Narrative
description of clinical practice and special interests:
I am grateful for a health care
practice in which engaged and informed patients form healing partnerships with
respectful and collaborative practitioners who are offering a wide range of
safe and effective approaches, a health care practice in which all of us learn
to take better care of ourselves and one another.
I
believe that Doctors of Chiropractic must be holistic doctors who emphasize the
patient as the center of all they do, recognizing the inherent self-regulating
and self-healing qualities of the human organism.
It
is the goal of this Doctor of Chiropractic to optimize human health by
encouraging internal harmony within the human being, and by teaching the
patient the value of disease prevention and the development of healthy habits.
While spinal manipulation is the centerpiece of Chiropractic
therapeutic benefit, it is just that, and it is supported and under-girded by
many other "natural" therapies such as the application of nutrition,
diet, supplementation, botanical remedies, manual muscle balancing techniques,
cranial respiratory fault correction, therapeutic exercise, acupuncture, and
others.
I
believe that a wide diversity of factors impact the body such as biomechanical
dysfunction, altered energy patterns, genetics, trauma, hygiene,
microorganisms, nutritional status, exercise, motion, posture, environment,
stress, emotion, and human relationships. The practice of the alternative and
complementary healing arts must embrace the whole person. Some (I believe more fortunate) Doctors of
Chiropractic are taught in Chiropractic Colleges to be more than just “back
doctors.” In addition to our training
as musculoskeletal specialists, we have also been given a broad science-based
education so that we are able to diagnose human ailments at a level that
qualifies us to function as primary care providers in managed care settings.
When
providing health care in this manner, we can enhance the body’s ability to
self-regulate and self-heal without the use of drugs or surgery. This Doctor of
Chiropractic receives patients with a wide range of conditions and cares for
them using a variety of treatment measures with spinal manipulation as the
keystone.
When
a patient’s condition arises that is beyond the scope of my abilities, this
doctor refers patients to the appropriate health care professional. Not all members of the chiropractic
profession adhere to this philosophy. Some believe in “straight chiropractic”,
that all ailments stem from a lack of normal nerve function caused by spinal
subluxations (misalignments) and that spinal manipulation alone will restore
the body to health. While it has been
widely accepted by most in the profession of Chiropractic since it’s inception over
100 years ago that the spine primarily affects the internal organs of the body,
I believe that the opposite is more commonly true. Many times we must go back
to what the Chinese have known for over 2500 years and “get people healthy from
the inside-out.”
Many people have chronic and
reoccurring neck, back and other joint problems that do respond well to care,
but continue to return often for a lifetime of chronic disability and
pain. Muscle weakness and imbalance is
one of the missing links to spinal instability. I believe that chronic and reoccurring structural joint problems
are the result of muscle weakness and imbalance from muscle injuries that have
never properly healed, and also from internal organ dysfunction that causes
muscle weakness and imbalance.
Muscles
move bones, and muscles are the primary stabilizers of the joints. When muscles do not properly support the
joint, that joint is unstable, and will not function properly, and will be more
predisposed to additional joint injury.
I am using very specific and
specialized deep tissue techniques to very quickly, effectively and efficiently
reset muscle strength. This allows me
to stabilize many joint conditions quickly and long term. This type of treatment is typical for every
joint in the body.
In recent years, the trend in health care has been to look
beyond (before) just the treatment of illness to focus on preventive measures
that maintain wellness. Consequently, some managed care insurers, such as
Since the inception of its relationship with HMO Illinois, a
Blue Cross HMO, AMI has tracked more than 7,500 member months of outcome data
(12/01). When compared to outcomes of conventional Western medicine, AMI
member’s hospital admissions have decreased by 65 percent, hospital stays have
decreased by 69 percent, outpatient surgery and procedures have decreased by 85
percent and pharmaceutical use is down more than 56 percent.
I
am practicing in a philosophy termed Functional Medicine. This is a relatively
new field of health care that employs laboratory assessment and early
intervention to improve physiological, emotional/cognitive, and physical
function. This health care approach focuses attention on biochemical
individuality (genetics), metabolic balance, ecological context and unique
personal experience in the dynamics of health.
The
following are some basic tenets of Functional Medicine:
Unlike
conventional medicine, functional medicine emphasizes the physiological
uniqueness of each patient. To paraphrase a famous literary quote, proponents
of functional medicine believe that each patient’s physiological system marches
to the beat of a different drummer. Thus, effective treatment should be
custom-tailored specifically to meet each patient’s unique needs. Newly
developed lab tests support this fundamental principle by analyzing subtle
differences in an individual’s molecular biochemistry, hormonal secretion
patterns, cellular environment, immune responses, etc, allowing for focused,
precise, and individualized therapy.
Even
slight imbalances in the body can set the stage for more serious diseases down
the road. This often happens by virtue of a “ripple effect,” whereby a “minor”
imbalance sets into motion a cascade of biological triggers that eventually
leads to sub-optimal health, chronic illness, and degenerative disease. For
this reason, a “let’s-wait-and-see-if-this-develops-into anything-serious”
attitude is not an acceptable approach in functional medicine. By implementing
the most advanced and sensitive technology available, these lab tests can
reveal the subtlest imbalances within the body, allowing for timely
intervention to prevent more profound health problems in the future.
The
body is best examined and treated as an integrated whole, not simply an isolated
set of parts. For accurate diagnosis and effective treatment, a clinician must
consider ALL the possible long-reaching effects of various therapies/treatments
on the entire body. Moreover, by assisting and augmenting the body’s natural
mechanisms of healing, the physician works with the dynamic process of
homeostasis, rather than against it.
Newly
developed functional lab tests support this principle by offering a broad range
of functional assessments covering every major system in the body. By promoting
the maximum functioning of all of the body’s most important functional
parameters, functional laboratory assessments allow the practitioner to
effectively guide the patient toward restoring inner balance and establishing
optimal health. This powerful strategy offers a much more effective way of
achieving long-range results than that afforded by temporary damage
control.
Evaluating
organ “function” versus organ “pathology” is one of the principles of
functional medicine, and functional lab tests have developed a number of
laboratory assessment tools that allow practitioners to understand a patient’s
functional status. Our tests are non-
or minimally invasive, using samples of stool, urine, saliva, blood, and hair.
Our results focus on how well the body is doing its job in six important areas:
digestion (gastrointestinal), nutrition, detoxification/oxidative stress,
immunology/allergy, production and regulation of hormones (endocrinology), and
heart and blood vessels (cardiovascular).
Functional
laboratory profiles are designed to uncover the root causes of symptoms,
allowing the physician to recommend intervention strategies that will solve the
chronic problem. Many of our tests use special substances and protocols to
“challenge” organs, giving the physician an opportunity to evaluate the
function of an organ system while it is stressed, thereby providing information
that often is missed using conventional laboratory testing. The unique
combination of the individual results provides an integrated analysis that
promotes a deeper, more fundamental understanding of many health
conditions.
In
the not too distant future, we may look back on conventional primary care
medicine as at best a “chances are” way of helping patients avoid the serious
chronic diseases encountered by healthcare practitioners on a regular, even
daily basis. That’s because breakthroughs in genetic research and genomic
testing now make it possible to determine genetic predisposition for developing
disease before it manifests - and to do something effective to modify its
expression.
We
now even have an entirely new model of personalized, predictive medicine that
allows the diseases encoded on the genes to be “seen” early in life. This allows us another method to intercept organ
dysfunction decades before disease occurs.
That’s what is so exciting about the new line of GENOVATIONS™ genomics
profiles. After thoroughly investigating the growing number of genetic
variations associated with common health conditions, over thirty single
nucleotide polymorphisms have been selected that can help practitioners
individualize preventive treatments.
These
markers meet important criteria:
v RELEVANT: Each
polymorphism is backed by evidence linking it to serious, chronic diseases that
are commonly encountered in primary care medicine - such as cardiovascular
disease, osteoporosis and altered bone metabolism, and defects in immune
regulation and defense.
v PREVALENT: Each
polymorphism is relatively common among the general population.
v MODIFIABLE: The
expression of each polymorphism can be modified through changes in the
patient’s’ environment - by altering lifestyle, improving nutrition, avoiding
environmental toxins, and using targeted pharmaceuticals.
v MEASURABLE: The
polymorphisms can be precisely measured with greater than 99.7% accuracy, using
state-of-the art signal amplification technology. Furthermore, the beneficial
effects of targeted therapeutics can be monitored with follow-up laboratory
testing.
Three new profiles are currently being utilized: Cardio Genomic
Profile, Osteo Genomic Profile, and Immuno Genomic Profile. There is a special
web site (www.genovations.com)
on the new genomic profiles where kits may also be ordered. Requests for more
information can also be directed to Clinical Support Representatives at
800-522-4762.
I use a tool that has shown to bring together all the forms of
human examination that have been discussed here that is called Applied
Kinesiology. Applied Kinesiology (AK)
is a system of analysis, which aids in the diagnostic process. AK provides a means for the physician to
dialogue with the human body and its nervous system via muscle testing
indicators. In most cases, the
patient’s symptom and the cause of those symptoms are quite different - one
from another.
AK
is especially helpful in difficult cases.
It gives the doctor an important additional avenue down which to seek
meaningful information about the patient’s physiology and its functional
status. Now, doctors can quickly access
all areas of the patient’s reality: Chemical, Structural, and Energetic via the
body’s muscle system.
AK has become a very important common denominator in
“alternative” health care. Doctors of
Chiropractic with a holistic and eclectic frame of mind have discovered that,
as a technique, it allows for the easy integration of all other
techniques. In AK, it is not uncommon
to find a chiropractic physician utilizing vitamins, herbs, acupuncture
(meridian therapy), minerals, flower remedies, color, microcurrent stimulation,
aromatherapy, homeopathy, exercise, colonic therapy, mental exercises, diet and
lifestyle modification, muscle reeducation, and more.
The
word has spread on AK so that these chiropractors were joined by dentists,
osteopaths, medical doctors, optometrists, psychologists, and others. Today, AK is practiced all around the world
by individuals in just about every possible profession.
We
are currently experiencing a time of conflicting trends. On the one hand today, a great number of
Americans are now selecting “alternative” health care as their provider
mechanism of choice. While on the other
hand, employers are climbing on the Managed Care bus almost a quickly as they
can make the arrangements to do so. And,
few in Managed Care include anything more than vague lip service regarding
“alternative” approaches to patient care.
In today’s health care world, there are two parallel
realities. One is the insurance company
arena of the HMOs and PPOs, with non-physician types determining how much may
be spent and what a doctor may or may not do for the patient in need. The other arena is peopled by those of us
who choose to put the patient’s needs first.
AK is a healthy alternative and a boon for the patient.
My desire
would be to be fully involved in my patients’ health care literally from womb
to tomb. We have seen a paradigm shift
in how best to deliver health care. We
are now in a position to make the most difference in our patient’s health that
has previously seemed unimaginable.
Leaders in
We
could never need this model of health care more than we now do with our
unhealthy choices of lifestyle, eating habits and the horrific amount of toxins
in our environment acting on already generations of weakened human genetics.