Table 2
Family physician’s sources of information on chiropractic and referral practices
| Year of administration | 2010 | 2019 |
|---|---|---|
| No. of respondents | 251 | 162 |
| Sources of information on chiropractic, n (%)a | ||
| Patient feedback | 210 (84%) | 121 (75%) |
| Relationship with a specific chiropractor | 105 (42%) | 51 (32%) |
| Research literature | 94 (38%) | 67 (41%) |
| Personal treatment experience | 85 (34%) | 66 (41%) |
| Family and friends | 79 (32%) | 48 (30%) |
| Medical school | 50 (20%) | 39 (24%) |
| Media | 44 (18%) | 21 (13%) |
| Professors/supervisors/mentors | 43 (17%) | 29 (18%) |
| Residency | 11 (4%) | 10 (6%) |
| Frequency of patient referral for chiropractic treatment, n (%) b | ||
| Daily | 3 (1%) | 1 (1%) |
| Weekly | 46 (18%) | 26 (17%) |
| Monthly | 79 (32%) | 51 (33%) |
| Every year | 56 (22%) | 30 (19%) |
| Never | 67 (27%) | 49 (31%) |
| Number of patients referred for chiropractic care per year, n (%) c | ||
| 1 to 10 | 86 (34%) | 57 (36%) |
| 11 to 25 | 52 (21%) | 34 (21%) |
| 26 to 50 | 32 (13%) | 17 (11%) |
| > 50 | 14 (6%) | 10 (6%) |
| None | 67 (27%) | 42 (26%) |
| Reason for chiropractic referral, n (%) a,d | ||
| Patient request | 140 (56%) | 97 (68%) |
| Non-response to medical treatment | 103 (41%) | 63 (44%) |
| Literature supports chiropractic care | 73 (29%) | 41 (29%) |
| Relationship with a specific chiropractor | 57 (23%) | 29 (20%) |
| Personal experience as a chiropractic patient | 29 (12%) | 23 (16%) |
| Other reasons | 17 (7%) | 9 (6%) |
a total percentage is > 100% as respondents could choose more than one option
b total number of respondents was 157 for the 2019 survey
c total number of respondents was 169 for the 2019 survey
d respondents are limited to the family physicians that reported referring patients for chiropractic