Short Answer
Compassion, answers to your questions, detailed evaluation, straightforward recommendations, and a choice.
Long Answer
Initial Visit
Our clients initiate care with us for many different reasons, and we recognize that your concerns are important to you. They are important to us as well, and our first step must be to understand why you are seeking chiropractic care. When you arrive for your first visit, Dr. Mike will sit down with you to discuss any specific health concerns you may have; whether those be condition based or general health concepts.
As perspectives on healthcare (in general) and chiropractic care (specifically) will vary from chiropractor to chiropractor, Dr. Mike will also take a moment to explain with you his personal approach during this initial consultation.
If, after discussing both your situation and Dr. Mike's approach, you feel that our office isn't the best place for your chiropractic care; you will be free to go with no charge for the consultation. We will do our best in this situation to guide you toward other healthcare options/providers which may be a better fit for your desires/situation.
If you do elect to move forward with us, the next step will be an exam. For all our clients, Dr. Mike performs detailed neurological scanning to help determine how well (or poorly) your body is functioning. In addition to these scans, he may include any or all of the following examination procedures when appropriate: specific orthopedic testing, other specific neurological testing, palpation evaluation, range of motion testing, postural analysis, balance testing, movement analysis, etc.
Only after the consultation and exam portions of your first visit are complete will Dr. Mike have the requisite information to formulate a care plan specific for your situation in life. After an explanation of your exam findings, you will be presented with care recommendations specific to you.
It is at this point you will have another choice to make. You can choose any of the following three options:
- Elect not to proceed with care in our office.
- In this case we would again try and help steer you toward other healthcare options/providers which may be a better fit for your desires/situation.
- Elect to proceed with care in our office at the care frequency which Dr. Mike has recommended
- We expect this approach to result in the best outcomes for you and your life.
- Elect to proceed with care in our office, but at a frequency other than what was recommended.
- If you elect a different frequency than recommended, we are still willing to work with you. Some chiropractic care is typically better than no chiropractic care at all. Please understand, however, that altering care frequency may yield slower progress and ultimately delay how long it takes to achieve your healthcare goals.
If at this point, you choose to not proceed with care, your only cost is for the examination, and you will be free to go.
If you do choose to proceed with care, we will work with you on establishing a schedule for your visits, and (in most cases) Dr. Mike will give you your first chiropractic adjustment that very day.
Obviously, this initial visit has much that needs done, thus it will likely be your longest visit in our office. The ultimate duration of this visit will depend mostly on how much needs discussed regarding your current health status, but please expect a minimum of 45 minutes for this visit. We have had some last significantly longer (around 2 hours) because we don't want to rush through this process at a pace where you won't understand our care approach or your options.
Standard Visits
While they are the primary aspect of your care, adjustments themselves do not take much time. For a basic adjustment visit, you can expect to be in and back out of the office in roughly 15 minutes (or less). If you ever have a need discuss something specific with Dr. Mike, please let us know and we do our best to accommodate that need. While we strive to keep these regular visits brief, we have an even greater desire to address any questions/concerns you may have and are glad to take the time necessary to do so.
Re-Exam Visits
As we have no way to predict exactly how (or how rapidly) your body will respond to chiropractic care, a re-examination will always be scheduled at the end of your most recently presented care plan. These re-exams allow Dr. Mike to evaluate how your body is responding to the care provided.
The procedure for these exams will always include re-scanning neurological function and may include any other exam procedures that were done on your initial visit. Comparing these results to those obtained on your initial visit (or previous exam visit) provides Dr. Mike with the necessary information to make future recommendations for care.
Once future recommendations are given, you will always have the choice to either continue with care based on the updated recommendations, or cease care in our office.
Even when initial conditions have resolved, our hope for every individual is continued care with us; so that we may continually help promote healthier function in your body.
Our utmost desire to not only help you feel better, but to have greater overall function and thus enjoy a more abundant life.