Chiropractic

Practice Alerts

6. Performing Independent Chiropractic Examinations (ICEs)

Law, rules and regulations, not Alerts, specify the requirements for practice and violating them constitutes professional misconduct. Not adhering to this Alert may be interpreted as professional misconduct only if the conduct also violates pertinent law, rules and regulations, some citations of which are listed at the end of this Alert.

There are a number of considerations of which you should be aware when performing independent chiropractic examinations (ICE):

• You should be competent to provide such services. You may wish to complete an acceptable course of specialized training in the practice area known as "Insurance Consulting" or specifically, "Independent Chiropractic Examinations" before accepting such responsibilities.
• When documenting an ICE, your narrative report should note the absence of any prior professional relationship with the patient you examine.
• Your report should reflect only those procedures you performed during the examination and the results obtained.
• The procedural content of an ICE should be sufficient to enable you to arrive at an appropriate physical assessment, and diagnosis/prognosis of the patient.
• From a risk management perspective, the presence of an independent witness during the ICE is recommended to avoid allegations of inappropriate behavior or, to help resolve a situation where there are differing recollections of what took place during the examination.
• When making a statement regarding the patient's disability/diagnosis/prognosis, it is advisable that your opinion be based upon the patient's history, objective findings on examination, the diagnostic testing results, and the documentation available for review.