Keeping Score Keeps Prevention in the Forefront

Chiropractors continue to be captured and held by the allopathic model of medi­cine, while prevention and true health care often go by the wayside. Yet, according to clinical studies, a simple scorecard may be all that is necessary to change all that. Consider the typical sce­nario: A patient comes into a chiropractor's office in pain brought on by an injury or overuse. The patient has one goal in mind and that is to find relief. Pain is the motivating factor. The chiropractor may be more interest­ed in prevention and in caring for the body as a whole. He or she, most likely, understands that pain is often a wake-up call, a signal that the body is probably out of balance and headed for more seri­ous disease. The chiropractor also understands that temporary pain relief is not true health care. Instead of simply addressing the pain of the moment, true health care explores prevention and provides ways for the individual to avert the risks of disease and degeneration. Yet, in a way, a chiropractor's hands are tied when faced with an individual in pain. To the patient, pain is an obvi­ous and immediate motivating factor, and the doctor has no means of motivat­ing that patient to look beyond the pain and think in terms of long-term health and well being. This is where a simple "scorecard" can work wonders. Chiropractors who use a scorecard to rate risk factors and pro­vide patients with baseline measure­ments are much better equipped to moti­vate patients to consider their overall patterns of health. Scorecards can encourage patients to implement true health practices and can ensure compli­ance. In fact, a simple scorecard can help a chiropractor move away from the allopathic model and toward sure suc­cess at promoting prevention. Consider how important it is, in virtually every aspect of life, to have some way of keeping score. For example, many people say they play golf simply because it provides them with a way to exer­cise. However, if you were to take away the scorecard, hand them a golf club and tell them to walk around swinging it for a few hours a week, few people would pursue the game of golf. Whether using points, heart rate, time, body fat percentage or any other meas­urement, it is motivating for an athlete or exerciser to have a way to gauge suc­cess and progress. The same applies in school and in work. Having a baseline measurement, and a goal to reach toward, provides incentive to work hard­er and to follow certain guidelines. A chiropractor who uses a system of measurements to supply patients with current scores, will find it much easier to motivate patients to follow certain health guidelines and work toward reducing their health risks. Such a health seorecard should include such measurements as: • cholesterol: to identify the patient's risk of heart disease; •blood sugar measurements: to deter­mine a patient's propensity to diabetes; • free radical levels: to determine risk of cancer and other diseases. In addition, a complete health seorecard would include: • a white blood cell count: to assess the individual's inclination toward infec­tious disease; an H. pylori bacteria count: to determine risk of ulcers; other similar tests that, taken all together, would serve as a clear representation of a person's total health picture. Think about how such a system of evaluation and measurement would work in your clinic. You may already be implementing various educational tools and, perhaps, may even use one or two tests to measure a person's need for sup­plementing certain nutrients or making dietary changes. Yet, do you have a complete system for identifying an indi­vidual's risk for the leading diseases today? In fact, do you even know your own risks for the diseases that cause most deaths? Have you got a system of measurement that continues to motivate you and others to seek for improved health and optimal wellness? Imagine the possibilities and credibility that would come from having such a complete system of measurement and assessment. Again, consider the com­mon scenario of a patient in pain. Natu­rally, a chiropractor would perform the necessary adjustments to address the patient's primary motivation for coming in to the clinic in the first place. Then, by taking the patient through a quick series of point-of-care procedures, a chi­ropractor could easily provide the patient with his or her current health sta­tistics. Perhaps because we are such a "numbers oriented" society, or perhaps because we have a built in sense of com­petition of sorts, those numbers seem to have greater power to motivate people than anything else you can do. With these numbers, you aren't diag­nosing disease or addressing symptoms. Instead, you are pointing out where an individual falls on the scale of risk for a particular disease. When a patient can see in black and white-in measurable, inarguable numbcrs-what his or her risk factors are, the patient seems to want Continued on page 42... KEEPING SCORE KEEPS PREVENT IN THE FOREFRONT ...from page 24 nothing more than to improve those numbers and to see them come into the "normal" or "optimal" range. Can you also see how specific measurements could be beneficial to those patients who have chronic pain or discomfort, but have not been able to pinpoint exactly what is "wrong" with them? Or, can you see how such a system could help with patients who are extremely ill or are dealing with more than one health concern? These numbers can provide a chiropractor with a hierarchy, or order, in which to address the various health concerns. My passion for this kind of a system came out of my own experience. Several years ago, when I was paralyzed from a fall, many doctors and well-meaning individuals tried to help. Nothing seemed to help like the research and the numbers that measured my own progress. I wanted proven systems to follow and a measuring stick that would give me something to shoot for and would show me that I, indeed, was returning to the health and strength I once knew. A measuring system not only helped motivate me, but also kept me on the right track to optimal health. In your quest to become more of a "doctor of the future" and practice prevention at a higher level, remember that a scorecard is key. Add more tests that will determine a patient's risk of disease, and leave behind the allopathic model. In the coming months, other articles will explain more about the systems of chiropractic care combined with focused, intense thought; nutrition; exercise; and specific supplementation that will allow you to create a more wholistic clinic. These concepts are now being used by over 5,000 health professionals worldwide, as well as many professional athletes and teams, including the Phoenix Suns and 1999 World Champion San Antonio Spurs with the NBA. Doug Grant is a degreed nutritionist with sports medicine background, who serves as a nutritionist with many teams from the NBA and has trained thousands of doctors around the world. Doug also serves as a member of the Board of Trustees of one of only three accredited naturopathic medical colleges in the United States. To learn more about preventive testing methods for your clinic, call Optimal Health Systems at (800) 890-4547. ♦♦♦