on a pcr-uscr basis. This is an enormous captive audience waiting to be engaged. It was cnicial that this process maxi­mized the use of technology to remove the need for human interaction and labor. Unnecessary labor is proof of a poorly designed system. This tool had to be fast, allow for instant communication, and provide indisputable, objective data which could be easily presented to skepti­cal family members and friends. Due to the fact everyone lias smartphones. it lias to be easily viewable on the tiny screen. Allow ing the texting of the image via SMS would improve its effectiveness. With major technological improve­ments that have tripled the speed of muscle tension measurements, the tool of choice for this objective data would be Static sEMG. Although Thcrmogra-phy was considered, it is too finicky due to sensitivity to environmental heat and cold, making screenings difficult. Ad­ditionally, patients can't feel temperature differences between left and right sides of their spines, making the results less "believable". Modem. Wireless Static sEMG can be performed in virtually any environment. More importantly, every- one knows the ache of muscle tension, making instant credibility the doctor's reward when the graphed results reflect what the patient feels. New University research has validated Standing Static sEMG studies as clinically valuable'1. Even more important, a major study by the Veterans Administration established the Static sEMG as capable of accurately-tracking patient progress 7 *. Impersonal is ineffective. If the pa­tient's personal Static sEMG results, graphical in nature could be instantly transferred to the patient's smartphone, that cnicial communication between doc­tor and patient would be reinforced within seconds. Unlike a generic pamphlet on the value of Chiropractic, the patient needing to prove the necessity for care can instantly forward from their smart-phone the test results to skeptical family members. Another requirement is for the graphical image to act as an "E-Business Card", presenting both specific informa­tion on the doctors office, and an easily customized special offer. The impact on those who've received the forwarded, visually appealing graphic would provide powerful advertising for the clinic. So I built this thing, filed patents and tested it. And guess what else happened. In Beta Testing all of the above conditions were met. and more. The big surprise was how main patients posted this graphic im­age on Faccbook. and did so while still in the doctors office! Imagine the impact of your office information marketed by your patients at no cost to you? With the aver­age person having 120 Faccbook friends 5'(. the value in terms of marketing alone is quite significant. The tool proved invaluable at screen­ings where not only did the patient walk away with an instant personalized mes­sage, but also knew exactly how to reach you to take advantage of the special offer embedded in the graphic. Even better, the doctor stored the prospective patient's email address for instant follow-up and future email marketing. The term "Viral Growth" is an under­statement when it comes to the impact of these visual images flying around the internet. The biggest surprise of all is that each and every patient tested said, and without exception (after saying "Cool", that is): "Now I can show my why I need my Chiropractor." It is unknown if this can get us beyond that 8% of the population we're seeking. Considering the massive proliferation of Smartphones. it at least takes advantage of a new form of high-tech, low cost marketing with potentially powerful consequences. Technology can be your best friend or worst enemy. By find­ing the best product and support for your needs, you will have a great partner in building your practice. Follow the simple guidelines above and you will enjoy all the advantages of technology without the stress. References: Thorn DH. Training physicians lo increase patient trust. J Eval Clin Pracl. 2(>OOAug:6(3):245-53. Betancourt JR. Cultural competence—marginal or mainstream movement? N Engl J Med. 2004:351(10):953-5. OsborneH. In Other Words... Actions Can Speak as Clearly as Words. Boston Globe's On Call Magazine. Jan/Feb 2006. www. heallhlilcracy. com/article. asp?PagclD=3763 (accessed Mar 3. 2006). Osbornc H. In Other Words.Teaching with Pictures. Boston Globe's On Call Magazine. Nov 1999. www.hcallhlilcracy.com/article.asp?PageID=3822 (accessed Mar 3. 2006). Dunbar. RIM. (June 1992). "Neocortex size as a constraint on group size i n primates". Journal of Human Evolution 22 (6): 469-193. doi: 10.1016/0047- 2484(92 )90081-J A Mcta-Analytic Review of Surface Electromyography Among Persons With Low Back Pain and Normal, Healthy Controls. Gcisscr. Ranavaya. Haig. Roth. Zucker. Ambroz and Caruso published in the Journal of Pain. November 2005 p 711-726. VAS Score Correlates with Static Surface EMG Signal Intensity in Chronic Spine Pain. Anibro/. Alex MD.VA Medical Center. Martiiisburg. WV Anibro/. Clara MD. MPH. Disability Evaluation Services. Martiiisburg.WV Zucker. Robert MD. MPH.VA Medical Center. Martinsburg. WV Benjamin, Eugene MD.VA Medical Center. Martinsburg. WV Caruso. Marianne RN.VA Medical Center. Martinsburg. WV PAIN MEDI­ CINE Volume 6. Number 2. 2005 p 28-29. Marlow. Cameron: "Maintained relationships on Facebook" 2009. March 9, www facebook.com David Marcarian, MA, founder of Precision Biomet­rics, and inventor of the revolutionary MyoJlsion 3G W'irefree PhysioMonitoring™ System. A former XASA researcher, .\ larcarian was awarded a S450.000.00 XIH grant to develop the \lyo\ 'ision. As an expert witness, Marcarian was credited one of the largest PI awards in IS history. and established the validily ofsEMG in a major Stale Superior Court Decision. Recently the AMA selected his 3G Wirefree Sys­tem as the "tool of choice" as presented in the medical text "The Practical Guid". Contact at: Infofa myovision.com or visit www. myovision.com or call 800-969-6961 Dr. Nancy Miggins has over 25 year's clinical expe­rience as a chiropractor. She excelled in the areas of procedures, ethical business practices and management. After spearheading the development of a integrative health and fitness center, she spent 6years as director ofthis clinic. Although her main focus was in family practice, she also has aided Olympic Athletes and professional cyclists with optimizing sports performance through chiropractic. She is currently the Director of Clinical Applications <£■ Product Development for Precision Biometrics. Inc. Contact at : Infodmyovision.com or visit www. myovision.com or call 800-969-6961