• Amorin-Woods LG
• Parkin-Smith GF
• Saboe V
• Rosner AL

• Australia
• Chiropractic / Australia
• Chiropractors’ Association of Australia (CAA)
• Low Back Pain / Australia
• Manipulation, Spinal
• Manipulation, Spinal / standards
• Open Access Document
• Practice Guidelines as Topic / Australia

The 2009 Spinal Model of Care published by the Western Australian Health Department via the Musculoskeletal Health Network would benefit from an update. Best-evidence synthesis and cost-risks-benefits estimations suggest that such guidelines should provide: (1) the early assessment of patients with non-malignant spinal pain (particularly low back) by a musculoskeletal clinician, be it a chiropractor, musculoskeletal physician, osteopath or musculoskeletal physiotherapist with referral within the early stages of the disorder; and (2) the provision of manipulative therapy, where indicated, as a first-line treatment while also providing rehabilitation, health promotion, and contemporary wellness/wellbeing management with the intention of avoiding chronicity. Emerging workforce capacity suggests that early assessment and evidence-based management of non-malignant spinal pain is feasible, leading to better patient outcomes. The authors and the association are hopeful that providing this submission in open access may prove useful for advocates of the chiropractic profession in other jurisdictions.

This abstract is reproduced with the permission of the publisher. Click on the above link for free full text. Link to PDF version