ACU-023 Guest Interviewer and Student, Sarah LeVaque LMT, Interviews Me!
AcuSprout: Acupuncture Podcast
05/21/21
•75m
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I have personal and professional mantras on repeat in my head all the time. Some are even incorporated into my meditations. Are you challenged with perfectionism? Me too. Producing a podcast has taught me this: PROGRESS OVER PERFECTION. Since I have started podcasting nothing meets my perfect standards. Podcasts are raw and conversational. Grammar, punctuation and proper sentence structure doesn’t exist. I say f***. My interviewees cuss, their dogs bark and their kids play bowling alley outside their office while we record. As I have grown, my website is getting confusing and my branding colors are getting lost. It’s not perfect, but I think it’s helpful. I hope it’s helpful..... No. I’m sure it’s helpful!
Since I started my Acupuncture practice I have worked out of 3 different offices in 3 years. I started broad and am now re-defining my niche. I once had a pretty nice beginner website and now I am operating with just a landing page while I get my shit together, which takes time. Everything takes time. And I have two businesses, so it takes even more time.
Before the pandemic I was able to pay myself a little bit. My practice was growing. Slowly, but it was growing. Enter freakish Pandemic which forced me to close. I came home and started a podcast. So far my only return on investment with the podcast is self satisfaction. What I do matters. The same is happening with the post apocalyptic re-launch of my practice. Invest more time, invest more money, work, work, work, and eventually the tide will turn. This is the way.
It’s hard. Sometimes it’s lonely. Sometimes I feel like a Badass Superhero. Sometimes I feel like a total imposter. But I actually know what I am doing and I have a plan. That is something. That feels good! It’s all a process. I promise you this. If you don’t give up, you will get there. Start at the beginning and work your way to the end. That is all. That is success!
A special thanks to Sarah LaVaque for this episode. She conducted a great interview. I couldn’t have done it better myself!
TODAY’S GUESTS
SARAH LAVAQUE LMT, CHINESE MEDICAL STUDENT
Sarah LaVaque, BCTMB, is a board-certified massage therapist and TCM graduate student at Northwestern Health Sciences University. She currently practices massage therapy at a chiropractic clinic in Woodbury, MN. She has practiced therapeutic massage for 16 years and specializes in deep tissue massage, sports massage, and myofascial release.
STACEY WHITCOMB AEMP, LAC., PODCAST HOST, SHE/HER
Acupuncturist, Podcaster, Coach and Creator of Magical Networks. Stacey is the host of the AcuSprout Podcast, new Acupuncturist, old Massage Therapist and business owner and Coach to new Entrepreneurial Chinese Medicine Practitioners. Stacey is a true believer in creating the practice and life of your greatest desires.
After a long and successful massage career of working with competitive level athletes, Stacey loaded up the Tiny House On Wheels and headed to Portland of course, to pursue her Masters in Chinese Medicine at the Oregon College of Oriental Medicine. (Yes, they are working on the “O” thing....) Upon graduation and launching a practice in a town where she didn’t know anyone she quickly realized two things. One, the landscape of business had changed drastically in the last 25 years and she had some catching up to do. And two, there were very few resources available to new practitioners.
Add a dash of Pandemic and viola! A podcast is born!
You can find her here: AcuSprout
On Instagram here: @acusprout
On Facebook here: AcuSprout
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Previous Episode
ACU-022 How To Stay Professional and Legal Online with Rachel Schumont
April 15, 2021
•63m
HOW TO STAY ON THE UPSIDE OF LEGAL IN A QUICKLY EVOLVING TECH WORLD
I’m a freedom lover. I LOVE to navigate this world my way and rarely does it come close to the societal norm. I think a lot of Practitioners of Chinese Medicine are like this. We tend to be the outliers and renegades. However, I often see the tendency for Acupuncturists to sweep legal professionalism into the gray space. Not doing due diligence with the “seemingly small things”, like HIPAA compliant emails and posting photos on social media. It’s easy to gloss over these details when starting a practice and it’s hard to recall specifically from our education what best practices are. Our ethics and jurisprudence classes are short and relatively boring and mashed in between the high demands of memorizing an entire pharmacopeia. SO....this is my continued graduation gift to you. Let’s till the proverbial soil and plant some very healthy and robust seeds. In order to keep that seed alive and help it grow, we might encounter some tasks that are not fun but necessary for it to thrive. The same goes for your career and practice. Stay informed about the ever-changing climate and world of technology. Just like following the rules of nature, there are rules that you have to follow with your practice so that you can thrive. In this episode we are going to touch on some laws and practices you need to be aware of as new practitioners. Make sure the light shines on the soil. No shady practices here. We are talking mostly about your online presence and what you need to be aware of with regards to social media, HIPAA compliance, BAA agreements, webinars, emails, phones, and newsletters.
YOU'LL LEARN
- What services you might hire an attorney to provide you business.
- PHI defined and exactly what our responsibilities are.
- What is a BAA and why is it necessary.
- Should you really be asking for advice on cases on Facebook??!!!
- Can an Acupuncturist also be a Health Coach? If so, what legal protection would a practitioner need in place when coaching?
- How does HIPAA influence our relationship with patients on social media?
- Does your newsletter need to be HIPAA compliant? What about your phone? Yes and yes. I have a solution for you.
resources
- Need HIPAA compliant email, phone and video that’s super affordable? I use Google Workspace and love it.
- Here are some great articles I found in my research. Worth the read!
- Policy Statement From the American College of Physicians and the Federation of State Medical Boards
- Social Media and Health Care Professionals: Benefits, Risks, and Best Practices
- The Rise of the Empowered Physician in the Digital Health Era: Viewpoint
call to action
- Join me on Instagram @AcuSprout
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Next Episode
DID YOU KNOW THAT YOU SHOULD HAVE POLICIES AND DISCLAIMERS ON YOUR WEBSITE?
Me neither!! I mean seriously, I’m a couple years in and I had a pretty extensive business education in school. Here is what I can tell you. The tech world has moved SO fast that very few practitioners realize they are dangling the hook of being sued by pure ignorance of this information. Myself included. It’s not hard. None of this is hard. It’s just the stuff of, “you don’t know what you don’t know.” Listen in as we dive into what you need to do. Then, take a look at the RESOURCES section to see who is doing it right!
TODAY’S GUEST
RACHEL SCHUMONT, ATTORNEY, OWNER AT COUNSEL FOR WELLNESS
My name is Rachel and I am an attorney that specializes in legal issues that affect your business.
I began my legal career as a litigation attorney in Northeast Florida but after years of working in a courtroom I felt drawn to another passion and chose to spend a few years teaching vinyasa yoga in Southern California. While teaching, I quickly learned how little yoga teachers understood about their businesses and worked to educate yoga teachers on the nuances of their businesses and help them identify areas where they could limit their liability. From there my business grew and expanded to include other areas of health and wellness. Through my practice, Counsel for Wellness, I work with acupuncturists, dietitians, movement and fitness instructors, health coaches, and others in the wellness field to establish business entities, review and negotiate contracts, get solid legal documents in place, and address any other legal issues that arise along the way.
My experience has been that many business owners put off getting their legal affairs in order because they believe it to be overwhelming or time-consuming. With Counsel for Wellness my goal is to make your legal issues accessible so that you can focus on growing your business and caring for your people.
FIND HER HERE:
INSTAGRAM @COUNSELWELLNESS
COUNSEL FOR WELLNESS WEBSITE
YOU’LL LEARN
- For a deep dive on “How To Make A Healthcare Website ADA Compliant” - Episode 016
- “How To Stay On The Upside Of Legal In A Quickly Evolving Tech World” - all things HIPAA - Episode 021
- What legal documents you need to operate your practice. Especially with regards to your patients.
- You need legal disclaimers on your website! Privacy Policy, HIPAA, Terms of Use.
- Disclaimers. You need them for; medical advice, testimonials, blogging, and advertisements.
- The difference between LLC and PLLC.
- What does, “Maintaining an entity mean?”.
- What the hell is, “Piercing the corporate veil?”
RESOURCES
- I found you a great example of a website that has the serious legal mumbo jumbo. They are going to totally be flumoxed why their website has a bunch of new traffic. Bwahahaha! Check out Healthpointe !
CALL TO ACTION
- Seriously, just tell another Acupuncturist about the show. It would mean the world to me and might make or break them!
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