Trends in Today’s Chiropractic Treatment
There’s the saying, “nothing ever stays the same.” This includes the way today’s San Francisco chiropractor looks at the future and how the face of chiropractic care continues to evolve. For decades, students followed one set of directions for becoming chiropractors. They basically all followed the path from undergraduate school majoring in pre-med, then years at an accredited school before setting up practice and treating all comers.
More recently, however, there has been a noticeable trend toward specialization, just as in the world of allopathic medicine where you have everything from allergists to vascular surgeons. More and more frequently you hear of a San Francisco chiropractor who specializes in some distinct field of chiropractic.
Ten Areas of Concentration
The American Chiropractic Association recognizes ten distinct diplomate programs for doctors who wish to specialize. They are…
- Chiropractic Pediatrics
- Chiropractic Physiological Therapeutics and Rehabilitation
- Chiropractic Acupuncture
- Diagnosis and Internal Disorders
- Diagnostic Imaging (Radiology)
- Neurology
- Nutrition
- Occupational Health
- Sports Physician
- Orthopedics
While each of the ten disciplines tends to focus on certain types of patients, most do cross over patient lines as needed. For instance, a San Francisco chiropractor who decides to become a sports physician might primarily treat young adults who are involved in college sports. However, with so many sports programs for younger people, he might also treat a middle school student on the baseball team. Or even a Mom who has been practicing skateboarding with her son.
Who Specialists Treat, and How
Chiropractic medicine is considered a CAM. This acronym stands for Companion and Alternative Medicine. In fact, chiropractic is the number one CAM used in the United States. But there are other forms of treatment that are CAM’s, as well. Interestingly enough, you may well find a San Francisco chiropractor incorporating some of them into her practice.
- Acupuncture is a CAM, in and of itself. However, there is a chiropractic specialty known as chiropractic acupuncture. This is a good example of how modern doctors are combining disciplines to create new specialties.
- At the other end of the spectrum, some states now allow chiropractors to prescribe drugs. Traditionalists do not embrace pharmaceutical treatment but more contemporary doctors see it as a necessary adjunct to their chiropractic treatment.
- Massage therapy is quite common in the offices of chiropractors these days. Many a San Francisco chiropractor finds that massage is not only a nice companion to alignment and manipulation but is also a stress reducer for many patients.
- A chiropractor who specializes in diagnosis and internal disorders is pretty much on the same wavelength as a primary care physician. A good definition comes from the ACA: “A lot of people look at it in terms of being the first doctor someone comes to. We look at it from the perspective that we want to handle everything: work up the problem, diagnose you, and treat you. Instead of referring you to the ‘proper person,’ we want to be that person.”
- To some people, chiropractic is orthopedics. However, you can find a San Francisco chiropractor who has chosen to pursue a graduate level designation in orthopedics. Just a few years ago, such a designation didn’t even exist.
Trends Driven by Outside Changes
As you might expect, chiropractors who chose to specialize in one area of treatment are often driven by their innate desire to know more and do more within their chosen specialty. Others, however, are influenced by changes in the general population and in the patients who come to them.
The aging population is one influence we simply cannot change. A San Francisco chiropractor today is far more likely to treat a patient over the age of 70 than just a few years ago. Understanding the aging process, working well with the elderly, and having the desire to serve a rapidly growing population all contribute to a chiropractor’s success with older patients. Certainly, in some areas of the country, focusing on retirees is almost a necessity due to the large populations of older folks.
- Another motivator to specialize is the pandemic of obesity. As we continue to spend more and more time sitting in a desk chair, on a couch, or in front of the television, chiropractors see more and more of us whose spines just can’t take any more. A chiropractor who sees a lot of obese patients may also incorporate nutrition counseling into her practice.
- While there is not a ground swell of parents taking their children to chiropractors, the area of chiropractic pediatrics is growing. A San Francisco chiropractor who wants to expand his practice to include children is probably looking at two benefits. On one hand, the entire family may become his patients. On the other, a child who grows up understanding and appreciating chiropractic is likely to remain a patient long into adulthood and potentially become an excellent source of referrals.
Chiropractors today come in all shapes and sizes. What they all have in common is the desire to apply their skills to making patients healthy, happy, and pain free. What they sometimes don’t have in common is where they focus their attention, but we must remember this can be a positive when it comes to having the specialized knowledge necessary to treat your particular problem.