Andrew Glanville has added wheels to his chiropractor toolbox. Make that the tires on the car he drives to his clients’ doorsteps.

As a doctor of chiropractic services, Glanville launched a mobile practice last April to treat patients in homes and offices around North Spokane and Deer Park. In a living room or business conference space, Glanville can set up shop with a chiropractor table that neatly packs down to suitcase size for transit.

Glanville says he founded Come To You Chiropractic as a full-service, fully mobile chiropractor service catering to families, seniors, pregnant moms, and busy professionals. He also schedules appointments part time in a Deer Park office, at 2927 W. Owens Rd., for about 10 to 15 hours a week.

“Dr. Drew is what most patients call me,” says Glanville, whose father, Paul Glanville, is a family physician in Colorado. “I consider myself a family practice chiropractor. My dad is a family practice M.D., so I’m following in his footsteps. He always talked about the old-fashioned, horse-and-buggy doctor, so that’s what I’m modelling my practice after.” 

He adds, “I wanted to offer more personalized care and I also wanted to do this for people’s convenience. They’re in pain, so to get into their car and drive 20 minutes, they get more sore from twisting and turning, and getting out and into a car. This way, I can go to their home or business. I can treat them and they can go sit and put an ice pack on or relax. They don’t even have to get out of their pajamas if they don’t want to.”

A large number of Glanville’s clients are elderly and have difficulties finding transportation to an office unless a family member or transit service can bring them. 

“The other population I serve are pregnant moms with young kids, and just moms with young kids,” he says. “It was hard for them because they had to cancel when they couldn’t find a babysitter, or they’d have to bring in their kids.”

He says people in general are becoming more receptive to chiropractic care for a variety of conditions, mostly for disorders of the musculoskeletal system, along with embracing a holistic approach to staying well. Glanville says he’s certified in an industry chiropractic technique for pregnant women and completed post-graduate training for pediatrics through the International Chiropractic Pediatric Association.

Overall, he says he offers a mix of services, including what he calls diversified adjusting as well as instrument adjusting. 

“I do some advanced muscle therapies, including stretching, massage, exercise,” he says. “I also have training regarding specifically treating kids and pregnant moms. I’ve treated moms in the middle of inactive labor, meaning they’re having contractions, but they are a few hours from giving birth.” 

Among his services, Glanville also provides nutritional counseling for clients. 

“It helps people with digestive issues, sleep conditions, anxiety,” he says. “It’s an approach as an alternative to prescription drugs. I’ve taken some post-graduate classes in nutrition.” 

Glanville says the pediatric care for very young patients involves typically more gentle pressure treatment that can help colicky babies and infants experiencing issues with nursing or constipation. 

“What they go through in the birthing process, it can put a lot of stress on the spine,” he says.

Glanville, who at age 15 moved to Eastern Washington with his family to live in Stevens County, graduated from Portland-based Western States Chiropractic College in 2008. He moved to Spokane the following year to start working as a chiropractor. He married his wife, Danielle, in June 2009, and they now have three young children and live in North Spokane.

For six years after school, Glanville worked for and with chiropractors as part of their practices, but he planned eventually to own his own business.

This past December, Glanville says he left an area practice and took a few months off. 

He applied for jobs at other practices, but because of non-compete clause restrictions from his prior employment, he says he decided to start a mobile chiropractor business in an allowed service area of North Spokane and Deer Park. 

Glanville says he’s concentrating on building a customer base, but currently sees an average of five to 10 patients a week. 

He treats about that same number of patients regularly in the Deer Park office.

“I’m really focusing right now on getting my business and message exposed, because when people hear about my practice and that it’s mobile, they’re excited,” he says, adding that people have flagged him down in traffic and caused him to pull over so they can read the practice’s sign on his car.  

When he goes to appointments, he takes the tools of his trade, including the chiropractic table and a tablet computer serving as a portable office. The tablet enables him to handle on-the-spot scheduling, record-keeping, chart updates and payments with a point-of-sale system. 

While he can accept insurance, Glanville mostly operates a cash practice. 

“It’s easier for me right now; I’m a one-man show.” 

He charges a standard treatment rate of $40 per visit for repeat customers and offers family discounts. As one example, he regularly treats one entire family with a dad, mom, and four kids.

“Right now, I’m waiving the $10 house call fee as I’m growing,” he adds. “I’m also waiving the additional $10 for a first-time patient. I’m charging $40 for one person, then $75 for two, $90 for three people, and $100 for four if at the same location for single-visit treatment.”  

“My cost of doing business is low, so I’m able to keep my rates low,” he says. “I don’t have to run a high-volume practice, and I don’t have to rush people in and out. I can spend more time with them.”

Currently for his mobile visits, he mostly goes into homes but plans to grow chiropractic services at business sites.

“I make myself available to businesses, and I can treat their employees on-site,” he says. “There are a number of workplace issues and employees with neck and lower back pain. That’s the No. 1 cause of missed time at work.”  

He expects more time spent with patients will give him better understanding of their health care needs.

Glanville adds, “It increases patient satisfaction, especially among the elderly.”