New Patient
Welcome to
Health focus Centre
YOUR FIRST VISIT
Discovery Day
It is during this visit where you will first meet Dr Raffi who will take a thorough medical history and conduct orthopaedic and neurological examinations as well as a postural assessment to best understand the nature of your concerns. The information gathered will help him form the most accurate diagnosis. This session will run for approximately 40 minutes. All examinations are performed whilst clothed.
Please note that after making contact with our front desk to make this appointment either over the phone, via email or social media portals like those found on this website, a medical history questionnaire will be sent to you digitally, which we ask you to return upon completion by email or bring with you to your first visit.
YOUR SECOND VISIT
Decision Day
The second visit, which is usually referred to as “Report of findings”, is a very important and insightful consultation. Usually lasting 20-30 minutes, this is when the final diagnosis is communicated to you. If X-rays were clinically indicated after your first visit, Dr Raffi will run through these results with you. The second visit is about understanding the cause of the problem you are seeking treatment for, how long it will take to heal and the best way forward. The decision is then yours: Are you ready to make a commitment and move forward? If you choose to begin your care, you will receive your first treatment. Each treatment builds on the one before and it is therefore important to attend regular appointments.
Frequently Asked Questions
Will I be adjusted (treated) on my first visit?
The simple answer to this is that there is no blanket answer considering that some conditions will require further testing through images whilst some don’t. Although you may visit Dr Raffi with discomfort, it is paramount to make a correct diagnosis and prescribe the correct schedule of care. This may require a report of findings where Dr Raffi will adjust you on your second visit.
Does treatment hurt?
Chiropractic is a gentle method and with more than 13 years of chiropractic experience Dr Raffi is sensitive to communicating how your current condition would respond to an adjustment. It is extremely rare for an adjustment to cause discomfort or pain but is very normal to feel a slight ache the same way you would feel a little achy after your first experience at the gym. Although chiropractic adjustments will give you a feeling of better movement, it also can influence the surrounding soft tissue, scar tissue and neurology (proprioceptors) in a positive way. Heightened neural stimulation and breaking up of scar tissue may lead to a bit of tenderness in some cases. Once you have had your second treatment, your body begins to accept this change and that is when the discomfort begins to disappear.
Do I need to have x-rays taken before treatment?
If x-rays are clinically indicated and will assist in your diagnosis, Dr Raffi will refer you for bulk billed images. Although it is not compulsory, there are often times where spinal x-rays create more clarity around the nature of the discomfort being felt, whether in the spine, hip or pelvis.
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