Evaluate, Fix, Prevent

In today’s healthcare system, we often see patients let down by their healthcare providers. As a patient, you deserve the most straightforward path to feeling better. Too many injured and suffering people are not being adequately evaluated. This leads to inappropriate care, a lack of a game plan, and no plan to prevent the pain or injury from returning. We want chiropractic to fix this problem. The #1 cause of disability worldwide is low back pain. This problem directly costs $99 Billion annually and indirectly $560-$635 Billion when accounting for lost work and wages.

There are three fundamental aspects of care you deserve as a patient

1. Comprehensive Evaluation and Assessment
2. Conservative Treatment Options
3. Prevention Training

Comprehensive Evaluation and Assessment

Too often, we see that when patients are mishandled by their primary care physician or specialist. Their doctor will give a proper history and consultation, but a very low-level musculoskeletal exam often follows this up. Usually, the doctor won’t even assess the muscle tissue or the surrounding joint or look at the patient’s overall movement pattern. They’ll often perform just a few orthopedic tests and refer you for some imaging. However, they ultimately conclude that you must rest for six weeks and finally prescribe some medication to help “manage” your condition. Your healthcare needs to fix this.

Patients need to understand what they should expect from their healthcare visit. Your doctor should be thorough enough to have a working diagnosis of the likely source of pain or injury. The diagnosis should be specific and communicated.

To determine an appropriate working diagnosis, a comprehensive evaluation should include, but is not limited to:

• A thorough History & Consultation: talking about what you have going on
• Functional Assessment: Finding weakness, tightness, and poor movement patterns
• Orthopedic Exams, Range Of Motion, and Neurological testing as needed.
• Muscle and Joint Testing.
• Gait Analysis (if necessary)

A thorough exam gives your doctor the information to determine your best treatment. This, in turn, allows you, the patient, to make an informed decision on the best options for your specific case. The worst thing you can do is leave an appointment with unanswered questions or doubts about your treatment recommendation.

Conservative Treatment Options

I think you deserve a comprehensive, hands-on approach to your pain. Most of our patients respond best to a combination of therapies. This may include but is not limited to:

• Muscle Work
• Chiropractic Adjustments
• Rehabilitative Exercises
• Future Injury Prevention
• Movement Re-training Therapy 

Conservative treatment should never be a “one size fits all” approach. Incorporating multiple therapies and treatment options allows plenty of customization to ensure your care plan is as unique as you are.

Prevention Training

Few things are more frustrating than a recurring injury. A chiropractor can contribute to many things, such as reduction in flare-ups or re-aggravation of symptoms. These include muscle strains from work/life/sport, not following the exercises provided, lack of injury prevention training, or more. As an informed patient, these are a sample of some prevention options your provider should go over with you:

• Daily Activities Training: Many everyday things cause damage when done improperly. Work on valuable items like getting in and out of the car correctly, lifting with your legs and not your back, etc.
• Return to Work/Sports Advice: When to return and if you can perform at full strength with no limitations.
• Body Awareness and Preparation: Proper lifting, bending, posture, etc.
• Corrective Exercises: a stronger core will help limit future back injuries
• Desk Ergonomics Tips: Improperly sitting at a desk for 8+ hours per day may be creating many of your problems
• Proper Equipment Recommendations: Select the correct running shoes for a runner.
• Skills/Technique Training: That improper golf swing may be tweaking the back. Learn a proper technique from a teaching professional.

Summarize

There are many potential shortcomings that you may experience when you see any healthcare provider for your pain. The first step to being an informed patient is understanding what quality care SHOULD look like. We outlined some key points that an informed patient should expect from their provider when seeking treatment for any musculoskeletal condition.

• A comprehensive exam including but not limited to a thorough history, a functional movement assessment, palpation (assessing by hand) of the joints, muscles, tendons, and ligaments
• An exam that looks at the body as a whole to determine the root cause; the key here is to not only focus on the point of pain. Your doctor should be challenged to dive deeper. For example, a patient with low back pain often has limited hip and mid-back motion, leading to the lower back being overworked and injured.
• A specific working diagnosis is based on a thorough exam.
• Your treatment options should be explained and discussed, allowing you to ask any questions and provide clarity regarding our plan.
• Lastly, receive advice regarding preventative care for your injury, so once you are out of pain, you can avoid re-injury or aggravations.

Whether seeking relief from chronic pain or simply aiming for optimal health, your Livonia chiropractor guides you every step of the way. Contact our office to schedule an appointment by Clicking Here or giving us a call today: 734-427-6333

REFERENCES:

1. Institute of Medicine of the National Academies Report. “Relieving Pain in America: A Blueprint for Transforming Prevention, Care, Education, and Research.” 2011. The National Academies Press, Washington DC. Page 5.