Introduction
Medical professionals know how stressful and difficult needing care can be, especially in the case of low back pain due to the ambiguous nature of the injury. Dr. Brian W. Nelson has made it his job to care for patients with nonoperative back and neck pain. In this publication, Dr. Nelson strategizes the most comprehensive care opportunities for patients suffering from low back pain. As a result, Dr. Nelson has been able to reduce and prevent pain for several patients.
Summary
Low back pain is a chronic beast. No matter the treatment, Dr. Brian W. Nelson still had patients complaining of back pain upon entering his office. Due to the several unknown causes of low back pain, patients became resented by medical professionals. After years of watching patients not get the help they need, Dr. Nelson decided to limit his practice exclusively to nonoperative treatment of back and neck pain and explains how to provide the best care possible to his patients. The initial visit with Dr. Nelson, in his opinion the most important visit, is all about putting the patient’s pain into perspective. Most of the time, the medical professional does not know immediately what the cause of a patient’s back pain is. The patient will have a better outlook and compliance if they are not told their condition is life threatening before testing.
It is incredibly important to gain insight into the patient’s history before concluding that the patient is in emergent danger. By asking several questions about the patient’s history including cancer, weight gain/loss, and more as well as asking the patient to describe their pain can allow the doctor to have the most information possible. It is also important to note that imaging such as MRI and CT is not always the best step in these cases. A doctor may find something on an image before conducting background and the patient’s perceived pain that could be different or even unrelated to the patient’s pain. Knowing which kind of pain the patient has can allow for the correct treatment regimen. For example, knowing first where the pain is located (lumbar or pelvic region) in the back and the difference between acute or chronic pain will determine whether rest or exercise is the correct first step. Every patient is different and sometimes neither of these will work, however it is a common place to start.
Patient education is an essential step to comprehensive care. In fact, a healthcare professional’s main goal is to provide care to the patient, but it is also important that patients learn how to manage their back pain on their own. It is possible for patients to become dependent on the doctor and the medical system, so to prohibit that, giving patients the tools to be self-reliant is incredibly important. Knowing that despite a doctor’s best efforts, a patient may not be able to be cured is a difficult but realistic perspective to have. Being honest and having constant communication with the patient that while they may not be cured there are ways to manage.
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