Chiropractic Basics
Chiropractic care seeks to positively impact a patient’s whole health without the use of drugs or surgery. It aims to relieve pain, infirmity, enhance performance and mobility, and to favorably impact a patient’s overall well being. It seeks to rejuvenate the patient’s neurological and musculoskeletal integrity which allows the body to heal itself.
A Doctor of Chiropractic is a primary care provider who focuses on prevention and problems of spine-related disorders and associated locomotor conditions.
Licensed chiropractors need to comply with the laws and regulations governing chiropractic practice in the jurisdiction where they work, including documentation, coding and billing practices.
The practice of chiropractic includes programs aligned with:
Patient Centered Management
Chiropractors provide patient-centered management.
This means that they diagnose and treat based on a patient’s comprehensive history, clinical information, diagnoses from other healthcare providers, as well as keeping their patients abreast of their plans and decisions throughout the healing process.
Comprehensive Assessment
Chiropractors do not seek to simply treat the symptoms of one problem, rather, they look at the body as integrative systems that affect one another.
A chiropractor’s assessment typically involves taking a case history that includes questions about the patient’s physical health, their mental and social-emotional health, lifestyle and other factors that may affect the patient’s whole health; a physical exam; X-Rays, MRIs and CT scans, and other diagnostic tests.
Musculoskeletal
Chiropractors focus on the spine’s and other extremities’ structure and function, including subluxation (a misalignment of the vertebrae) and how this, along with muscles and nerves, all connect with one another.
Goal-Oriented Management Plans
Chiropractic care coordination is typically accomplished through goal-oriented management plans that include recommendations for improving health through additional means of treatment beyond the chiropractor’s adjustments. These may include ways to improve the patient’s diet and nutrient intake, lifestyle, exercise, and behavior, in order to have a healthier life overall- not just better physical health. Examples of the kind of recommendations a chiropractor might make include but are not limited to:
- A scheduled plan for adjustments
- Exercise program suited to the individual patient’s needs
- Passive modalities (therapies such as massage, hot/cold, ultrasound,
hydrotherapy - Bracing, strapping or orthotics
Rejuvenate Yourself or Your Whole Family with Chiropractic Care
There are many different ways and methods that chiropractors can treat a wide range of systemic problems. If you have been thinking about visiting a chiropractor or taking one or more members of your family, do not hesitate to do this today. The sooner you contact a reputable chiropractor, the sooner you and your whole family may be on their way to better, holistic health.