Friday, February 5, 2010
Monday, October 5, 2009
Tuesday, September 15, 2009
A review of laser laser research for disc herniations
Here is a good article on treatment of low back pain and how low level laser therapy (The same treatment as the Erchonia brand of laser we use) can be helpful in reducing and managing the problems. The article reviews different studies that have been done as well as compares the financial costs of different treatment. If you know someone with low back pain that hasn't found help, please ask them to call the office so we can provide better details on this research.
http://www.scribd.com/doc/19780155/DynamicChiropracticcom-Laser-Therapy-for-Disc-Herniations-1252938722
http://www.scribd.com/doc/19780155/DynamicChiropracticcom-Laser-Therapy-for-Disc-Herniations-1252938722
Tuesday, September 1, 2009
A MUST read!
Shantaram: A Novel
By Gregory David RobertsIn my opinion this could be the most amazing book you've ever read. If you haven't heard about it yet, trust me, you will. I can't begin to describe the thoughts and emotions it brings up in me, especially after traveling to India.
Here is a link to some of the reviews:
http://books.google.com/books?id=VdMFmq92Fa8C&sitesec=reviews&source=gbs_navlinks_s
If will take you a while to get through all 900 pages, but I can almost guarantee your life will be different because you took the time to read it.
Tuesday, August 11, 2009
The High Cost of Health Care
To solve a problem, we must first seek to understand it. Please read the enclosed article and give me your feedback in the office or via email. Following the link is a brief statement from a colleague that I think is right on.
http://www.newyorker.com/reporting/2009/06/01/090601fa_fact_gawande?currentPage=all
Professionalism and High-Cost Health Care
By Stephen M. Perle, DC, MS
The June 1 issue of the New Yorker magazine has an excellent article about what drives up the cost of health care: “The Cost Conundrum: What a Texas town can teach us about health care” by Atul Gawande, MD. In the article, Dr. Gawande compares the cost of health care in McAllen, Texas, and in nearby El Paso. The two areas have basically the same demographics and health statistics, so it’s not the people. They both have similar healthcare technology, so it’s not the infrastructure. And their cost of living is about the same. Yet, McAllen’s Medicare expenses are about twice those of El Paso. The only city in America with higher medical costs is Miami, and it has a much higher cost of living (one would think the higher cost of living would lead to better health outcomes, but it does not). On the other hand, Rochester, Minn., home of the Mayo Clinic, has one of the lowest rates of medical costs per patient.
I suggest reading the article, but my take on it is very simple: The doctors at the Mayo Clinic live up to the moral principle that created the social contract whereby society grants autonomy to professionals (classically, this includes clergy, attorneys and those in the healthcare field). Society created the social contract because it lacked the knowledge needed to properly understand and regulate the professions. The contract states that professions receive autonomy to practice as long as they subjugate the needs of the profession and individual professionals to the needs of the patient, parishioner or client. The Latin phrase credat emptor replaces caveat emptor. The latter, we all know, means “Let the buyer beware.” The former, however, is “Let the buyer have faith”—faith that the professional’s recommendations are in the buyer’s best interest, not the professional’s.
What does this mean with respect to McAllen, Texas? Dr. Gawande’s research shows that the problem causing the inflated healthcare costs is an almost unconscious attempt by healthcare providers to avoid “leaving money on the table” by billing for everything possible—regardless of a patient’s actual need.
In the past, every study examining the cost of chiropractic care compared with medicine showed that we were a more cost-effective intervention. More recent studies have the opposite finding. For whatever reason, some in our profession have put their profit ahead of their patients’ needs. We must keep in mind that professionalism matters. Until the prevailing ethic among all healthcare providers (doctors of chiropractic included) stops being the health of their wallets and properly returns to patients’ health and the value patients receive from our care, no effort will reduce costs and increase health and wellness.
Dr. Perle is a professor of clinical sciences at the University of Bridgeport College of Chiropractic, where he has taught an ethics course for more than 15 years.
http://www.newyorker.com/reporting/2009/06/01/090601fa_fact_gawande?currentPage=all
Professionalism and High-Cost Health Care
By Stephen M. Perle, DC, MS
The June 1 issue of the New Yorker magazine has an excellent article about what drives up the cost of health care: “The Cost Conundrum: What a Texas town can teach us about health care” by Atul Gawande, MD. In the article, Dr. Gawande compares the cost of health care in McAllen, Texas, and in nearby El Paso. The two areas have basically the same demographics and health statistics, so it’s not the people. They both have similar healthcare technology, so it’s not the infrastructure. And their cost of living is about the same. Yet, McAllen’s Medicare expenses are about twice those of El Paso. The only city in America with higher medical costs is Miami, and it has a much higher cost of living (one would think the higher cost of living would lead to better health outcomes, but it does not). On the other hand, Rochester, Minn., home of the Mayo Clinic, has one of the lowest rates of medical costs per patient.
I suggest reading the article, but my take on it is very simple: The doctors at the Mayo Clinic live up to the moral principle that created the social contract whereby society grants autonomy to professionals (classically, this includes clergy, attorneys and those in the healthcare field). Society created the social contract because it lacked the knowledge needed to properly understand and regulate the professions. The contract states that professions receive autonomy to practice as long as they subjugate the needs of the profession and individual professionals to the needs of the patient, parishioner or client. The Latin phrase credat emptor replaces caveat emptor. The latter, we all know, means “Let the buyer beware.” The former, however, is “Let the buyer have faith”—faith that the professional’s recommendations are in the buyer’s best interest, not the professional’s.
What does this mean with respect to McAllen, Texas? Dr. Gawande’s research shows that the problem causing the inflated healthcare costs is an almost unconscious attempt by healthcare providers to avoid “leaving money on the table” by billing for everything possible—regardless of a patient’s actual need.
In the past, every study examining the cost of chiropractic care compared with medicine showed that we were a more cost-effective intervention. More recent studies have the opposite finding. For whatever reason, some in our profession have put their profit ahead of their patients’ needs. We must keep in mind that professionalism matters. Until the prevailing ethic among all healthcare providers (doctors of chiropractic included) stops being the health of their wallets and properly returns to patients’ health and the value patients receive from our care, no effort will reduce costs and increase health and wellness.
Dr. Perle is a professor of clinical sciences at the University of Bridgeport College of Chiropractic, where he has taught an ethics course for more than 15 years.
Tuesday, July 21, 2009
Thanks! Woof Woof!
Smidgie is a patients dog that came in for an adjustment and a laser treatment after a fall that led to back pain. We did one session and three days later recieved some flowers with this note attached.
Overtreating Back Pain: Time to Back Off?
I recently came across an article from the January 2009 issue of "The Journal of the American Board of Family Medicine" with the headline title. Chropractic Care was not mentioned (but should have been listed as an option). I've enclosed the link to the full article as well as a summary of the key points from a fellow chiropractor.
If you or someone you know is suffering from low back pain, PLEASE have them read this material.
Friday, July 10, 2009
Cold Laser information
We have been overwhelmed with the effectiveness of our Cold Laser and have received more inquires on the how it works. I put together a PowerPoint program which I have used inside the office and at external events that gives covers some basic points about the laser. I've enclosed a few slides here for those who have asked for more information:
#1) The definition of Laser
#2) What the Laser does
#3) Treatment information
#4) The interaction at the cell wall
#5) The laser provides treatment options for a wide array of symptoms
PART 2 coming soon:
Research, practical applications, results obsrved and energy medicine
Motorheads unite!
Just finished this book. If you are "hands on" person, or have past mechanical experience (fixing motors, motorcycles, cars, construction, etc) I think you'll enjoy the concepts. Here's a link for the summary: Shop Class as Soulcraft: An Inquiry Into the Value of Work
http://www.amazon.com/Shop-Class-Soulcraft-Inquiry-Value/dp/1594202230
Article on back pain
Those of you that have know me for a while know that we work with the entire body and focus on wellness as a goal. That being said, I feel its my responsibility to share as much information as I can with the community in the hopes of providing a better understanding of the human body, how it works and options to improve health. I don't agree with all of the statements in this article , but I do feel it provides a somewhat balanced look at dealing with back pain and mentions chiropractic. They also have 24 million readers.http://www.aarpmagazine.org/health/the_back_story.html?print=yes#
Tuesday, June 16, 2009
Friday, June 5, 2009
Tuesday, June 2, 2009
Good job!!!
When we feel better who gets the credit? Most people do not stand up, pound their chest and say, "I do good work!" Instead we hear how amazing this new $10 pill is or how great the doctor or surgery was.
New rule: You can thank your doctor only after thanking yourself.
Go home tonight, look in the mirror and thank youself for healing from within.
After all, NONE OF US could have done it without you.
New rule: You can thank your doctor only after thanking yourself.
Go home tonight, look in the mirror and thank youself for healing from within.
After all, NONE OF US could have done it without you.
What happened last night?
Most people would saying "nothing much". But think about what we took for granted....
Overnight your hair and fingernails grew a little bit, your skin made billions of new cells, your metabolism slowed down and your heart beat more slowly and all the chemical equations which took place in your body did not need conscious thought. Outside in your lawn, new leaves began to develop as moisture and nutrients were brought up from the root system to produce oxygen. The grass might be just high enough to cut. The earth and moon made another trip around the sun, which is just a little bit higher in today’s sky than yesterday. Even the stars moved a little and light we see from them is possible years old.
It's no wonder we take things for granted and assume very little is changing and therefore does not get our attention. We are amazed at children as they grow up because every few days there is a subtle difference in the way they act or the way they look. After 18 years of growth, people become less interested in us because we don't look much different on the outside than we did 12 months ago.
In our fast paced world we forget that there are billions of things happening every second that we can't see or feel so we think they don't exist. Take a minute to acknowledge yourself for sticking around another day and all the "work" you accomplished. :-)
Overnight your hair and fingernails grew a little bit, your skin made billions of new cells, your metabolism slowed down and your heart beat more slowly and all the chemical equations which took place in your body did not need conscious thought. Outside in your lawn, new leaves began to develop as moisture and nutrients were brought up from the root system to produce oxygen. The grass might be just high enough to cut. The earth and moon made another trip around the sun, which is just a little bit higher in today’s sky than yesterday. Even the stars moved a little and light we see from them is possible years old.
It's no wonder we take things for granted and assume very little is changing and therefore does not get our attention. We are amazed at children as they grow up because every few days there is a subtle difference in the way they act or the way they look. After 18 years of growth, people become less interested in us because we don't look much different on the outside than we did 12 months ago.
In our fast paced world we forget that there are billions of things happening every second that we can't see or feel so we think they don't exist. Take a minute to acknowledge yourself for sticking around another day and all the "work" you accomplished. :-)
Grace is always there.(written by a fellow colleague)
Epidemic in our society is living a life that is outgoing and action oriented. We seem to feel that life is "out there" somewhere. We feel that to heal we need to "do" something. If we're a doctor, we feel we need to "give" an adjustment of treatment, or to "do" something to the person we are working with.
In deeper, truer healing states, however, there is not so much something done as much as something received by both the doctor and the one being healed. Healing is not so much external as it is internal.
The power of healing comes from our state of receptivity. Receptivity is part of the feminine principle in the yin/yang balance cycle, so I shall refer to Innate as "she" when receiving her in a heightened state of awareness and openness and readiness for healing.
Where is Innate and what is Innate? We feel her when we look around. We feel her when we look inside. She directs our breath, our thoughts, and our heartbeat. We see her in the colors one wears, in the gleam of a piece of jewelry, in the light and shadow in one's eyes. She is in the vibrancy of the sky and the sound of the air around us.
When we agree to allow a healing state into our lives, we feel her in the field around us. She talks through people, places and things.
When we approach someone we are serving in a healing capacity with reverence, we feel in their field where she is weak and strong... where she needs to move and from what trap she needs to be released. She tells our hands what to do, where to go and how to embrace her.
As chiropractors, we observe how we feel when contacting certain areas of the spine. She talks back to us in music, vibration, symbols, or sensations. We feel her in our own breath as we receive the information. She wiggles and tingles in our spine, moving with each thought, touch and intent. We feel her when we match the tone of the person being healed and where he or she is at, and not where we want that person to be, or where we feel Innate is in them, right NOW.
"The power of healing comes from our state of receptivity."
We feel her in our fingertips. We feel her in our pelvis as we agree to keep her dynamic energy and wisdom free in ourselves. We feel her direct our hands, sometimes forcefully, sometimes gently.
She is a guiding force, a knowingness. She carries in her wake divine wisdom. She coordinates all activities in our bodies and all interactions in the spheres of the universe. She orchestrates life.
We merge in her love and feel thankful and full. After the kiss of Innate is released from our fingertips, we swiftly move on trusting her power and direction to activate the healing and awaken the one being healed. At the same time of releasing ourselves to her wisdom, we free ourselves to connect with our own innate.
What have we done? Who has done it? What is this life that moves through us, instead of happening to us? She makes our life hallowed when we receive her. She will bless us, and help us bless ourselves. How do we receive her?
When the "I" moves out of the way, she will come. When we surrender to her all-knowingness, we become her all-knowingness. Let us be servants of this power and therefore become masters of our own life.
Let us receive her Grace. Eastern mystics say, "Grace is always there. It is we who put up the veils and are not receptive." In the same way, Innate is always there. Let us remove the obstacles and feel her and allow her beauty and wisdom to flow into our lives.
Let us be receptive to this never-ending, abundant stream of life moving through us, for she is the healing power and her gifts will set us free.
Jan Viaforia, D.C.
In deeper, truer healing states, however, there is not so much something done as much as something received by both the doctor and the one being healed. Healing is not so much external as it is internal.
The power of healing comes from our state of receptivity. Receptivity is part of the feminine principle in the yin/yang balance cycle, so I shall refer to Innate as "she" when receiving her in a heightened state of awareness and openness and readiness for healing.
Where is Innate and what is Innate? We feel her when we look around. We feel her when we look inside. She directs our breath, our thoughts, and our heartbeat. We see her in the colors one wears, in the gleam of a piece of jewelry, in the light and shadow in one's eyes. She is in the vibrancy of the sky and the sound of the air around us.
When we agree to allow a healing state into our lives, we feel her in the field around us. She talks through people, places and things.
When we approach someone we are serving in a healing capacity with reverence, we feel in their field where she is weak and strong... where she needs to move and from what trap she needs to be released. She tells our hands what to do, where to go and how to embrace her.
As chiropractors, we observe how we feel when contacting certain areas of the spine. She talks back to us in music, vibration, symbols, or sensations. We feel her in our own breath as we receive the information. She wiggles and tingles in our spine, moving with each thought, touch and intent. We feel her when we match the tone of the person being healed and where he or she is at, and not where we want that person to be, or where we feel Innate is in them, right NOW.
"The power of healing comes from our state of receptivity."
We feel her in our fingertips. We feel her in our pelvis as we agree to keep her dynamic energy and wisdom free in ourselves. We feel her direct our hands, sometimes forcefully, sometimes gently.
She is a guiding force, a knowingness. She carries in her wake divine wisdom. She coordinates all activities in our bodies and all interactions in the spheres of the universe. She orchestrates life.
We merge in her love and feel thankful and full. After the kiss of Innate is released from our fingertips, we swiftly move on trusting her power and direction to activate the healing and awaken the one being healed. At the same time of releasing ourselves to her wisdom, we free ourselves to connect with our own innate.
What have we done? Who has done it? What is this life that moves through us, instead of happening to us? She makes our life hallowed when we receive her. She will bless us, and help us bless ourselves. How do we receive her?
When the "I" moves out of the way, she will come. When we surrender to her all-knowingness, we become her all-knowingness. Let us be servants of this power and therefore become masters of our own life.
Let us receive her Grace. Eastern mystics say, "Grace is always there. It is we who put up the veils and are not receptive." In the same way, Innate is always there. Let us remove the obstacles and feel her and allow her beauty and wisdom to flow into our lives.
Let us be receptive to this never-ending, abundant stream of life moving through us, for she is the healing power and her gifts will set us free.
Jan Viaforia, D.C.
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