While this may not seem like a common topic amongst chiropractors, but especially in this day and age, culture and diversity within the chiropractic profession and practice are paramount. Chiropractic treatment is effective for such a wide range of people from any and all walks of life, and expressing that to the world will do that much more to attract more people to your practice. Not to mention the main benefit of providing care for underserved groups of people that has the potential to change their quality of life for the better. All patients, no matter the healthcare, all want one thing, and that is to improve their health in the healthiest and safest way possible medically and from an equity standpoint. Currently, there is a severe lack of diversity amongst those who seek chiropractic care and those who practice. It is vital that within the chiropractic profession that we widen our reach, and broaden our horizons.
DEI Explained
In simplistic terms, DEI stands for diversity, equity, and inclusion. The goal of this concept is to cultivate an environment within the healthcare umbrella where people from all backgrounds are valued, respected, and included. It is not just a frame of mind either. Chiropractic providers should act to implement and embody DEI within their practice therefore expanding their outreach. Chiropractors play an important role in decreasing inequities in healthcare, and increasing inclusion within our communities and beyond.
Aspects that Create Healthcare Inequity:
- Socioeconomic Factors – those who are unable to afford healthcare due to income
- Characteristics – those who are discriminated against due to their ethnicity, gender, sexual orientation, gender reassignment, or disability.
- Geographical Factors – those who don’t have access to certain healthcare due to where they live (in urban or rural areas for example).
- Social – those who can’t get healthcare due to social exclusions such as those who travel or those who are homeless.
There are many ways that chiropractic providers can make a difference in their practice for both their employees and patients in order to implement this concept and practice. The concept has been around for decades, but it is vital we value all walks of life giving everyone the chance and right to helpful healthcare like chiropractic.
Importance of Diversity, Equity, & Inclusion
Chiropractic providers, and all healthcare providers should aim to provide person-centered care meaning that the patient’s needs are met based on all forms of culture and diversity.
DEI:
- Diversity – describes all aspects of humanity. This includes a person’s characteristics, differences, and life experiences and valuing their differences.
- Equity – the knowledge and recognition that access to certain healthcare options, chiropractic included, is unfairly or unevenly distributed amongst all communities of people. Equity considers the needs and circumstances of all people, regardless of their income, background, education, or identity get the care they need and deserve.
- Inclusion – the opportunity and safe space to obtain a good experience in a practice or medical school or health system discouraging being left out or feelings of being out of place.
We must ensure that all of our patients are treated with respect and dignity, and make certain that appropriate sign posting in the practice and employee areas.
Reasons Why DEI is Important for Patients in a Chiropractic Practice:
- Build Trust & Repour – patients are more likely to trust the chiropractic when they feel they are understood, respected, and feel their culture and characteristics are accepted by the chiropractor. They will also feel safer discussing their healthcare concerns therefore allowing us as chiropractic providers to have all of the vital information to provide care.
- Diverse Community Outreach – chiropractic offices that are more diverse will attract a larger range of patients from various communities, and increase chiropractic treatment accessibility.
- Personalized Chiropractic Care – chiropractors who implement and understand cultural variations, are better able to tailor their treatments to a patient’s specific needs. Utilizing this will lead to their treatments being more effective.
- Decreased Misunderstandings – misunderstandings in healthcare can happen naturally regardless, however, cultural awareness can help a chiropractor avoid potentially more offensive misinterpretations. With better communication, the patient/provider conversations and interactions will be more effective.
- Ethical Chiropractic Practice – a chiropractic office that is diverse has the ability to help more people and improve their health, and even more so if their employees are reflective of the community.
Essentially, the main goal of chiropractic providers is to cultivate a diversified practice to change how various individuals see healthcare and chiropractic as a whole. We have to meet patients where they are, and help them to understand from their lens how chiropractic works and can benefit them within their social and cultural beliefs and backgrounds. Providing a DEI type of practice can affect how patients feel about chiropractic care and how we can help them, and given the safe space to do so, these patients will recognize the benefits of chiropractic treatment.
On the flip side, DEI is important not only in how we are with patients, but also with our employees. There is a definite problem with a lack of representation within the chiropractic profession across the board causing a problem for many at getting and retaining patients from various social and cultural backgrounds. The idea of role models is not something to scoff at, and means a lot to those seeking a career in healthcare whether they realize it or not. Being relatable is a huge aspect of patient implementation and retention, but also to inspire a career in chiropractic for students.
How to Implement DEI in Your Practice
Doctors of Chiropractic have the ability to make a difference in the profession itself and for our patients by committing to DEI practices from the inside out. We can decrease health disparities, and better serve a multitude of communities, but we must be proactive in doing so.
Incorporating DEI in Your Chiropractic Practice from a Patient Point of View:
- Community Participation – increase marketing and/or reach out to diverse communities to encourage and raise awareness of the benefits of chiropractic treatment.
- Intake Forms – this can be something as simple as asking questions pertaining to the patient’s cultural background, their preferred name, preferred gender identity, preferred pronouns, or preferred communication methods.
- Employee Training – incorporate cultural awareness and sensitivity into employee training.
- Cultural Adaptations – potentially adjusting protocols depending that could potentially be culturally sensitive.
- Translation Assistance – implement access to translation services for those patients who need them.
Although these may seem pretty straightforward, it may be difficult to know where to start in implementing these notions into your practice. Take a look at how you communicate with your community as well as your social media platform marketing and posts. What do you put out to all backgrounds of people? Does your print media advertising only showcase, whether intentional or not, one group of people? Do your social media posts convey negative connotations to diverse groups? What types of people or groups do you follow? All of these can be found, and are seen by potential chiropractic patients or employees. Basically, you always want to be sure that you as the chiropractic provider send the message that you are open and prepared to serve any and all communities of people.
DEI Strategies to Implement into Your Practice from a Chiropractor Point of View:
- Diversity and Cultural Competency Training – encourage, and provide this type of training for all members of your staff.
- Inclusive Office Environment – this includes things like intakes that are accessible in multiple languages to displaying diverse media/artwork throughout the practice, using gender neutral language, and respecting a person’s pronouns.
- Staff Diversity – recruiting staff from diverse backgrounds as well as potentially asking for language skills as part of the hiring process.
- Community Outreach – collaborate with local businesses or organizations to get the word out about your services in those diverse communities. Also, be sure to participate in community events especially those that are targeted toward specific cultural groups.
- Patient Centered Communication – respecting the patients diverse needs while learning and listening to determine how their culture or social backgrounds may influence their healthcare.
- Patient Feedback – on a regular basis, obtain feedback from patients in reference to their experience with cultural/social sensitivity with you and your practice.
It is also important to be aware of religious beliefs, disabilities, and systemic barriers within the healthcare platform.
From a chiropractic provider standpoint, to attain meaningful change we must recruit more young people from all communities and ethnicities to a chiropractic education. This is done more now in conventional healthcare, and has yet to shift over to the chiropractic profession. Chiropractic education should also focus on implementing a larger focus on DEI training across the profession. Additionally, chiropractic providers have to join the conversation, and take ownership of the profession and reach those communities that are not represented well in the community. Without this, the chiropractic profession will not continue to grow and be a major health care force that we want it to be. We must increase outreach and recruitment to attract students to chiropractic, foster inclusive education, implement culture and diversity training, and initiate inclusion and diversity policies.
Lastly, it is vital that chiropractic providers implement a public facing DEI policy to implant DEI in your practice and ensure those who associate with your practice uphold these values as well.