These tips come from the experience of doctors who have already been successfully working in their communities, as well as F4CP’s media experts. Review these tips that prepare you handle media interviews with success.

1. Prepare the key points you want to make. Time can be very limited, especially with TV interviews. Know before you go the key points you want to communicate and be ready to state them simply and clearly with relatively short answers.
2. Think awareness and action. What do you want the audience to know? Then what do you want to audience to do?
3. Stay focused on your key points. Interviewers can go down unexpected paths, usually due to whatever interests them the most personally. Steer the interview to your key points. You may say “I think the real question is…” or “That’s a good topic for another discussion, but the key point to know is…”
4. Acknowledge the support of non-drug treatments for pain, but emphasize chiropractic or the use of chiropractic physicians as the most practical first-line provider to diagnose and manage the case.
5. Don’t blame everyone who caused the epidemic (that’s been done). Your job is to increase awareness about an important solution that can prevent more Ohioan’s from going down the path toward opioid abuse. We’re not going to capture hearts and minds and create change by blaming MDs. If the interviewer goes down this road…”so you’re blaming medical doctors for the opioid epidemic”…consider something along these lines: “We’re not here to blame anyone. Unfortunately, medical doctors were lead to believe newer opioid medications were not addictive and were great for every pain, so opioids were and continue to be be overused. Now experts are recognizing we can treat a lot of painful conditions with non-drug treatments like chiropractic that are just as effective, have no risk of addiction, and are much safer. We don’t have to wait for researchers to come up with a high tech alternative to opioids. Safe and effective alternatives like chiropractic are available now. “
6. Remember even for those patients that may find some benefit from opioids (after exhausting other options), guidelines recommend opioids be considered only as an adjunct to non-drug treatment.
7. Even Tylenol and anti-inflammatories like ibuprofen are no longer considered first-line treatment for back pain. Guidelines recommend trying non-drug treatments like chiropractic first because it is usually just as effective or more effective, and much safer.
8. Points to emphasize if possible based on Palmer’s first Gallup poll: chiropractic is safe and effective, chiropractic services are covered by most insurance plans and is cost-effective, doctors of chiropractic are highly trained.
9. If asked, acknowledge that addiction and recovery services are absolutely vital and must be provided to those in need. However, we also have to address the main problem at the same time or it’s like we’re just treating symptoms and side effects. We have to change the way we treat pain by starting with non-drug treatment like chiropractic first, before using drugs.
10. It is rare from what we have experienced, but be ready for hostile reporters or reporters that appear nice, but are ultimately trying to catch you up and make you/chiropractic look bad.
11. There is no such thing as “off the record.” If you say it, expect it to be printed.
12. Do not exaggerate and avoid controversial areas. This isn’t the time to discuss vaccines, etc. Stay on topic. If a reporter finds your information unreliable or unsupported, that’s the last time they use you.
13. Be prepared to explain briefly and simply what chiropractic is. If you are compelled to use the term subluxation, keep it simple (a term some DCs use for a functional problem in the spine). Due to time constraints, it’s most effective not to use the term. Be prepared to discuss what chiropractic can treat (Chiropractic services are used most often to treat neuromusculoskeletal complaints, including but not limited to back pain, neck pain, pain in the joints of the arms or legs, and headaches), what education DCs receive (Most chiropractic physicians complete a four year pre-medical undergraduate college education, followed by four to five academic years of professional study at a chiropractic college which includes extensive clinical training to prepare them to examine, diagnose, and treat or refer to the appropriate health care practitioner), how are chiropractors licensed (Certification and licensure of chiropractors is governed by the National Board of Chiropractic Examiners. DCs must pass board exams and then obtain a license in the state of Ohio by passing an additional jurisprudence exam. Chiropractors must meet biennial continuing education requirements to maintain their licensure.).
14. Be ready with statistics to share. 80% of heroin addicts started with prescribed pain medications (though if asked more detail, realize some of these addicts used prescription meds that were not theirs. Keeping them out of the medicine cabinet thus protects not just the user, but their family and friends. An expert asked a good question: “Why does every grandma have opioids in their medicine cabinet?”).
15. Be professional, pleasant, and well prepared.