DC2017: 7 Questions for Drs. Patricia Tavares, Ayla Azad and Nadine Ellul

The upcoming DC2017 conference in Washington, D.C., is packed with great educational content and world-class presenters. Here we pose 7 questions to three of the featured speakers:

1. What are your names and the name of your presentation?

Patricia Tavares, DC; Ayla Azad, DC, and Nadine Ellul, DC. Our presentation is “Success Without Compromise: Building a Dream Practice,” available under the Practice Management track.

2. What makes you an authority on this subject?

Dr. Tavares: I ran a successful private evidence-based practice from 1996 to 2010. Since 2011, I have been a member of the clinical faculty at Canadian Memorial Chiropractic College (CMCC) teaching interns how to prepare for practice. I have also been a council member of Ontario’s Chiropractic Regulatory Board since 2012 and have worked with World Spine Care to help set up a clinic in the Dominican Republic.

Dr. Azad: I have been in private practice since 1999. I have owned and operated a large, multi-disciplinary clinic since 2003. I have been a member of the CMCC faculty since 1999, and am currently completing my MBA. I participated in the development and delivery of CMCC’s fourth-year business course.

I am the current president of the Ontario Chiropractic Association.

Dr. Ellul: I have been in private practice since 2006. I have a Master’s in health studies and clinic teaching. I am a faculty member at CMCC, Seneca College and Durham College, within the faculty of business as well as health sciences.

3. Why should doctors of chiropractic be interested in learning more about your topic?

Despite their rigorous clinical training, students rarely (if at all) obtain business training while attending chiropractic college. Business awareness is critical for the graduating and practicing chiropractor because most practitioners will have to (or are currently attempting to) run a small business. Whether one is an associate or clinic owner, business management is critical for success.

4. How can the information you share in your presentation directly help chiropractors in practice?

The workshop will explore entrepreneurship, the factors that contribute to practice failure, strategies to overcome them and the various

fields of business education.

5. What about you or your presentation may surprise people?

We are comfortable with talking openly about failure.

6. What’s one thing you learned during your career that you wished you would have known at the beginning?

Dr. Tavares: How to manage people and how to hire and dismiss staff.

Dr. Azad: The importance of business education; I just thought I had to be a chiropractor. Also important is mentorship, speaking and learning from people who have already been there. Go outside of your chiropractic institution to learn about business management.

Dr. Ellul: Mentorship is critical in shaping one’s goals and expectations in practice. Always invest in a good accountant and a good lawyer. Do not enter a business partnership without a contract. Do not trust family and/or family friends; contracts are mandatory. Business education is mandatory, especially if one has never had exposure to business concepts or does not have a strong, trustworthy mentorship in place.

7. What book should every chiropractor read?

Dr. Tavares: The Lean Startup by Eric Ries.

Dr. Azad: The Wealthy Barber by David Chilton.

Dr. Ellul: Think and Grow Rich: Your Key to Financial Wealth and Power by Napolean Hill.

 

To learn more about the wide variety of education programs and speakers featured at DC2017 in March, visit www.DC2017.org.

To view Q&As with other DC2017 speakers, click here.