- Treating Pain
- What We Do
- Your First Visit
- What To Expect
I Am a:
- Patient
- Caregiver
- Medical Professional
Always bring the patient’s health card. If you do not show the receptionist a valid health card, or equivalent proof of coverage, they may not see a doctor.
Bring a list or record of the medications they are currently taking, including the dosages. The more information you can provide the doctor with the better. If possible, bring in the actual medication and any packaging that comes with it so the doctor can be sure about what they are taking, how much they are taking, and how often they are taking it. Please also bring a list of medications they have taken in the past that were not helpful.
Please bring a list of any allergies they have, especially allergies to medications or other medical materials such as latex.
If it is their first visit, please bring any medical records or documentation of medical conditions that have not already been forwarded to the doctor. This will help with the assessment and determining proper treatment.
If English is not the patient’s first language, be prepared to act as a translator, or if you are not able to do so bring a family member or friend of the patient with you who can translate for the patient.
At times the doctor may be running behind schedule. Please bring a book or magazine to read while you are waiting.
Please check in with a receptionist. The receptionist will enter the patient’s arrival in the clinic computer system.
They will hand you a package of paperwork that must be filled out before the patient sees the doctor. A staff member will go through the paperwork with you and answer any questions that you have. Please assist the patient in filling out the paperwork package. The paperwork consists primarily of fill-in-the-blank forms and multiple-choice questions.
The staff member will advise you to be seated while you fill out the paperwork. Once you have completed the paperwork, hand it back to the staff member who gave it to you.
Some of the information will be very basic. You’ll enter the patient’s name, date of birth, address, and phone number. There will be a few questions about the legal status of the injury. There will be some questions about medications the patient is taking and allergies to medications. You will also answer a few questions oabout the patient’s medical history.
You’ll be asked to verify the patient’s height and weight. There will also be pictures of the human body. You’ll be asked to draw or shade in the areas where the pain is located. There will be a questionnaire to help determine the patient’s level of stress and anxiety. There will be a Ministry of Health form. There will also be a pain inventory sheet.
Once the paperwork is complete, the patient’s chart will be passed to a nurse. The nurse will review the chart and pain inventory sheet.
The nurse will bring the chart into the waiting room with them and have a seat next to the patient. They will ask a few questions about the patient’s current state of health. They will also take the patient’s pulse and blood pressure.
The nurse will then take the patient into the treatment area. The nurse will ask the patient to step up onto the scale so their weight can be taken. All information will be noted in the patient’s chart.
Yes. The doctor must know the patient’s exact weight so they can administer the correct amount of medication. The doctor cannot treat the patient without this information.
When the doctor is ready you will enter the O.R. and meet the doctor. The doctor will start off with a few questions about the patient’s health and review all of the information noted by the nurse and the notes made on the patient’s pain inventory sheet. Once the doctor has reviewed the information they can begin the assessment or treatment process.
If the patient needs to change into a gown they can change in the O.R. behind the curtain out of view of other patients and staff.
Yes. The doctor must be able to see the area that is the cause of the pain in order to treat it. While changing, the patient will be behind a curtain and will not be visible to other patients or clinic staff. When the procedure is done and recovery is complete, the patient will change back into their clothes behind a curtain in the recovery room.
All procedures are done lying down on a stretcher or while seated. If the procedure is performed without sedation the patient may walk into the recovery room once the procedure is completed. For all other procedures the patient will be wheeled into the recovery room on the stretcher.
The doctors have a variety of packages that can be filled out by patients prior to treatment. The doctor will choose the package that is appropriate for their assessment needs.
It will be the similar to your first visit, with a few changes. The patient will check in with a receptionist. The patient will be asked to fill out some paperwork but it will be far less than at the first visit. The patient will need to complete a pain inventory sheet. The doctor will use this pain inventory sheet to track any changes to the patient’s pain levels or locations.
If it has been more than 6 months since the patient’s last visit to the clinic, the patient must obtain a new referral from their doctor and fill in a new paperwork package.
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