speedier recovery – we are turning many acute situations into chronic problems as a result of long delays for the proper care. This type of collaboration makes the best use of resources with-in the community.” “As well,” says Dr. Gibbs, “the MDs seemed to appreciate the knowledge transfer between both the MD and the DCs. Chiropractors were able to demonstrate assessment techniques, while MD’s were able to utilize information on pharmacologi-cal therapies and treatment options. This cooperation between parties reinforced the DCs’ capabilities with the assessment techniques to the medical doctors.” “This project met the pre-pilot expectation,” concludes Dr. Haig, “demonstrating chiropractors’ ability to contribute posi -tively to the care for patients with LBP in physician primary care settings, and had both high physician and patient satisfac-tion. This project was not designed as a treatment model and therefore, there were some recommendations to include that component in future models.” the data elements that are most relevant to the physician.” Dr. Gibbs says, “DCs can also hold workshops or rounds or offer to organize a working lunch with family physicians in their communities. This can facilitate discussions between dif-ferent disciplines.” On behalf of Ontario’s family physicians, Jan Kasperski con-cludes, “It would be ideal to adopt the collaborative consulta-tion and care model throughout the province. This would be a wonderful opportunity for caregivers to develop collegial rela-tionships and support each other through good collaboration. Management of LPB patients by family doctors supported by the expertise of various health-care professionals, such as chi-ropractors and physiotherapists, is a solution that will ensure Ontarians with back pain will receive the best care possible.” • WHY THESE RESULTS ARE SIGNIFICANT FOR DCs “This project highlights the important contribution that chi-ropractors can make in a collaborative primary care mode,” says Dr. Haig. “It has been made explicit by the Government of Ontario, and other stakeholders, that interprofessional col-laboration (IPC) is a best practice approach to improve access to primary, secondary and continuing care. IPC enables the patient and providers to be partners in care delivery, with the most appropriate health professional providing the services to meet their health-care needs. “In response to this, the OCA is engaged in a number of initiatives to explore and demonstrate the value of innovative IPC models of care and encourages chiropractors to be active participants in the rising trend of IPC. Patient care is enhanced through participatory and co-ordinated collaboration. DCs should work to strengthen relationships with family physicians and other health providers by honing their interprofessional communication approaches.” STRATEGIES FOR ENHANCING IPC COMMUNICATION Dr. Gibbs notes, “When a DC has seen a patient who has been referred to him/her from a medical doctor or other care giver, it is a good idea to send back a clinical note. This can help build your practice through increasing the number of shared care patients.” The OCA explains that surveys conducted of physicians highlight the fact they rarely receive any communication fol-lowing shared patient care from chiropractors. Some of the po-tential challenges of sharing patient information originate with how the information is captured in patient charts and clinical/ consultation notes. Dr. Haig mentions that the OCA has developed a clinical consultation note form for DCs to use when communicating with other caregivers. “OCA members are encouraged to use this form to send clin-ical/consultation notes back to the physician, at a minimum, following the first initial patient visit,” he says. “The form is available for DCs, including those in other provinces who may be interested in viewing it, on www.chiropractic.on.ca. It aims at creating common terminology on charting that is aligned to www.canadianchiropractor.ca REFERENCES 1. ICES Investigative Report. Investigation of acute lower back pain in Ontario: Are guidelines being followed? April 2004 in Atlas SJ, Deyo RA. Evaluating and managing acute LBP in the primary care setting. Journal of Gen Intern Med, 2001; vol 16: 120-31. 2. Iron K, Jaakkimainen L, et al. Investigation of acute lower back pain in Ontario: Are guidelines being followed? ICES, Toronto, Ontario, 2004. 3. Walker M, Ramsay C, Wrona D. Waiting your turn: hospi-tal waiting lists in Canada. 16th ed. Toronto (ON): Frasier Institute, 2006. Canadian ChiropraCtor | SEPTEMBER 2012 • 25
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