The relationship between chiropractor required and current level of business knowledge

Background: Chiropractors frequently practice within health care systems requiring the business acumen of an entrepreneur. However, some chiropractors do not know the relationship between the level of business knowledge required for practice success and their current level of business knowledge. The purpose of this quantitative study was to examine the relationship between chiropractors’ perceived level of business knowledge required and their perceived level of current business knowledge. Methods: Two hundred and seventy-four participants completed an online survey (Health Care Training and Education Needs Survey) which included eight key business items. Participants rated the level of perceived business knowledge required (Part I) and their current perceived level of knowledge (Part II) for the same eight items. Data was collected from November 27, 2013 to December 18, 2013. Data were analyzed using Spearman’s ranked correlation to determine the statistically significant relationships for the perceived level of knowledge required and the perceived current level of knowledge for each of the paired eight items from Parts I and II of the survey. Wilcoxon Signed Ranks Tests were performed to determine the statistical difference between the paired items. Results: The results of Spearman’s correlation testing indicated a statistically significant (p < 0.01) positive correlation for the perceived level of knowledge required and perceived current level of knowledge for six variables: (a) organizational behavior, (b) strategic management, (c) marketing, (d) legal and ethical, (e) managerial decisions, and (f) operations. Wilcoxon Signed Ranks testing indicated a significant difference for three paired items: strategic management; marketing and; legal and ethical. The results suggest that relationships exist for the majority of business items (6 of 8) however a statistically difference was demonstrated in only three of the paired business items. Conclusion: The implications of this study for social change include the potential to improve chiropractors’ business knowledge and skills, enable practice success, enhance health services delivery and positively influence the profession as a viable career.https://doi.org/10.1186/s12998-017-0134-

Methods for Analyzing Referral Patterns

OBJECTIVE: To develop a sound method to identify patient and physician characteristics that influence specialty referrals. DESIGN: A retrospective cohort analysis of medical claims data from 1996 supplemented with surveys of primary care physicians. SETTING: A 600-member independent practice association in southeastern Michigan that provided care for 90,000 members of an HMO. PATIENTS: Five cohorts, each of 2,000 to 6,000 patients with diagnoses that could be referred to cardiologists, ophthalmologists, pulmonologists, orthopedists, or general surgeons. MAIN RESULTS: The referral rates for the different cohorts ranged from 1% to 7%. The discriminatory ability of the multivariate logistic models (c-statistic) ranged from 0.66 to 0.79. The likelihood of referral was associated with the patient's diagnoses and medications and with the referring physician's age, years out of medical school, satisfaction with the specialty being referred to, and the importance of making or confirming a diagnosis. CONCLUSIONS: Because these methods were not difficult to implement and the results were credible, we believe that other organizations should be able to use them