With October comes National Chiropractic Health Month, the perfect opportunity to find out for yourself what has so many others singing chiropractors’ praises. Studies show, in the face of the opioid epidemic, that when drug-free chiropractic care is administered first for low back pain, there is often no need for prescription pain-killers.
Or maybe chiropractic care is something you’ve already discovered for yourself, the lasting effect of putting your neuromusculoskeletal system in balance and your central nervous system, cradled in the spine, restoring communication between your brain and your body’s muscles and organs.
It’s as if the art of spinal manipulation has come full circle from when Hippocrates first urged peers centuries ago to “Look well to the spine for the causes of disease.” To think D.D. Palmer, the father of contemporary chiropractic care, was jailed in 1906 for practicing medicine without a license, doing what the American College of Physicians recommends patients consider today.
(For the record, today’s chiropractors have at least seven years of intensive study behind them – and years of continuing education ahead – before passing their board examinations and receiving their license to practice.)
Here are a few ways we can educate others as the national spotlight opens on today’s chiropractors:
Share your experiences. If you’ve had a successful experience with a chiropractor, especially in controlling pain, let others know. Word-of-mouth is a great way for newcomers to find a chiropractor best in tune with their particular needs. You can also help them understand what chiropractic care involves and take the mystery out of the visit.
Take your own advice. While chiropractic care can continue for several visits, there does come a time when the adjustments and lifestyle changes chiropractors suggest do the job. But just as you visit your dentist for an annual cleaning or take your car to the garage for its annual tune-up, you’ll want to visit your chiropractor on an annual basis to make sure everything is still in alignment.
Keep an open mind as you face life’s challenges. Studies show that chiropractic care benefits us in many ways, from cradle to grave. And a growing number of multidisciplinary practices are surfacing, where your primary care physician and chiropractor team together in your healthcare. Together with what you can do to help yourself, by staying active, eating well and getting enough sleep, it really is something to celebrate, this month and throughout the year!
Why is the Discount Challenge prize amount $11,181? Because that is the average “per-occurrence” fine for Medicare inducements. That’s not $11,181 per patient, that’s not per provider, that’s PER VISIT. Stinks, doesn’t it? To us, the prize amount is worth the investment if we can help our profession better understand proper discounting.