Overlooked Opportunities in 2011?

Too often in practice development, as in so many areas of life, it seems what’s best and most powerful for us is right under our own noses. One of the big problems, and the reason for these missed opportunities is either not devoting time to look for them, and most often not making this “looking” time a scheduled priority.

So it goes. This discussion of the most common ones may really turn a practice around dramatically. Most cost little or any money. I suggest while reading this you compose your own opportunity list.

I just did one for our team, and came up with 8 areas that are really doing well after the last quarter, but three that seem to be the source of “irritation”, that could turn into a major wound, if not healed in time.

By the next staff meeting, they will be fixed.

Are You Planning For The Best in Private Practice in 2012?

Remember, the big idea is to continually correct and fine tune, before you need an overhaul.

The first one we’ll handle here is Staff. When was the last time you spent time reviewing purpose, duties clarity, and basic compliance issues. Fine tuning the staffing department can really be an enormous source of new patients, collections and overall energy, esprit de corps, if you will. And it costs just some quiet time, a pen and legal pad and the action (AKA guts) on your part to actually confront, and fix what and whom you have to.

Along these lines, how is your staffing payroll set up? Like GM or Toyota? Will you be looking for “BAILOUT” monies or ready to compete on any scale? Hopefully, they are fully incentivised, on multiple scales.

Also, what is your practice’s fun quotient? I don’t know about you, but when the fun goes, misery follows pretty quickly. Lots of this comes from simply having the right people, and regularly showing them your gratitude, at every turn.

Lets face it. Physical Therapy, Medicine and Chiropractic private practice can really be tough. Make sure you acknowledge the teams efforts based upon correct intent. Fix as rapidly and as gently as possible with what could be more in line with your vision. Strive to have a family like environment, and you can’t go wrong.

The next really big area is your office hours. How did you choose them? Are you overstaffed during slower times, but lack capacity of space, staff and equipment when patients in your area are really on the move, and want to be seen?

And, what is your own productivity like during demand times? Unless you are focused, clear headed and undistracted, patients are not getting what they deserve, and I guarantee you are leaving hundreds if not thousands of dollars in opportunities to chance, or overlooked forever.

Another issue, which can literally make or break a practice today is targeted and focused on and offline marketing. The things to look at are how do you capture “leads”? Then, how to you follow up with them? How do you ever learn their unique wants and needs?

(This is one area where we can really help. But you must be willing and teachable. We are even using these skills to help other business grow!)

The third area to consider here is what’s going on in your community, within just a few miles of your physical therapy or medical practice in most cases, that you could be helping, promoting or enhancing? Things like sponsored events, community awareness programs and outreach programs. Maybe its just getting more involved in your school system. Again, it’s likely just a bit of time, and no great expenditure of funds or resources.

You can take the first step by visiting city or town hall. Get a better handle on what’s going on; what the locals are concerned and talking about.

The next stop should be the local library. There is usually a wealth of information about the types of community education programs going on or coming up soon.

As a chiropractic, physical therapy or medical practice owner in town, you may be a candidate for an interview, a talk at a community center, or maybe even classes at the library itself? Who knows, you may find as I have, these turn in to radio and TV opportunities, as well as articles in print media. All of these really can do much to not only solidify your patient base, but to grow a practice its entire lifetime.

In any event, I hope you by now see the purpose of this discussion.

Too many times as multitasking, ADD prone professionals, we can suffer from “Bright Shiny Object Syndrome” (BSOS), the relentless pursuit of excitement but irrelevancy.

The result is we miss or overlook so much of what is right in front of us, often just for the asking. If you’ve got this affliction, the information contained herein is the prescription that cures.

If perchance it provides only temporary symptomatic relief but not a cure, you may need to reexamine some bigger issues. The most common is too much stress, not enough rest or down time or feelings of not being rewarded financially or otherwise by practice.

It’s high time we admit that this one’s all too common in today’s doctor, unless we very carefully, make our choices every step of the way.

Wherever this one takes you, I really wish you the best.

In reality, fulfillment as doctors in private practice comes only by living and practicing by design.

Find More at http://johnhayersjr.com

You know the issues…

Your chiropractic, physical therapy or medical practice offers a myriad of special services…

•       For women to combat the effects of osteoporosis and/or hormonal issues

•       Sports rehabilitation services for the athlete

•       Recuperative and NeuropathyDR® Treatments for seriously ill patients

Any of these specialties should be bringing in the kind of varied patient population that would not only keep your practice exciting but do great things for your bank balance as well.

Still, day after day, you treat the strained back from the construction worker or the sore knees of the weekend warrior.  And there’s nothing wrong with that.  You just know you could be doing more.

You know the demand for your real expertise and special services is out there but for some reason you’re not reaching them.

It’s not a lost cause…

Try these tips for reaching the kind of varied patients you know you can help:

Get In Front Of Your Prospects

You know you can help all these patients but if they don’t know you exist, you can’t help them.

You have to take your message to them.  Go where you know they are.

If you want to treat sport injuries or athletes, advertise with the local marathon organizers.

If you want to specialize in senior care, get your message out to the local senior centers and retirement communities.

For chiropractors and physical therapists:  If women are your target market, start networking with ob/gyn’s referrals or speak at local professional women’s clubs on the benefits of specialty care for common female complaints.

What’s In It For The Patient?

When you get in front of your prospective market, don’t dwell on how great you are or how you’re an expert in whatever field.

Emphasize what’s in it for them.

Greater mobility, playing golf, or enjoying the grandchildren…

Less pain…

Success and healing are both so formulaic...

Literally, getting their freedom or their life back…

You have to sell the benefits of your treatment, not your expertise.  Always make sure that your top priority in marketing, initially, is answering the patients all important “What’s in it for me?”

Don’t Forget The Power Of Referrals

Referrals can be an invaluable resource for building your practice.

The art of getting referrals from other professionals takes time to develop but if you learn to foster and develop relationships between your practice and referring practices, you will reap the benefits for years to come.

If you get referrals from another practice or specialty, always make those patients a top priority.  See them when it’s convenient for them and do it as quickly as possible.  If you develop a reputation for giving top notch care to the referrals you receive, your fellow practitioners won’t hesitate to send you more patients.

And always, always thank the referring doctor for every patient they send you.  And don’t forget your referring doctors’ staff members.  They are often overlooked but many of the referrals you receive will really come from a referring practitioner’s front desk staff.  They’re the ones who hand out your card, give people your web address, or even call to setup appointments.

It has taken years for you to become a specialist.  And you expended the time and effort in your particular specialty because you knew there were people out there who needed your help.

They are your target market.

You have a priceless opportunity to help your prospective patients and grow your practice into a thriving concern all at the same time.

Go where your patients are, show up in their web space and social media, at your live events be sure to tell them what’s in it for them, build your enormous referral network and you’ll be well on your way to living and practicing by design.

And when you are ready to expand your horizons even further, go to http://perfectpracticeweb.com/home or call me 24/7 at 781-754-0599 John

If you specialize in treating patients with nerve damage, you’re probably used to seeing patients with

-          Diabetes

-          Lupus

-          Cancer

-          HIV/AIDS

Any of those illnesses can cause nerve damage and peripheral neuropathy.

But another less chronic patient population you can serve are the weekend warriors…

Those sports enthusiasts who live to play baseball, football, volleyball or even for kayaking.

This patient population is more prone to shoulder injury and shoulder pain caused by suprascapular neuropathy than the average person.

Patients with suprascapular neuropathy can be especially challenging because

-          They often wait until they have a serious problem to seek treatment; and

-          Part of their treatment will be rest and not participating in their favorite pastime.

Neither of these prospects is going to make them happy.

In order to give you a better chance for having a compliant patient, they need understand exactly what they’re dealing with.

They need to understand that they can’t just muscle through the pain and “work it out.”

What is Suprascapular Neuropathy[1]?

Suprascapular neuropathy is nerve damage to the suprascapular nerve – the nerve that runs from the brachial plexus (a group of nerves in the neck and shoulders) to nerves that help the body fully rotate the arms.  Suprascapular neuropathy causes shoulder pain and weakness and can lead to career ending nerve damage for professional athletes or stop weekend warriors from doing what they love.

Exactly What Causes Suprascapular Neuropathy?

As the suprascapular nerve passes over the shoulder blade, it can be compressed and stretched.  When that happens repeatedly over a period of time, the nerve can become damaged and neuropathy develops. The first symptoms are usually pain and weakness when they try to rotate the shoulder.

If your patient experiences any of these issues, they need to see you, their NeuropathyDR® clinician, immediately to determine if they have nerve damage.  They need to start treatment immediately in order to prevent permanent damage.

Devising a Treatment Plan

The treatment plan for suprascapular neuropathy depends on[2]

-          What caused the suprascapular neuropathy

-          How severe the patient’s symptoms are

-          How long the patient has had symptoms

-          The result the patient wants to achieve

Your first step will be to limit the patient’s activities.  Once they’ve rested the shoulder, you can start them on an exercise program designed to increase their ability to use their shoulder, regain some flexibility in the joint and strengthen the rotator cuff.  Once you’ve achieved a degree of relief for your patient, you can modify the exercise program to fit their sport of choice.

The ultimate goal should be to regain their range of motion in the shoulder and strengthen the muscles in order to prevent future nerve damage.

The end game in treating patients with suprascapular neuropathy caused by sports injury should be to repair the damage they’ve already done and prevent them from doing damage in the future.  That will require a little more in-depth involvement on your part.

You need to analyze your patient’s technique to see if they are using proper form and see if any changes need to be made to prevent recurrent injury.  It’s a little more involved but it gives you yet another valuable service to offer your patients.

The NeuropathyDR® protocol is ideally suited to treating patients with sports related suprascapular neuropathy.  Early intervention with a physician well versed in suprascapular neuropathy, like a NeuropathyDR® clinician, is their best course of action.

When you’re trained and ready to work with them, let them know you’re there.

For more tips on growing a successful chiropractic, physical therapy or pain management practice, log on to http://perfectpractice web.com to download a FREE E-Book Copy of my 5 star Amazon  “Living and Practicing by Design” at http://perfectpracticeweb.com.

As physicians, we’re accustomed to a certain amount of variety in treating different patients with the same illness.

After all, we’re treating individuals.

But when you take on lupus patients, you’re taking the concept of variety in symptoms and outcomes to a whole new level.

Granted, there are specific symptoms to the various types of lupus, but no two lupus patients are the same.

Lupus is an ever changing illness with periods of activity and rest that are as different as the patients they affect.

Those differences can make developing a treatment plan difficult to say the least.

And when you add peripheral neuropathy caused by lupus to the mix of symptoms[1], you have an even more complex set of issues to treat and, hopefully, stay ahead of.

If you have any hope of preventing serious neuropathy complications in your lupus patients, you have to be diligent in monitoring your patients’ symptoms and, even more importantly, your patients have to be very conscious of their symptoms and keep you advised of any changes as soon as they happen.

That means you need to educate your lupus patients on their illness and peripheral neuropathy.

Helping Patients Lupus and Peripheral Neuropathy

Because the peripheral nervous system can be affected by lupus, every system of the body that is regulated by the peripheral nervous system can be damaged[2].

That means the nerves that control involuntary body functions like heart rate, blood pressure, digestion and perspiration.  Your patients need to understand that their body many not be able to regulate their heart rate or blood pressure, they might not be able to properly digest food,  their  kidneys can be damaged and they could develop urinary problems.

And even worse, lupus can cause serious problems with inflammation.  That can lead to:

-          Inflammation of the sac around the heart

-          Diseases of the heart valves

-          Inflammation of the actual heart muscle

-          Inflammation of the tissue around the lungs or pleurisy

Now, imagine having any of these issues and having peripheral neuropathy, too…

The peripheral nervous system isn’t functioning properly and can’t send the proper signals to the brain to let them know they have a problem.

It’s easy to see why this could be serious.  By educating your patients on these possible problems and the symptoms they present early on, they can keep a watchful eye out for any symptoms and get in to you see you before they have a potentially deadly problem.

Treating Lupus Patients with Peripheral Neuropathy

Once you take a very thorough history and physical (preferably one following the NeuropathyDR® protocol for lupus patients), you’ll have a better handle on your patient’s condition.  Pay particular attention to their symptoms, when they began, the severity of the discomfort, and any and all medications they currently take (including over the counter medications, herbal supplements or vitamins).

Once you’ve complete the history and physical, the next step in the NeuropathyDR® protocol will be to order some tests. Depending upon your patient’s actual symptoms and which systems seem to be affected, these tests might include:

∙           Neurological exam

∙           Electromyography

∙           Nerve conduction velocity test

∙           Antinuclear antibody test

∙           Blood tests

∙           Urine test

∙           Skin biopsy

Once the tests are completed and you determine your patient has peripheral neuropathy associated with lupus, you can design a specific treatment program based on your patients’ specific symptoms and adjust it as they enter periods of remission or as their symptoms change.

Lupus is not curable and your patient should understand this from the outset.  Your NeuropathyDR® treatment protocol should focus on relieving pain by reducing inflammation, repairing any nerve damage with nerve stimulation, slowing joint and bone damage and improving your patients’ ability to function with their disease.

Focus on:

∙           Rest and stress management.

∙           Exercise programs designed specifically for your individual patient based on their physical limitations.

∙           Pain medication as needed.

∙           Drug therapy as needed.

∙           Safety precautions to deal with the possible loss of sensation, especially in the hands and feet, due to peripheral neuropathy.

The NeuropathyDR® protocol is ideally suited to treating lupus and the peripheral neuropathy it can cause.

Early intervention with a physician well versed in treating lupus and peripheral neuropathy, like a NeuropathyDR® clinician, is their best course of action.  While you can’t cure them, you can help them achieve a better quality of life and lessen the chance of severe and possibly fatal complications.

When you’re trained and ready to work with them, let them know you’re there.

For more tips on growing a successful chiropractic, physical therapy or pain management practice, log on to http://perfectpractice web.com to download a FREE E-Book Copy of my 5 star Amazon  “Living and Practicing by Design” at http://perfectpracticeweb.com.

As medical professionals, we live to heal our patients.

Unfortunately, in the fast paced, instant gratification society we live in today, true healing often takes a backseat to the patient’s desire to be “fixed” quickly.

All too often that leads us to prescribe medications and treatments to relieve symptoms and not look to the root causes to truly heal the patient.

This can be especially true in patients suffering from diabetic neuropathy.  They’re already dealing with a life altering disease…

Worrying about what they eat (hopefully)…

Monitoring their blood sugar…

Then they develop[1]

-          Diarrhea, nausea and vomiting

-          Difficulty swallowing

-          Deep pain in the legs and feet

-          Loss of sensation and ability to feel warmth or cold

-          Muscle cramps

-          Numbness, tingling or burning in the arms, hands, legs or feet

-          Weakness

-          Dizziness, especially when they try to stand up

-          Drooping facial muscles

-          Loss of bladder control

Who could blame them for wanting a quick “cure”? Any one of those symptoms is miserable on its own…just imagine having several of them at once.

When we first starting working with diabetic neuropathy patients, we saw this first hand.  And we also saw that just treating symptoms was not healing the patient.  With diabetic neuropathy, not getting to the root cause of the nerve damage just makes a bad situation worse.

Knowing that led us to develop the NeuropathyDR® treatment protocol.  We wanted to treat and heal the whole patient and prevent or repair nerve damage.  Just medicating symptoms doesn’t do that – you have to start at the cause, address those issues and then work to repair the damage nerves.

Step 1 – Diet Planning and Nutrition Counseling

The first goal for treatment in diabetic neuropathy is to get the patient’s diabetes under control and keep it under control to slow the progression of any nerve damage.[2] That means ensuring that they properly take any prescribed medications (like insulin) and that they’re eating a diet specific to diabetes control.

A diet specific to diabetes control includes:

-          Fresh vegetables

-          Fresh fruit

-          Lean meats

-          High fiber

-          Whole grains

-          No sweets

Our NeuropathyDR® specialists utilize an exclusive treatment protocol with proven results for diabetic neuropathy patients.  An integral part of that treatment protocol is nutrition counseling and diet planning.  An integral part of the NeuropathyDR® protocol is sitting down with the patient and planning their meals to include the proper portions of each of these categories on a daily basis to make sure that their blood sugar remains as constant as possible.

Step 2 – Pain Reduction and Nerve Repair

Once the blood sugar is under control, the next part of the treatment protocol for your diabetic neuropathy patient is taking steps to reduce symptoms and help the nerves repair themselves.  This can be done through a combination of topical pain medications, manual manipulation of the bones and joints to properly align the nervous system and nerve stimulation.

Diet, proper alignment of the bones and muscles and nerve stimulation are all important aspects of successful treatment of diabetic neuropathy.

Step 3 – Awareness and Ongoing Monitoring

Once you’ve managed their diet and starting nerve stimulation and manual manipulation to repair nerves and help the body function properly, that’s not the end of the road.  A lifetime of bad habits can’t be undone overnight.  You’ll want to provide an ongoing treatment and monitoring program with your diabetic neuropathy patients.

Once they see how much better they feel after the NeuropathyDR® treatment protocol, it’s incredibly easy for them to slip right back into their old habits.  Then the psychology of denial or pride or shame, whatever you want to call it, kicks in and they don’t come back to your office until it’s too late and they’ve undone everything you’ve worked with them to achieve.  And, even worse, they could be facing even more severe nerve damage than they had before.

Offer your diabetic neuropathy patients an ongoing monitoring and follow up program.  Keep in touch and watch for blisters, sores, torn skin, or inflammation as a sign of new nerve damage. Make sure they’re doing a visual inspection and not just relying on soreness or pain.  Diabetic neuropathy impairs the ability to feel pain in the extremities and they may not notice the problem until it’s too late for successful treatment.  It never hurts to have a fresh pair of eyes (yours) keeping watch over them.

As a NeuropathyDR® specialist, you have a chance to make a lasting difference in the lives of patients suffering from diabetic neuropathy.

When you’re trained and ready to treat them, let us help you reach them.

For more tips on growing a successful chiropractic, physical therapy or pain management practice, log on to http://perfectpractice web.com to download a FREE E-Book Copy of my 5 star Amazon  “Living and Practicing by Design” at http://perfectpracticeweb.com.

Are you treating patients suffering from carpal tunnel syndrome?

Repetitive motion disorder?

Nerve compression syndrome?

Aside from the physical pain your entrapment neuropathy patients are suffering from, their condition can be extremely frustrating.  And the nerve damage can be permanent if they don’t receive the proper treatment early on.  The exclusive treatment protocol available to you as a NeuropathyDR® clinician is perfectly suited for treating the patient with entrapment neuropathy.

Getting To The Root Cause of Entrapment Neuropathy

Entrapment neuropathy occurs when some kind of external pressure disrupts the flow of blood through vessels that supply specific nerves.[1] This oxygen starvation can sometimes occur because of internal problems as well such as lesions, cysts or tumors or even substantial weight gain. When this happens over and over again, the nerve is starved of its oxygen supply and becomes damaged and eventually scarred.  Once this happens, the nerve no longer functions properly.

If your patient has a chronic condition like diabetes[2] that already compromises their blood flow, their body is more susceptible to developing entrapment neuropathy.  Based upon a thorough history and physical, nerve conduction testing and an MRI series to rule out any internal issues like tumors or cysts, you will probably be able to diagnose based upon symptoms.

The specialized training and treatment protocol provided to NeuropathyDR® clinicians gives you as a health care provider the clinical skills and experience to recognize your entrapment neuropathy patient’s symptoms for what they are and distinguish them from other diseases.  Entrapment neuropathies can mimic other conditions and vice versa. The longer it takes to get the appropriate diagnosis and treatment, like the treatment protocol used exclusively by NeuropathyDR® clinicians, the more likely they are to have permanent nerve damage.

Treating Entrapment Neuropathy

If you determined that an underlying medical issue is causing your entrapment neuropathy patient’s problems, such as a tumor, cyst, inflammation or even weight gain, take steps immediately to first treat that condition.

If a tumor or cyst is the underlying problem, you may need to order surgery to remove the growth.  However, in spite of the growing number of surgeries being ordered for carpal tunnel syndrome, the NeuroapthyDR® treatment protocol has had great success in treating these patients without immediately putting them under the knife.  Surgery doesn’t have to be the first option

If your entrapment neuropathy patient has issues with inflammation or weight gain, design a weight loss program and nutrition plan for them, like the NeuropathyDR® treatment protocol, to resolve either of these issues.

Work with your entrapment neuropathy patient to start an overall lifestyle modification plan that will help them control their weight and increase their physical activity, within their abilities, to reduce the likelihood of their entrapment neuropathy causing permanent nerve damage or recurring once their immediate problem is taken care of.

As a NeuropathyDR® clinician you can also prescribe manual manipulation to readjust their skeletal structure and nerve pathways and nerve stimulation therapy to assist their damaged nerve in healing and open up the flow of blood to help the nerves repair themselves.

All of these steps are integral parts of the exclusive NeuropathyDR® designed specifically for the treatment of peripheral neuropathies, including entrapment neuropathies in all its forms.

When you’re trained and ready, reach out to this patient population and let them know you’re there for them.

For more tips on growing a successful chiropractic, physical therapy or pain management practice, log on to http://perfectpractice web.com to download a FREE E-Book Copy of my 5 star Amazon  “Living and Practicing by Design” at http://perfectpracticeweb.com.

What do you do when a patient comes to you complaining of

∙           Dizziness and fainting when standing up

∙           Difficulty digesting food and feeling really full when they’ve barely eaten anything

∙           Abnormal perspiration – either sweating excessively or barely at all

∙           Intolerance for exercise because their heart rate doesn’t adjust as it should

∙           Slow pupil reaction so that their eyes don’t adjust quickly to changes in light

∙           Urinary problems like difficulty starting or inability to completely empty their bladder

If they have diabetes or an immune system compromised by chemotherapy, HIV/AIDS, Parkinson’s disease, lupus, Guillian-Barre or any other chronic medical condition, the chances are good that the symptoms they’re complaining of could be caused by autonomic neuropathy.

If they’ve only started experiencing these new symptoms recently, congratulate them on getting in to see you quickly.  In order to lessen the chance of serious nerve damage and any number of other serious complications caused by autonomic neuropathy, they need a physician well versed in diagnosing and treating nerve disease and damage, like you as their local NeuropathyDR® clinician.

Helping Patients Understand Autonomic Neuropathy

Because they can’t see physical evidence of autonomic neuropathy (like a rash or swelling or skin discoloration), your patient is probable really concerned about these new symptoms.  They probably think they’ve developed yet another new disease.

It’s important that they understand that autonomic neuropathy in itself is not a disease[1].  Explain to them that it’s a type of peripheral neuropathy that affects the nerves that control involuntary body functions like heart rate, blood pressure, digestion and perspiration.  The nerves are damaged and don’t function properly leading to a break down of the signals between the brain and the parts of the body affected by the autonomic nervous system like the heart, blood vessels, digestive system and sweat glands.

In many cases, autonomic neuropathy is caused by other diseases or chronic medical conditions such as

∙           Diabetes

∙           Alcoholism

∙           Cancer

∙           Systemic lupus

∙           Parkinson’s disease

∙           HIV/AIDS

If your patient suffers from any of the above conditions or any number of other chronic illnesses, their chances of developing autonomic neuropathy are dramatically increased.[2] If they’re coming to you with any of the symptoms we discussed above, they may have developed autonomic neuropathy as a result of their underlying illness.

Diagnosing and Treating Autonomic Neuropathy

If your patient has diabetes, cancer, HIV/AIDs or any of the other diseases or chronic conditions that can cause autonomic neuropathy, determining whether or not they have autonomic neuropathy will be much easier.  After all, as a specialist (especially if you’re a NeuropathyDR® clinician) you’re very familiar with those symptoms and your treatment protocol offers an excellent course of treatment.

If your patient has symptoms of autonomic neuropathy and but doesn’t have any of the underlying conditions, the diagnosis will be a little tougher. Tougher but not impossible.

Either way, once you take a very thorough history and physical (preferably one following the NeuropathyDR® protocol for peripheral neuropathy patients), you’ll have a better handle on your patient’s condition.  Pay particular attention to their symptoms, when they began, the severity of the discomfort, and any and all medications they currently take (including over the counter medications, herbal supplements or vitamins).

Watch for signs that they are not being completely up front about their diet, alcohol intake, frequency of exercise, history of drug use and smoking.  If they don’t tell the truth, you don’t have a clear picture of your physical condition.

Once you’ve complete the history and physical, the next step in the NeuropathyDR® protocol will be to order some tests. Depending upon your patient’s actual symptoms and which systems seem to be affected, these tests might include:

∙           Ultrasound

∙           Urinalysis and bladder function tests

∙           Thermoregulatory and/or QSART sweat tests

∙           Gastrointestinal tests

∙           Breathing tests

∙           Tilt-table tests (to test your heart rate and blood pressure regulation)

Once the tests are completed and you determine that your patient has autonomic neuropathy, it’s time to treat it.

Treatment and Prognosis

If you use the NeuropathyDR® protocol, you will find the treatment regimen ideally suited to treating all types of peripheral neuropathy, including autonomic neuropathy.  In fact, the NeuropathyDR® treatment protocol was developed specifically for patients suffering from peripheral neuropathy.

Autonomic neuropathy is a chronic condition but it can be treated and your patient can do things to help relieve their symptoms.

Work with the patient and any other physicians they’re seeing to treat the autonomic neuropathy and manage their underlying condition.  Explain to your patient that your treatment protocol was designed to treat the whole patient and not just their symptoms.  You can do this by offering:

∙           Diet Planning and Nutritional Support

The body needs the proper the nutrition to heal.

If they have gastrointestinal issues caused by autonomic neuropathy, they need to make sure they’re getting enough fiber and fluids to help the body function properly.  Provide them with a diet plan that ensures they get enough fiber, whole grains and drink enough water.

If they have diabetes, work with them on a diet to control their blood sugar.

If their autonomic neuropathy affects their urinary system, they need to retrain their  bladder.  Devise a schedule for them of when to drink and when to empty their bladder to slowly increase the bladder’s capacity.

∙          Individually Designed Exercise Programs

If your patient experiences exercise intolerance or blood pressure problems resulting  from autonomic neuropathy, develop an exercise regimen for them that will allow them to take things slowly but still work some physical activity into their daily routine.   Treating neuropathy patients requires specialized training in the design and monitoring of       exercise programs.  The NeuropathyDR® clinicians are specially trained in designing  exercise programs to meet the needs of the neuropathy patient.

∙           Lifestyle Modifications

If your patient’s autonomic neuropathy causes dizziness when they stand up, advise them  to stand slowly and in stages.  Show them how to flex their feet or grip their hands  several times before attempting to stand to increase the flow of blood to their hands and feet.  Advise them to try just sitting on the side of your bed in the morning for a few         minutes before you try to stand.

Devise a meal schedule as part of their dietary planning to change the amount and frequency of meals if they have digestive problems.

Counsel your autonomic neuropathy patient on taking it slowly. Decide what really needs to be done each day and do what they can.  Autonomic neuropathy is a chronic disorder and living with any chronic condition requires adaptations.  Learning to adapt will lessen their stress and help them manage their autonomic neuropathy and their life.

Early intervention with a physician well versed in treating neuropathy, like a NeuropathyDR® clinician, is still the best course of action for an autonomic neuropathy patient.  While you can’t reverse your patient’s condition if they have already developed neuropathy, you can help them achieve a better quality of life and lessen the chance of severe and possibly fatal complications.

When you’re trained and ready to work with them, let them know you’re there.

For more tips on growing a successful chiropractic, physical therapy or pain management practice, log on to http://perfectpractice web.com to download a FREE E-Book Copy of my 5 star Amazon  “Living and Practicing by Design” at http://perfectpracticeweb.com.

While it may really tempting to toss that file folder into the trash, take a minute to look through it.  It will give you keen insight into the patient you’re about to treat.

The first thing you’ll need to do is separate fact from fiction.

The minute you enter the examination room for the initial consult, you know this patient is going to be a challenge.

Before you can say “Good morning”, she thrusts a folder full of paper into your hand saying, “I know what I have.  I’ve done all my own research online. I just know I’m dying.  You have to save me.”

First, Don’t Overreact

If your patient does fall into the “I know I’m dying” category, they’ve probably been doctor shopping.  Going from specialist to specialist looking for someone to confirm the worst.  A really thorough history and physical is vitally important at this stage to confirm their real symptoms and divide them from what they’ve imagined.

Once you’ve managed to pinpoint their actual symptoms, thorough diagnostic testing will tell you what’s really wrong.  Then you can provide them with a customized treatment plan.   And you’ll be able to tell them they’re definitely not dying.

As a NeuropathyDR® clinician, you have an excellent treatment protocol at your disposal to diagnose, treat and possibly even reverse potential nerve damage caused by late treatment of peripheral neuropathy.  The NeuropathyDR® protocol treats the whole patient by addressing nutrition and stress management and utilizing hands on adjustments to not only relieve symptoms but get to the root cause of your patient’s illness.

The Procrastinator

The other end of the spectrum is the patient who does their own research, opts for the condition easily treatable with over the counter meds, and puts off seeing a doctor until their symptoms and potential nerve damage are much worse[1].

You’ll be playing catch up with this patient.  If they had only seen you at the beginning, they would be well and you would have a much easier job.  By the time they break down and see their local NeuropathyDR® clinician, they have a very serious condition.  Failing to treat the underlying cause quickly can lead to potentially fatal problems.  Your NeuropathyDR® protocol can be the best choice for the Procrastinator because you treat the underlying cause from the beginning, not just alleviating symptoms.

Something as simple as seeing a specialist well versed in conditions affecting the bones, muscles and bones, like you as their local NeuropathyDR® clinician, can make the difference between life in a wheelchair and getting back to normal quickly.

Battling Cyberchondria

An informed and educated patient is a gift for any physician.  Informed patients are much more likely to participate in their own care and keep their physician apprised of any changes in their condition.  That’s a win for both sides.

Instead of using the internet as a tool to diagnose (or, in many cases, misdiagnose) their own conditions, encourage your peripheral neuropathy patients to use it as a means of educating themselves enough to provide you as their NeuropathyDR® clinician with all the information you need to accurately and quickly diagnose their illness.[2]

You’ll be making your life, and that of your patient’s, much easier.

For more tips on growing a successful chiropractic, physical therapy or pain management practice, log on to http://perfectpractice web.com to download a FREE E-Book Copy of my 5 star Amazon  “Living and Practicing by Design” at http://perfectpracticeweb.com.

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Educating The Self-Treating Patient

How many times have you had patients come to your office and tell you:

-           They know exactly what’s wrong with them

-           They’ve been treating the condition on their own

-           They don’t understand why their condition either hasn’t improved or, even more  often, has worsened

-           They need you to cure them now

More and more patients are looking to websites for medical information.  They come to their physician armed with what they think is a clear cut diagnosis.  All they want you to do is write them a prescription or do exactly what the website said you should do to “fix” them.

Having an informed patient population is a great thing.  But the internet[1] does not take the place of real diagnostic testing, the expertise to understand exactly what those test results mean and the experience to apply those results to a successful treatment plan.

And that’s why your patients need you and that’s what you need to explain to them from day one.

A Real Education

One of the best things we can do as health care professionals is to really educate our patients about the harm they can do by either ignoring their medical conditions or taking what they learn online and trying to treat themselves.

They need to understand that they could be doing irreparable harm by not consulting a specialist, like you as a NeuropathyDR® clinician, for proper diagnosis and treatment. By researching and treating on their own, they’re wasting valuable time.  Peripheral neuropathy is a condition that is very unforgiving of wasted time.

When you’re educating your potential patients[2] remind them of the dangers of self-diagnosis and treatment:

-           They could be wrong about the diagnosis and taking medications they don’t need.   That not only means that they’re not “curing” themselves, they could be making matters  worse.

-          They could be right about the diagnosis but taking the wrong medications.

-          They could be right about the diagnosis but need prescription medication in the appropriate strength to address their symptoms.

-          They could be putting themselves at risk for serious drug interactions with other medicines they’re taking (especially over the counter medicines without medical supervision).

-          They could be fixing one problem with over the counter medications but making another problem worse or even creating a new problem.

-          They could be missing the root cause of the problem – particularly in cases of neuropathy when they don’t have access to x-rays to determine if subluxation or joint misalignments are causing or contributing to their problem.

-          They could be putting themselves at risk for serious nerve damage.  There is no way they can determine if nerves have been compromised without proper diagnostic testing.

You can perform the tests they need to determine what’s really wrong with them.   Once you know exactly what their problem is and the extent of the nerve damage, if any, you can begin an effective course of treatment.  The sooner the better to lessen the chance of permanent nerve damage.

A Treatment Designed For Them

Remind your patients that as a NeuropathyDR® clinician, you’ve been trained in a very specific treatment protocol designed to treat patients with peripheral neuropathy and the many conditions that cause it.

By choosing to treat with you, they will receive a full evaluation of their  spine and the skeletal system paying particular attention to the area where they’re experiencing pain.  They absolutely cannot do that type of evaluation on their own.

The benefit of treating with a NeuropathyDR® clinician is receiving an adjustment to realign the skeletal system so that your nerves are not being adversely affected.  That will not only help alleviate their pain and other neuropathy symptoms, it will decrease the chance of long term nerve damage leading to peripheral neuropathy.

In addition to a chiropractic and/or physical therapy to realign the spine and support proper functioning of the nervous system, you can advise them on proper nutrition and a diet plan to give their body what it needs to heal.

Early treatment provided by a specialist familiar with peripheral neuropathy will make it much easier for their body to repair itself and lessen the chance of developing permanent nerve damage as a result of peripheral neuropathy.

Encourage your patients to make the right choice – seek professional diagnosis and treatment.  Time is of the essence in repairing and protection their nerves.

For more tips on growing a successful chiropractic, physical therapy or pain management practice, log on to http://perfectpractice web.com to download a FREE E-Book Copy of my 5 star Amazon  “Living and Practicing by Design” at http://perfectpracticeweb.com.

You have a new patient…

They don’t have the shingles rash…at least not yet…

But they do have:

-           Nerve pain of unknown origin

-           Highly sensitive, tingling or burning skin

-           Pain in the left side of the chest and heart attack has been ruled out

-           Pain in the neck or back that begins to radiate down one limb or around the chest

-           Body aches, fever and chills and flu and meningitis have been eliminated as a diagnosis

They could very well be in the early stages of shingles.  Before that nasty shingles rash appears.  Once you do a thorough examination and determine exactly where their nerve pain originates, congratulate them for being so proactive and getting a head start on treatment.

Shingles is not life threatening but it is extremely painful.  And, without proper treatment early on, your shingles patient could develop postherpetic neuropathy caused by damage to the nerves in the area affected by shingles.  By getting to you early, they’ve significantly lessened their chances of developing postherpetic neuropathy.

To lessen the possibility of postherpetic neuropathy, early treatment is a must.

Treatment Regimen

If you actually manage to start treatment for the shingles patient before the shingles rash appears, the first step should be to alleviate their pain as much as possible.  Then evaluate their spine and the skeletal system paying particular attention to the area where they’re experiencing pain.

Chances are, the patient’s nerves are being affected by joint dysfunction or subluxation[1].  Once you care for their spine and take some of the pressure off the affected nerves, you can begin to realign the skeletal system so that the nerves are not being adversely affected.  That will not only help with their immediate pain, it will decrease the chance of long term nerve damage leading to postherpetic neuralgia.

In addition to a chiropractic adjustment and/or physical therapy to realign the spine and support proper functioning of the nervous system, provide a nutrition plan to give your patient’s body what it needs to heal.

Stress Management is Vital[2]

Just as your shingles patients need the right diet in order to heal, they need to get plenty of rest and avoid stress as much as possible.

Provide them with counseling and educational materials to help them learn to utilize stress management tools to help avoid or limit stress.  The effects of stress can make a bad medical situation even worse.  Some suggested techniques are:

-           Exercising regularly.

-           Relaxation techniques such as deep breathing, tai chi, yoga or meditation.  Any of             these will calm the mind and, in turn, calm the body and nerves.

-          Finding a hobby that will take the mind off postherpetic neuropathy pain.

The Final Step in Nerve Protection/Repair

Once you’ve begun the adjustment process for your shingles patient, they’re eating the proper diet to support their body and their stress is under control, the final step is repair of any nerve damage.  This is where the NeuropathyDR® treatment protocol we have developed can move the healing process along quickly.

This allows the nerves to communicate again and that, in itself, starts the process of reversing the damage of peripheral neuropathy.

As an added bonus, the NeuropathyDR® System can be used in the patient’s own home, on their own, once you’ve started the treatment and established a base line for them to build on.  This will be particularly helpful if the patient actually develops postherpetic neuropathy and prolonged treatment is needed.

The combination of manual therapy, nutrition, stress management and nerve stimulation is showing great promise in helping shingles patients and those unfortunate enough to develop postherpetic neuropathy return to a pain free life, without the long term debilitating effects of postherpetic neuropathy.

We hope this information helps you implement a strong protocol for treating the postherpetic neuropathy patient.

When you are ready to provide these services, let them know you’re there to help them.

For more tips on growing a successful chiropractic, physical therapy or pain management practice, log on to http://perfectpractice web.com to download a FREE E-Book Copy of my 5 star Amazon  “Living and Practicing by Design” at http://perfectpracticeweb.com.