One thing it can be very common for a doctor to be helping a patient with is lower back pain. The American College of Physicians has pointed to this type of pain being an incredibly common reason for doctor visits here in the United States. So, how doctors act when it comes to the treating of such pain can be a significant issue.
If a Wisconsin doctor is accused of acting improperly when treating this type of pain for a patient, they could be exposed to serious consequences. This could include significant disciplinary actions by the state’s medical board. So, what a doctor does in response to such allegations can have major ramifications for both their life and career.
Given this, how well their approach in responding to such accusations takes into account the specific circumstances and how best to protect their interests given these circumstances can be of great significance for a doctor. Skilled attorneys can help physicians with developing a well-tailored approach for responding to allegations of improper treatment of back pain or other conditions.
Recently, the American College of Physicians issued some new guidelines on treating lower back pain. The new guidelines were based on reviews of research on the treatment of such pain.
Among the things the new guidelines do are:
- Focus more heavily of non-drug treatments for such pain. This includes things like acupuncture, cognitive behavioral therapy, exercise therapy, heat wraps, massages and spinal manipulation. The guidelines generally recommend first turning to non-drug treatments rather than drug treatments when it comes to such pain.
- Give a recommended order of what medications to use when drugs are deemed necessary to help treat the pain.
- Discourage using opioid painkillers for lower back pain, except as a last resort.
One wonders what impacts these new guidelines will have on the behavior and actions of doctors, hospitals and state medical boards when it comes to the treatment of this type of back pain.
Source: U.S. News & World Report, “There Are Drug-Free Options for Lower Back Pain,” Amy Norton, Feb. 13, 2017
