Welcome and Patient Forms
Upon entering our office, our receptionist will welcome you as a member of our family. We will request that you complete our patient forms located in the Online Forms Center. This paperwork provides us with your health history and information on your condition.
Consultation and Health History
Next, you will have a consultation to discuss your health-related problems, concerns, and potential chiropractic options. This initial visit is designed for Dr. Hafner to learn more about you, your condition, and expectations to determine how chiropractic care can meet your goals.
Physical Examination
After your consultation, you will receive appropriate chiropractic physical examination. This includes: posture evaluation, range of motion testing, bone alignment testing, neurological testing, orthopedic pain-location, muscle strength and function testing. No adjustments are performed during the examination, as a diagnosis must be established first.
X-Ray Studies
Depending on your specific condition, x-rays may be indicated. We can take these in the office and will review your films with you. The x-rays show us the severity of mis-alignments and spinal decay, and also identify other pathology that may modify or preclude approaches to care.
Report of Findings and Discussion of Options
Once the information is collected and examinations are performed, we will give you a detailed report of all findings and answer any questions including:
- Will Dr. Hafner accept my case for chiropractic?
- What are Dr. Hafner's options for me?
- How often do I need to come in?
- What will it cost?
Chiropractic Visits
Approaches to your condition may include spinal adjustments, therapies, and exercises. Periodic progress re-examinations are performed and the doctor will frequently update your health history.
We will always give our best recommendations, but it is up to you to decide how to use that information to get your optimal recovery.
How many visits will your condition require?
We don't guess at this. We use actual medical research guidelines that are tailored to you as a specific individual and your condition. Our goal is you help you reach your goals as fast as we can, and give you long-lasting or permanent recovery when possible.
Some health conditions require a few visits (6-18 visits). Some complicated conditions such as severe arthritis, sciatica, neurological issues, permanent postural correction, and significant disc herniation can require many visits (24, 36 or more visits).
Wellness, Prevention, and Maintenance Adjustment Visits
Most of our health conscious patients, and those with conditions that simply require periodic check-ups will see us a several times per year to stay at their best.
The purpose of our wellness program is for you to achieve good spinal alignment, have a healthy diet, exercise, and maintain a positive mental state.
What is subluxation and why are chiropractors looking for it?
Subluxation is the medical and chiropractic definition of misalignment of a joint. Vertebral subluxation complex is all the things that happen around misalignments of the spine (bone misalignment, muscle tension, ligament inflammation, nerve irritation, spinal cord stress, disc bulges, tissue swelling, and generally inefficient physiology can all be part of this complex). Chiropractors are traditionally trained to locate, correct, prevent, and give relief of all of the components of the subluxation complex so you are at your best. This philosophy for health is what separates a doctor of chiropractic from the practice of medicine.