Everyone has a friend whose brother’s ex-girlfriend’s second cousin went to a chiropractor and had a bad experience for their lower back or neck pain. Unfortunately, as with any profession, there are some chiropractors out there who are more interested in making a buck than what is best for the patient’s health care, and we all know people are more likely to share a bad experience than a good one. This leads to a whole myriad of stereotypes on chiropractors. One by one, I will identify these stereotypes, how they came about, and tell how we operate differently at 412 Performance Chiropractic in Pittsburgh, PA. The first I will touch on is the terrifying chiropractic treatment plan.
I can not tell you how many patients I have had over the years that have told me something along the lines of “You are my third chiropractor to try in the last two weeks. The first one said I have to commit to 6 months of chiropractic care and the second one even asked me to pay $3,000 up front before my first treatment. I only have a crick in my neck and I feel like I was being sold a product instead of seeing a doctor.”. This is a business centered practice, not a patient-centered one. Can a doctor make more money on 5 office visits or 50? This is a practice style developed by practice management services to make money first, and help people second. Can people benefit from the extra months of care after their symptoms have resolved? Absolutely, but in the same way they could benefit from 3 massages a week, expensive supplementation, or a personal trainer. Most people can not afford that. In my opinion, there has to be a line between what is necessary and affordable, and what is excessive, and I believe these pre-determined treatment plans lead to excessive treatment.
So how is 412 Performance Chiropractic of Robinson Township different? Fortunately I had a very good and ethical mentor fresh out of school and I feel I learned a treatment style that my patients respect. I tell my patients on their first visit- I do not predetermine care. I do not provide unnecessary treatment. All I know is I am going to treat you today and I want to follow up in the next 48 hours to re-evaluate you and proceed with treatment as necessary. If you have improved, we start to taper you off. If you haven’t, we will change or modify the chiropractic adjustments and treatment. If you don’t do your homework (which we go over on the first visit), you won’t get better. If you do, you will. My goal is to get you to 100% as quickly as possible and then give you the tools to keep it that way, not treat you for the rest of your life. If any type of provider tells you “just give it time- it takes time for what we are doing to “Hold””, you are probably in the wrong place because what do they call doing the same thing over and over and expecting different results? That’s right- Insanity. In my opinion, if you have a musculoskeletal condition that isn’t significantly better within the first couple days of treatment, you probably aren’t receiving the correct treatment for your condition. As I mentioned before, I have found that patient’s respect this approach to chiropractic treatment. Is it good for business treating someone for 1-2 weeks instead of 4 months? Not really, but that satisfied patient who got fixed in a week is more likely to send their friends and family than the patient that got scared off by 4 months of pre-determined care, so from a business perspective I guess we can call it a wash. At 412 Performance Chiropractic, we strive to be the top chiropractors in Robinson, PA and the surrounding areas of Pittsburgh, and we pride ourselves on treating our patients efficiently and effectively.