Chiropractic Care For Work Injuries

Work Injury Rehabilitation

Workers’ Compensation covers any injuries that are sustained while on the job, leaving the job, or going to the job. A work-related injury can also be also any condition that is aggravated or accelerated by employment activities. As a result of the injuries, there has been an inability to doing work which was previously really enjoyed.

Work injuries can be devastating, emotionally, physically and financially. If you do find yourself in a situation where you’re experiencing pain with injuries that compromise your ability to work, you may qualify for care under your company’s workers’ compensations policy. What many people don’t realize (and their employer may not tell them) is that chiropractors and chiropractic treatments are covered by your workers’ compensation insurance.

There is really no one particular type of injury, though the most common is lower back pain and repetitive stress injuries, including carpal tunnel syndrome that we treat on a regular basis. They are also the biggest cause work absenteeism and the largest expense for companies in the workers compensation arena. The total annual costs of low-back pain in the United States—including lost wages and reduced productivity—are more than $100 billion.

Other injuries that are common include: knee, hip and joint injuries, rotator cuff injuries, and a variety of back and neck sprain/strains. Due to the physical nature of their jobs and the weight of the uniforms and utility belts, many Police Officers and Firefighters suffer from back and neck sprains/strains and sciatica.

Many occupations require a worker to perform the same motion dozens, hundreds or thousands of times each month. Given the public’s increasing use of natural and alternative approaches to health care, it is not surprising that many injured workers are turning to chiropractic care for treatment of their injuries.

Most injured workers in this state who access chiropractic care do so after trying more traditional medical approaches. The motives for seeking chiropractic care are numerous, and include the inability to tolerate the drugs they are given, the often impersonal treatment by large employer-directed clinics, or they are simply not improving and are looking elsewhere for help.

Doctors of chiropractic provide a conservative, holistic approach to health care that focuses on neuromusculoskeletal conditions. Chiropractors use a natural approach to treating on the job injuries as opposed to medications that may merely mask pain and can cause serious side effects. Repetitive motions often result in a cumulative type trauma. This is also known as a Gillette injury and is fully compensable as a work comp injury. The onset of this type of injury is often gradual. Injuries that occur over time can actually be much worse than a sudden fracture or other work injury. The severity of the injury is not always known right away.

The primary goal is to get patients back into the workforce, however, never before they are actually physically prepared. It is important to receive proper care following a work injury, not only to stop the pain, but to restore the patient to comfortable and pain-free functioning. Without proper healing, it’s more likely that a work injury could later reoccur.

Chiropractic care continues to be one of the top treatment options for work related injuries. Research studies sponsored by over a dozen state governments have proven time and time again that chiropractic is over twice as effective at getting injured workers back to work with half the disability and at half the cost. If you are the employer, it would only make sense that you should require all injured workers to be seen by a chiropractor first.

Contact our office today to schedule an appointment at 612-724-4647.