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Z Spine and Joint Center |
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www.zspineandjoint.com |
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Within Solimar Wellness Spa |
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(651) 686-6686 |
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Better, Faster, Stronger, Resolution For Joint and Soft Tissue Injuries |
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How to Find the Right Chiropractor |
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What is Chiropractic?
Chiropractic is a form of healthcare provided by a Doctor of Chiropractic to a patient using methods other than drugs, and surgery. Some of these methods involve spinal and extremity joint mobilizations, soft tissue therapy, therapeutic exercises, rehabilitation therapies, nutritional recommendations, and other forms of advice that are considered by many to be more natural or conservative than traditional medical practice.
Who can perform Chiropractic care?
Chiropractic care can only be administered by a licensed Doctor of Chiropractic (chiropractor) in all 50 states. A competent chiropractor will take a detailed history of the presenting patient and differentially diagnose their complaint. From this diagnosis, the doctor of chiropractic will formulate a treatment plan, refer the patient to another healthcare provider, or co-manage the care of the patient with another healthcare professional based on their best clinical judgment.
What conditions can a chiropractor treat?
Chiropractors are trained similarly in many ways yet can elect to receive further training to help broaden their spectrum of clinical skills. In general, a chiropractor receives training to diagnose and treat conditions of the neuromusculoskeletal systems. This basically means that chiropractors have taken training that may be able to help alleviate conditions of the nerves, muscles, and skeletal articulations (joints) of the human body. Some examples of these conditions are as follows: · Headaches · Whiplash · Neck Pain · Back Pain · Shoulder Pain · Elbow Tendonitis (-osis) · Carpal Tunnel Syndrome · Jaw Pain · Knee Pain · Ankle Pain · Hip Pain
Each individual that sees a chiropractor should ask a few simple questions on their first visit or over the phone to see if chiropractic care at that office will be right for them. Here are the top 5:
1. Do you take x-rays on every patient?
If the answer to this is “YES” by the chiropractor or their office staff, you may want to consider another chiropractic office. There are some techniques of analysis and treatment in the chiropractic profession that utilize x-rays. X-rays are relatively safe but none of us wants or needs to be exposed to this more often than warranted. On the other hand, taking x-rays based on a sound history and associated risk factors of an INDIVIDUAL patient is not only responsible, but required. The argument that often comes up from the treating physician or office staff that wants to take x-rays of every patient is, “well we don’t want to adjust anyone until we know what is going on in there (in your body).” On the surface this seems like a pretty good argument, especially if every single person has the exact same body and comes in with the exact same condition. The practice of taking x-rays on every single patient is analogous to a mechanic hooking the diagnostic computer up to your car even if you told him that you just needed your flat tire fixed. In reality many conditions can be safe to treat with a trial of care for a short period of time (3-4 weeks) as long as there are no significant risk factors or indicators that would suggest an immediate need for diagnostic imaging as determined by your doctor of chiropractic or other healthcare physician.
2. Do I need chiropractic care for life?
Many chiropractors have recommendations for their patients that include lifetime chiropractic care (typically adjustments). Unfortunately, like many other professions, suggestions in this regards are not always in the best interest of the patient. There are some cases where a series of chiropractic treatments throughout a lifetime may be extremely beneficial based on an individual case. If your chiropractor tries convincing you of lifetime care for the whole family, ask them to clarify what they mean by this and also ask them to see some data that shows that chiropractors are living LONGER than the rest of the population. There is no doubt that a chiropractic adjustment can help restore better function to the joints of the body. There is no doubt that chiropractic patients can live BETTER or higher quality lives as long as their chiropractor educates them on healthy habits. Some conditions that may need from 8-12 chiropractic treatments is definitely realistic to expect from your chiropractor. I have patients that I know enjoy the benefits of routine adjustments. These are generally patients that have “loose” or “sloppy” joints where there is too much motion in a joint. For these patients, a few adjustments may be very helpful to relieve initial soreness and recurrent spasms. Strengthening exercises and ergonomics education can and often should be given by the doctor of chiropractic to their patients. Your treatment plan should be based on your individual condition, not any healthcare practitioner’s business plan. What about chiropractic checkups (like dentist office checkups)? In most cases this is a great idea because chiropractors in general are very good at helping and keeping the human body moving efficiently and more pain free.
3. Do you recommend therapeutic exercises?
This question is important to ask because it signifies that the chiropractor is truly concerned about helping their patients become self sufficient. Some doctors have probably given up the recommendation for therapeutic exercises because they realize that many of their patients will never do a single set of these exercises and many patients want to be completely dependant on the doctor for all of their care. If this is the reason they do not give out exercises, then you can probably still keep them on the list of potentials. If they don’t give exercises or they give them from a pre-printed form and don’t show you how to correctly perform them, you can skip to the next chiropractic office on the list. Exercises and exercise in general when properly done make all of us stronger, healthier, and more resistant to injury.
4. Does your doctor of chiropractic spend more than 5-10 minutes with their patients?
Some doctors will declare that they can be extremely efficient and do everything that needs to be done to effectively treat you in less than 5 minutes. The chiropractic adjustment in itself can take a mere matter of seconds to deliver. With patient and doctor positioning taken in to consideration, an effective doctor of chiropractic could adjust you from head to toe in probably 3 minutes. The problem comes in when there is no assessment (such as joint or muscle palpation) done to check on the progress of the chiropractic patient. A competent doctor will do the proper objective assessment of your body so that they can tell how your progress is. Undoubtedly, many patients will just get and feel better if they were to just keep being adjusted. This is a lack of true concern for the patient though and a higher concern for clinic revenues on the part of the doctor. Isn’t the true reason the clinic is there to help educate, assess, and treat patients with the highest integrity? It should be! Get all your questions and concerns answered from your chiropractor. If your healthcare practitioner says they need to “make time for you”, find another one that wants to give you time. This doesn’t mean that you should expect 20-30 minutes from your doctor every time. You should expect to have all your questions and concerns thoroughly answered and taken care of.
5. Ask if the doctor of chiropractic can quack like a duck.
Seriously, you don’t have to ask this one. Many chiropractors have been persecuted throughout the years as being second rate physicians. Some of the persecution is well deserved, and others is just plain fabricated. If we were to step back and take a look at all healthcare professions, we could find many unhealthy and unethical practices that would make us want to take running bounds backwards. When it comes to looking for any healthcare practitioner, trust your gut and if the doctor appears to be genuine and truly cares about helping you first and their pocketbook as an added bonus to their passion for helping people, then you are probably in a good place.
Chiropractic care is an excellent choice for treating many of the complaints that other professions have a tough time treating effectively. Do a little homework, and you may hit a homerun in finding a great chiropractor.
Brad Zupancich, D.C. is the clinical director of Z Spine and Joint Center located within Solimar Wellness Spa in Eagan, MN -(651) 686-6686. Dr. Zupancich is a certified practitioner in the Graston Technique as well as a certified physician with the Motion Palpation Institute.
Any advice or opinions given in this article are not intended and should NOT be taken as a diagnosis or substitute for a thorough examination from a healthcare practitioner.
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Z Spine and Joint Center 1121 Town Centre Dr., Suite 105, Eagan, MN 55123 (In Solimar) Ph: 651-686-6686 (Solimar Wellness Spa) Fax: 651-389-0578
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