Chiropractor job description: Doctor of Chiropractic (D.C.) is the degree of education needed for practicing chiropractics. Chiropractors are health care professionals that focus on the neuromusculoskeletal system problems, and the effect of these disorders on the general health. They care for the prevention, diagnosis and treatment of the body’s muscular, skeletal and nervous system disorders. The interaction of these three systems can be dysfunctional or interrupted due to some disorder or condition, and that can change or alter the body functions. The altered body functions can affect the nervous system and cause pain, spinal problems, or they can affect the skeletal system and cause skeletal imbalance. Doctors of Chiropractics are using drug-free or so called alternative/complementary medicine, manual and manipulative therapy for the treatment of the dysfunctions and disorders.
They have a limited specialty, although Chiropractor jobs have many primary health care attributes. Appropriate health care is important due to differences of Chiropractors that may specialize in some field like back/neck pain or lower pain specialists, or sports injuries specialists. They are also communicating with a number of other health care providers to gather the numerous examinations and analyses to give the proper diagnosis and select a treatment for the patient’s disorder. This may include x-rays, laboratory tests, skeletal imaging, neurological evaluation, as well as orthopedic evaluation and etc. They are lifestyle consultants and health promoters, achieving that with rehabilitative exercises, and manual drug-free procedures that may include massage, ultrasound, acupuncture, heath, water, light or electric therapy. They can also change the sleeping habits of the patients to promote better therapy results. They can also advise other changes to the patient’s lifestyle like appropriate eating and exercising during the day, and stress management.
Chiropractors can treat conditions that are acute and chronic, always following the patient’s medical history, overall health, and they approach the therapy and healing process individually for the needs of the patients to encourage the body’s natural healing, with drug-free and surgery-free therapy. They aim to increase the mobility, and optimize the full health and movement of the patient, also relieving from pain due to the neck, shoulder, and back problems, problems with posture, muscles, and joints, as well as other sports injuries.
Chiropractor Job Description – Requirements and training
Chiropractic practitioners or doctors need first the undergraduate education, and then the training and degree from a college of chiropractic medicine gaining the appropriate post-graduate doctorate or master degree diploma (depending on the country). Before they can take the license they need to take the national exam, and complete the clinical internship. After obtaining the license they can also take a PhD degree in various fields, or take some of the post-graduate chiropractic specialties. Their services are increasing due to the changing attitudes about alternative medicine. The results from the researches are that we need more health care practitioners that have chiropractic training, especially in the areas that have low concentration of chiropractors.
Salary
The median annual salary of a Chiropractor was $71,470 in 2018, which means $34.33 per hour (BLS). The employment of this occupation is projected to grow 15% faster than average for all occupations.
