- 2223 Linden St., Suite 2 Bethlehem, PA 18017
- 610-837-1041
- gilroychiro@gmail.com
Soft Tissue Management
How does the service work, and how does it reduce OSHA recordable injuries and medical claims?
Proactive & Reactive
- Industrial massage is a service delivered on-site by our licensed chiropractic physicians.
- Employees spend 10-15 minutes with the chiropractor for evaluation and soft tissue therapy.
- The service is utilized both proactively to prevent injuries, as well as when an injury or painful problem actually arises.
Reducing OSHA Reportable Injuries
- Workplace injuries that do not need treatment beyond first aid are not required to report. [1]
- Massage is considered first aid. [2, 3]
*Industrial massage services, consisting of soft-tissue-only therapies, are considered first aid by OSHA. It is not a reportable service.
Preventing Workers Comp Claims
- Providing on-site evaluation
- Providing first aid treatment on site that is effective for musculoskeletal problems and injuries
The advantage of having a chiropractor on-site allows them to utilize expertise in evaluating musculoskeletal conditions. A chiropractor can distinguish, using evidence-based protocols, which injuries are more or less serious and which ones are likely to resolve with soft tissue therapies.
Early X-ray or MRI imaging has been shown to be unproductive and even harmful in the case of injuries [5-6]. Evaluation alone can sort out what injuries need further intervention, acting as an initial screen, keeping a problem from becoming a medical claim.
The majority of sprain/strain soft tissue injuries can be actually treated on-site and resolved with the myriad of soft tissue therapies a chiropractor can perform. So instead of leaving work and opening a worker’s comp claim, an employee can be taken care of on-site, proving the company’s solicitation for their health, getting the employee better with treatment, and help them work with less pain and improved function. And as far as OSHA is concerned, the employee’s problem resolved with first aid.
Some Crucial Distinctions
Chiropractic may be covered by the insurance you already provide for employees. Isn’t this redundant?
From a standpoint of injury prevention, if a worker is injured at work and consults a chiropractor or physical therapist and receives a chiropractic adjustment or physical therapy as treatment, according to OSHA’s standards, they received medical intervention beyond first aid [6]. That injury just became an OSHA reportable injury.
By having a chiropractor on-site limiting himself to soft tissue only therapies, the chiropractor is technically administering first aid, and the injury is not a reportable injury.
[2] www.osha.gov/recordkeeping
[3] www.osha.gov/recordkeeping/faq
[4] Association of early imaging for back pain with clinical outcomes in older adults. Jarvik et al., JAMA. 2015 Mar 17;313(11):1143-53. Pubmed reference: www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov
[5] Iatrogenic consequences of early magnetic resonance imaging in acute, work-related, disabling low back pain. Webster et al., Spine (Phila Pa 1976). 2013 Oct 15;38(22):1939-46. Pubmed reference: www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov
[6] www.osha.gov/pls
