IMPORTANT NOTICE
April 4, 2012

Attention: AMSC Members – Please distribute to all appropriate personnel

Chiropractic Treatment Valued in Benefits Plans

The important role that chiropractic treatment can play within a comprehensive workplace benefits program appears to be gaining recognition, health professionals report.

• About 4 million Canadians consult a chiropractor annually, according to the Canadian Chiropractic Association
• That represents an increase from about 10% of the population in 1996 to nearly 15% today

In recent years, many workplaces have added chiropractic treatment to their benefits plans. Canada’s 7,000 chiropractors practise a drug-free, manual approach to health care that includes patient assessment, diagnosis and treatment.

“In particular, chiropractors assess patients for disorders related to the spine, pelvis, extremity joints, and their effect on the nervous system,” the Canadian Chiropractic Association explains.

One reason why chiropractic treatment is gaining higher profile is that many workers suffer from chronic back pain, repetitive stress syndrome and tension headaches:

• Chiropractors receive training in how to treat and prevent these common workplace challenges
• About 80% of Canadians experience back pain in their lifetime, and about 15% will experience severe pain
• Chiropractic treatment can reduce pain from golfer’s elbow, tennis elbow and rotator cuff injuries
• Chiropractors can treat common types of headaches and migraines

“One of the main reasons people choose chiropractic treatment is that they often get quick results,” the Canadian Chiropractic Association reports.

“Individual cases vary and chronic conditions obviously need more treatment, but Workers' Compensation Board studies show that people with low back pain get back to work much faster with chiropractic care.”

Another feature of chiropractic care is that it offers drug-free treatment, which is attractive to some employees.

Although chiropractic treatment is increasingly valued as a benefit, many workers remain unclear about how and when it might be appropriate to make use of this treatment option.

Here are more facts about chiropractic care and how it fits into benefits programs:

• As with medical doctors, nurses and dentists, chiropractors are regulated health professionals recognized by statute in Alberta and other Canadian provinces
• All Canadian chiropractors must complete an intensive four-year, full-time course of study following three years of university before qualifying to undertake national examinations and become licensed to practice
• Chiropractic care has been researched extensively and has a low risk of complications
• Chiropractors are trained to determine if a health challenge will respond to chiropractic care or if the individual requires referral to another health professional

--Adapted from the Canadian Chiropractic Association

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If you have any questions or require additional information on the group benefits plans offered by AMSC, please contact Paul Mizzi at 780-433-4431 ext.4545.

Thank you,

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