ON Spinal Chat – Details, episodes & analysis

With a growing number of Canadians interested in self-care as we transition from the pandemic, Dr. Dwight Chapin, the OCA’s Chiropractor of the Year in 2018 wrote: "Take Good Care: 7 Wellness Rituals for Health, Strength and Hope." To bring evidence-based research to life, he engaged 21 influential Canadians, such as Jann Arden and Michael "Pinball" Clemons, to share their unique approaches to self-care. In this episode, Dr. Chapin discusses how they shaped this book, as well as how patients and chiropractors are using it to foster the self-care rituals to support improvements to their health and well-being. 

Topics Covered:

• Take Good Care overview
• Selecting the book's 21 influential Canadians or mentors
• Role of science and evidence-based care
• Who benefits from Take Good Care?
• What drives Dr. Chapin to strive for optimal health and wellness
• How Take Good Care is helping Ontarians and other Canadians
• Insights from pro athletes and Globe and Mail staff
• How chiropractors can lead their patients' health and wellness journeys
• Most relevant rituals for OCA members/chiropractors
• How you can use this book to help patients and team members
• Where are Canadians falling short in self-care?
• What's next for Dr. Chapin?
• Key takeaways

Key Links to References/Resources Discussed:

• Take Good Care: 7 Wellness Rituals for Health, Strength & Hope by Dr. Dwight Chapin(Good Reads site)
• Atomic Habits: An Easy & Proven Way to Build Good Habits & Break Bad Ones, by James Clear
• 7 Wellness Rituals website

About Dr. Dwight Chapin:

Dr. Dwight Chapin is an award-winning chiropractor, owner of a large multidisciplinary wellness clinic, Team Chiropractor for the Canadian Football League’s Toronto Argonauts, onsite clinician and Health Advisor for The Globe and Mail, and author. 

He has co-authored workplace wellness e-learning modules for the Canadian Centre for Occupational Health & Safety-CCOHS, was awarded the 2018 Chiropractor of the Year by the Ontario Chiropractic Association and is a two-time Grey Cup champion as a member of the Toronto Argonauts’ medical staff.   

In his first book titled, Take Good Care: 7 Wellness Rituals for Health, Strength & Hope, he brings the science of prevention to life with a behind-the-scenes look at the self-care formulas of 21 influential Canadians.

In part two of this series on pain management, Dr. Demetry Assimakopoulos returns to provide a more in-depth view of the work chiropractors do at the Comprehensive Pain Program at the University Health Network (UHN) and the Pain and Wellness Centre in Vaughan. Both these clinics were founded and led by Dr. Angela Mailis, a physiatrist, pain physician, clinical professor, and leading authority on the diagnosis and management of chronic pain. In Part 1, Dr. Mailis discussed her interdisciplinary approach for addressing pain, her experience and her work with chiropractors.

In this episode, Dr. Demetry will share a case study about a patient who was given the full-blown treatment at these clinics. To help you and other chiropractors hone an expertise in chronic pain management, he will also provide tips and useful resources, including must-read articles you can start with today.

Topics Covered:

• Key points about Dr. Mailis' approach to interdisciplinary care
• Differences between work chiropractors do at University Health Network (UHN) versus the Pain & Wellness Centre in Vaughan
• Evolution of the interdisciplinary model at UHN
• Dr. Demetry's tenure at UHN
• How chiropractors can prepare for working in an interdisciplinary clinic and what to expect
• How chiropractors can enhance their work with physicians
• Case study of patient with chronic pain
• Impact of mental health on chronic pain and treatment
• Must-read current research on chronic pain management
• How you can develop an expertise in chronic pain management

Key Links to References/Resources Discussed:

• Slater, H., et al. (2022). Listen to me, learn from me: a priority setting partnership for shaping interdisciplinary pain training to strengthen chronic pain care. Pain.
• Caneiro, J.P. (2022). From Fear to Safety, a Roadmap to Recovery from Musculoskeletal Pain. Physical Therapy.
• All Aboard the Pain Train: A Chiropractor's Guide to Chronic Pain, Dr. Shawn Thistle: Trusted Chiropractic Evidence-Based Learning (RSS Education)
• Pain & Wellness Centre in Vaughan
• Comprehensive Integrated Pain Management Program at UHN
• CE Course: The Role of Chiropractic in Opioid Use Reduction

About Dr. Angela Mailis:

Dr. Mailis is a specialist in Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation, has a Master's Degree from the Institute of Medical Science, University of Toronto, has served as Senior Investigator with the Krembil Neuroscience Centre/ University Health Network up to 2015, and became a full professor at the Department of Medicine, University of Toronto in 2005. She is a member of the School of Graduate Studies at the University of Toronto and is currently an Adjunct Clinical Professor, Faculty of Medicine, University of Toronto, Division of Physical Medicine. Since she started practising in 1982, her clinical and research interests focus on the diagnosis and management of chronic pain.

Dr. Mailis founded and directed the Comprehensive Pain Program of the Toronto Western Hospital, University Health Network (1982-2015) and continues to be a full member of the Division of Physical Medicine and Consultant at the University Health Network Comprehensive Integrated Pain Program.

She is a national Evidence-Based Guideline developer, Chair of ACTION Ontario since 2005 (a not-for-profit organization for education and advocacy for patients with neuropathic pain), and a highly respected medicolegal expert in matters of chronic pain across the country.

Dr. Mailis has published more than 130 peer-reviewed scientific papers; credited with “first publications in the world” on a number of pain conditions; recognized as an international expert on specific specialty areas; has trained numerous students and international trainees; and has lectured around the world on matters of chronic pain.

She is also a Popular Science writer (has written BEYOND PAIN published in the USA and Canada) and CARP-Advocacy electronic newsletter contributor monthly (2009-2014), while her new book “Smart, Successful and Abused” will be published in September 2019 by Sutherland House. She has appeared on numerous media outlets (print, radio, TV) over the years promoting understanding and advocacy on chronic pain.

She has participated in several hospital and university committees and serves as an advisor to the Ontario Ministry of Health since 2009 as well as federal committees and health panels.

Dr. Mailis was nominated to the 75 semi-finalists “top immigrants” in Canada for 2011. She is a recipient of the Hellenic Women’s Coming of Age Celebration Award (May 2004); Division of Physiatry, University of Toronto, Achievement Award (June 2005); the 2013 Canadian Pain Society Harold Merskey Award; and the Division of Physiatry Life Award in 2014.

As of September 2014, Dr. Mailis created an interdisciplinary best-practices community pain clinic in Vaughan (Pain & Wellness Centre). The Centre was proclaimed in October 2016 by the Ontario Ministry of Health the “Demonstration Project of Ontario” as the template for further similar community-based clinics, that connect the community to the academic hospitals. The Pain and Wellness Centre not only offers chronic pain consultations but serves as an educational hub for numerous trainees, and also a research centre studying chronic pain in the community.

About Dr. Demetry Assimakopoulos ('Dr. Demetry'):

Dr. Demetry received his specialized honours undergraduate degree from York University in 2008. He concurrently earned a specialty in Fitness Assessment and Exercise Counseling, and the title of Certified Exercise Physiologist (CEP) through the Canadian Society for Exercise Physiology (CSEP).

Dr. Demetry graduated from the Canadian Memorial Chiropractic College (CMCC) in 2012 and immediately began practising in midtown Toronto. In 2014, Dr. Demetry became the Clinical Coordinator for the University Health Network (UHN) Comprehensive Integrated Pain Program at The Toronto Rehabilitation Institute. In the hospital setting, Demetry works with a team of physicians, nurses, occupational therapists, and physiotherapists to adequately diagnose and manage chronic pain. 

He earned his diplomate in chronic pain management through the Canadian Academy of Pain Management in 2015. He has since been hosted by several provincial associations across Canada to lecture to health care providers on the conservative and interdisciplinary management of chronic pain. He was happy to finally join the fabulous team at the Pain and Wellness Centre in November 2017.

Dr. Demetry was voted to receive the members' choice  2022 Dr. Michael Brickman Heart and Hands Award  from the Ontario Chiropractic Association for embodying a generous and giving spirit (the heart) with remarkable passion and dedication to chiropractic care (the hands).

In 2020, the Ontario Chiropractic Association (OCA) formed the Evidence-based Framework Advisory Council with a mandate to help develop a shared understanding or framework around what exactly evidence-based practice means for chiropractic care.  In this episode, we check in with Caroline Brereton, OCA's CEO, to hear about the Evidence-based Framework Advisory Council (EBFAC), its goals, the process it’s following, how it will help OCA members support better patient care and advance the profession. Caroline chats about the EBFAC’s progress, what to look for in the near future and what its long-term goals entail.

Topics Covered:

• Why OCA developed the Evidence-based Framework Advisory Council (EBFAC)
• The EBFAC's key goals
• How will the EBFAC change misperceptions?
• Approach to  assessing, diagnosing and treating arthritis
• EBFAC members and its patient-focused process
• Supporting the Research Agenda
• Partnership4BetterHealth and the EBFAC
• Providing optimal care for patients with arthritis
• How Identifying Research Priorities benefits members
• Existing patient preference work
• EBFAC's impact on the chiropractic profession
• Impact of OCA Aspire - OCA's electronic patient record
• EBFAC and patient care
• What's next for the EBFAC after research and assessment?

Key Links to References/Resources Discussed:

• Evidence-based Framework Advisory Council
• About Caroline Brereton 
• Partnership4BetterHealth
• OCA Aspire

About Caroline Brereton:

Caroline is CEO of the Ontario Chiropractic Association and oversees the Evidence-based Framework Advisory Council (EBFAC). 

Through working for 18 years on acute care’s front-line to now leading the fourth largest chiropractic association in the world by membership, she has lived varied perspectives of our health care system.

Her passion for quality patient care in Ontario began in 1992 with her work as a registered nurse caring for elderly patients with complex needs at Queensway General Hospital, in Toronto’s west end.

As Caroline's career evolved, she moved to Trillium Health Centre (now Trillium Health Partners) in 1998, where she held several senior level positions, from Director, Medical Health Systems, to Vice President, People, Corporate and Clinical Support Services. At Trillium, she applied a new leadership philosophy and accountability framework to initiate customer service models that improved patients’ experience and outcomes.  Caroline was also honoured to lead the implementation of the University of Toronto’s Mississauga Medical Academy and the Shared Service West Organization transformation, on behalf of four organizations.

In addition to her nursing and midwifery credentials, Ms. Brereton has an MBA from Queen’s University and is a graduate of the Rotman School of Management Advanced Health Leadership Program.

Since joining the Ontario Chiropractic Association (OCA) as CEO in June 2018, she has focused on building relationships with all partners that impact chiropractors and their patients in Ontario. Caroline is committed to ensuring the OCA is making a difference for its members and supporting others in their accountabilities to the profession.

In her previous tenure as Chief Executive Officer of the Mississauga Halton Community Care Access Centre (CCAC) and Vice Chair of the Ontario Association of Community Care Access Centres (OACCAC) Board of Directors, she collaborated with multiple partners to help drive our system’s transformation to integrated, patient-centred care.

Caroline was inspired by the initiatives  CCAC's  interconnected teams implemented to improve patients’ experience and outcomes. These initiatives ranged from a primary care advisor model that achieved a 76 per cent engagement rate with primary care providers across the region to our seamless transitions hospital partnership that reduced the number of patients returning to hospital within 30-days after discharge by 52 per cent.

Delivering home and community care every day gave her and the CCAC a front-line advantage. It showed what works and what is vital to our health care system. These experiences opened Caroline's eyes to our system’s potential. 

Caroline is excited by the possibility of creating a world-class, fully integrated health system in Ontario and potentially across Canada.  Like many health care leaders, Caroline is also constantly thinking about ‘how’ to best achieve this for Ontarians.

She believes all health care partners must share their insights and work together, hand in glove, to shape a system that overcomes long-term challenges and continuously raises the bar for quality of care. 

In addition to her OCA role, Caroline is also a Board member of the Regional Geriatric Program of Toronto.

This episode will provide you with practical research and insights on proven approaches to effectively assess, diagnose and treat patients with spinal stenosis and other forms of arthritis. Hear 'world expert in spinal stenosis' Dr. Carlo Ammendolia outline how he delivers optimal treatment to his patients and subtle variations between demographics.  

He offers tips and resources on how to assess a patient's physical, functional and psychosocial issues to help you strengthen your skills in these areas. As part of an interprofessional clinic at Mount Sinai Hospital in Toronto, Dr. Ammendolia shares examples of his collaborations with physicians as part of a patient's circle of care team.  And be sure to check the show notes for links to ‘must read’ arthritis research and resources discussed throughout this podcast.

Topics Covered:

• Why arthritis is a rising priority
• New research on arthritis and pain
• New BMJ guideline for treating degenerative spinal stenosis
• Approach to  assessing, diagnosing and treating arthritis
• Treating different demographics
• Collaborating with physicians as part of the circle of care for a patient with arthritis: on next steps, imaging and more
• Tips for building collaborative relationships with physicians
• Providing optimal care for patients with arthritis
• Assessing psychosocial issues and specific skills to hone
• Enhancing compliance and patient outcomes

Key Links to References/Resources Discussed:

• Spine Clinic and the Spinal Stenosis Program 
• Status of Arthritis in Canada (from the Arthritis Society)
• BMJ Guideline for Spinal Stenosis
• Non-Surgical Interventions for Lumbar Spinal Stenosis Leading To Neurogenic Claudication: A Clinical Practice Guideline
• Prevention and treatment of low back pain: evidence, challenges, and promising directions 
• Michael  Schneider - University of Pittsburgh

OCA Circle It Arthritis Campaign Links:

• Circle It Arthritis Campaign (on OCA member page)
• Team Approach to Arthritis Pain  (for MDs and other health care professionals)
• Help to Manage Your Arthritis (for patients)

About Dr. Carlo Ammendolia:

Dr. Ammendolia is the Director of the Spine Clinic and the Spinal Stenosis Program at the Rebecca MacDonald Centre for Arthritis and Autoimmune Disease at Mount Sinai Hospital in Toronto. 

He received his MSc degree in Clinical Epidemiology and Health Care Research and his Ph.D. in Clinical Evaluative Sciences from the University of Toronto and his Chiropractic degree from the Canadian Memorial Chiropractic College (CMCC) in Toronto. 

Dr. Ammendolia is an Assistant Professor in the Institute of Health Policy, Management, and Evaluation, the Department of Surgery, and the Institute of Medical Sciences at the University of Toronto. 

In 2012 and 2017, Dr. Ammendolia was the recipient of the Professorship in Spine Award from the Department of Surgery in the Faculty of Medicine.  Dr. Ammendolia has been in clinical practice for over 39 years and now combines clinical practice, research, and teaching in the areas of non-operative treatment of mechanical, degenerative, and inflammatory spinal disorders with a special interest in degenerative spinal stenosis. 

In 2021. He was given the distinction of “world expert” in spinal stenosis by Expertscape based on his publication in this area in the past 10 years. ​

Our next podcast will drop in late January 2022.

In this second episode of a two-part series on Extended Health Care (EHC), Dr. Moez Rajwani returns to explore the rise of virtual chiropractic care or telehealth and how insurers, as well as patients, are responding. For this segment, he's joined by Dr. Amy Brown who shares her experience with virtual care and how she's using it in her Cambridge-based practice.  

Dr. Rajwani also highlights the perils of incentives and why you'll want to avoid them. For new chiropractic grads and early career practitioners, he offers specific EHC tips. He also revisits OCA's Extended Health Care Guide and as an example,  outlines how you can use one of its unique templates. Finally, Dr. Rajwani discusses how the pandemic is affecting EHC, what its future may look like and how this may impact your practice.

Topics Covered:

• Why you'll want to  avoid incentives
• How chiropractors are using virtual care or telehealth
• Virtual care trends and patient feedback
• Insurers and virtual care
• How the COVID-19 pandemic is impacting EHC
• Keeping up with EHC providers and fluctuating rules
• What new grads should note about EHC
• How new grads can use the EHC guide and its tools
• Working effectively with insurers and their patients

Key Links Discussed:

• Understanding Extended Health Care: The chiropractor’s guide to patient support and administrative compliance (access restricted to OCA members)
• The Patient’s Guide to Extended Health Care Coverage

About Dr. Moez Rajwani:

Dr. Rajwani is Vice President of Clinical Services at North York Rehab Clinic (NYRC), where he manages and works with a multidisciplinary team of medical consultants overseeing complex medical evaluations. He also practises and manages orthopedic rehabilitation centres in the Greater Toronto Area (GTA).

He is also Executive Director of the Future Ready Initiative, which aims to increase the community’s preparedness, as well as its resilience in the face of disruptive changes in the area of the future of work. 

An active volunteer, Dr. Rajwani serves as the Co-Chair of the Coalition of Health Professional Associations in Auto Insurance Services in Ontario and is a board member at Michael Garron Hospital. He is also on the Board of Directors for World Spine Care (WSC) Canada.

Dr. Rajwani is a recipient of the Queen’s Golden Jubilee Volunteer Award, the OCA Volunteer Service Award, and an award from the Ministry of Citizenship for 25 years of service to the community.

He graduated as a Doctor of Chiropractic in 1994 and has post-graduate certifications in Occupational Health and Sport Sciences.

About Dr. Amy Brown

Dr. Brown divides her time between Coronation Chiropractic, Massage, & Physiotherapy, her private community-based practice, and a practice onsite at Langs Community Health Centre. 

She is also an Advanced Practice Clinician with Ontario’s Low Back Rapid Access Clinic (RAC) program and a treating chiropractor with Health2Work. The Heath2Work program provides chiropractic assessment and treatment for clients of the Ontario Works program who have MSK conditions.  

In addition, she works as a consultant to the Ontario Chiropractic Association, contributing to health policy-related work, outreach and advocacy.  

Dr. Brown graduated from the Canadian Memorial Chiropractic College (CMCC) in 2001. 

Watch for Chiropractic Care for Patients with Arthritis -  coming on November 15, 2021 

This two-part series on Extended Health Care (EHC) will help you keep up with trends and work effectively with insurers across Ontario. In episode one, Dr. Moez Rajwani discusses how EHC is evolving and what that means to chiropractors like you. From cost containment to digital transformation, he highlights current trends and outlines what you need to know to support your patients and protect your practice. He also chats about the pros and cons of preferred provider networks and how big data is informing insurers’ questions and actions.  Tune in to also hear about the rise of audits and how to prepare for one.  

And Dr. Rajwani suggests how your practice can use OCA’s Extended Health Care Guide and its tools, resources and information on leading EHC insurance practices to protect you and your patients.

Topics Covered:

• OCA’s Extended Health Care Advisory goals
• What makes extended health care (EHC) relationships complex
• How OCA’s Extended Health Care Guide can help your practice
• Key trends in EHC: cost containment insurance, preferred provider networks, digital transformation and more
• What today’s insurers are asking about treatments and patients’ conditions
• Types of preferred provider networks and their impact
• Rise of adjudication and evidence-based questions
• Types of audits and how to prepare for one
• Sharing members’ experience through forthcoming OCA Audit Tool
• Increasing audits and who’s affected

Key Links Discussed:

• Understanding Extended Health Care: The chiropractor’s guide to patient support and administrative compliance (access restricted to OCA members)
• The Patient’s Guide to Extended Health Care Coverage

About Dr. Moez Rajwani:

Dr. Rajwani is Vice President of Clinical Services at North York Rehab Clinic (NYRC), where he manages and works with a multidisciplinary team of medical consultants overseeing complex medical evaluations. He also practises and manages orthopedic rehabilitation centres in the Greater Toronto Area (GTA).

He is also Executive Director of the Future Ready Initiative, which aims to increase the community’s preparedness, as well as its resilience in the face of disruptive changes in the area of the future of work. 

An active volunteer, Dr. Rajwani serves as the Co-Chair of the Coalition of Health Professional Associations in Auto Insurance Services in Ontario and is a board member at Michael Garron Hospital. He is also on the Board of Directors for World Spine Care (WSC) Canada.

Dr. Rajwani is a recipient of the Queen’s Golden Jubilee Volunteer Award, the OCA Volunteer Service Award and an award from the Ministry of Citizenship for 25 years of service to the community.

He graduated as a Doctor of Chiropractic in 1994 and has post-graduate certifications in Occupational Health and Sport Sciences.

Watch for Part 2: EHC and Virtual Care, Post-Pandemic and More -  coming on October 15, 2021 

In the second episode of this two-part series, chiropractor Dr. Albert Scales explains how he contacts and builds rapport with a prescribing health care professional to collaboratively help a patient with an opioid dependency.  Tune in to hear how he coordinates care to help their shared patient safely taper their use of opioids to treat their neuromusculoskeletal (spine, muscle, joint, and related nervous system) pain, while staying within the chiropractor’s scope of practice.  Dr. Scales also discusses when and how to use OCA’s Opioid and Pain Reduction Collaborative’s tools, including the Manual Therapy as an Evidence-Based Referral for Musculoskeletal Pain Clinical Tool developed with the Centre for Effective Practice (CEP).

Topics covered:

• Initiating contact with a patient's prescribing health care professional
• Clues your patient may provide to help you approach their MD or NP
• When to contact a patient's prescribing health care professional
• Report/update content and tone that resonates with a patient's MD or NP
• How coordinating care helped one patient reduce her opioid dependency (case study example)
• A Nurse Practitioner's role in care coordination
• Using the OCA’s Opioid and Pain Reduction Collaborative’s Chiropractors’ Toolkit to provide an informed referral and build rapport
• Ways to use OCA's Manual Therapy as an Evidence-Based Referral for Musculoskeletal Pain Clinical Tool, developed with the Centre for Effective Practice (CEP)
• Why now is the time for chiropractors to help address the opioid crisis

Key links discussed:

• Address the Opioid Crisis (OCA’s initiative)
• CEP- Manual Therapy as an Evidence-Based Referral for Musculoskeletal Pain Clinical Tool
• Chiropractor Toolkit to Address the Opioid Crisis

About Dr. Albert Scales:

Since 1981, chiropractor Dr. Albert Scales has treated many patients recovering from automobile accidents and workplace injuries, including many with opioid dependencies. He also served as a chiropractic consultant for WSIB Ontario’s Hamilton office for 10 years and has worked for 20 years as an Independent Medical Evaluator for automobile accident claims.

Dr. Scales is familiar with OCA’s Opioid and Pain Reduction Collaborative, having participated in a focus group to inform its development.

His multi-disciplinary practice is located at Lakeshore Chiropractic Group in St. Catharines, Ontario.   He is also a chiropractic provider at Quest Community Health Centre.

Dr. Scales is the current president of the Niagara Chiropractic Society, a Rotarian, and received OCA’s Political Service Award in 2004 and its Community Services Award in 2001. He graduated from the Canadian Memorial Chiropractic College (CMCC).

We are taking a break in August for you to enjoy your summer but will be back on September 15, with an episode on How Extended Health Care Trends Affect Your Practice.

In part one of this two-part series, St. Catharines-based chiropractor and OCA member Dr. Albert Scales discusses his experience engaging patients who are using opioids to treat their neuromusculoskeletal (nMSK) pain. Tune in to hear how he raises the topic with patients and discusses contacting their prescribing health professional to coordinate their care while staying within the chiropractic profession’s scope. Dr. Scales also shares his ideas on how you can use OCA’s Opioid and Pain Reduction Collaborative tools to gently move this process forward. 

Topics covered:

• Unique attributes of patients who’ve been in auto accidents or had workplace injuries
• Identifying a patient who has an opioid dependency
• How and when patients reveal an opioid dependency
• Encouraging these patients to pursue a treatment plan
• Attaining maximum value from OCA’s Opioid and Pain Reduction Collaborative’s chiropractors’ toolkit and using it to initiate dialogue
• Winning back patients who quit
• Maintaining long-term trust

Key links discussed:

• Address the Opioid Crisis (OCA’s initiative)
• Chiropractor Toolkit to Address the Opioid Crisis
• Chiropractor Dialogue Map

About Dr. Albert Scales:

Since 1981, chiropractor Dr. Albert Scales has treated many patients recovering from automobile accidents and workplace injuries, including many with opioid dependencies. He also served as a chiropractic consultant for WSIB Ontario’s Hamilton office for 10 years and has worked for 20 years as an Independent Medical Evaluator for automobile accident claims.

Dr. Scales is familiar with OCA’s Opioid and Pain Reduction Collaborative, having participated in a focus group to inform its development.

His multi-disciplinary practice is located at Lakeshore Chiropractic Group in St. Catharines, Ontario.   He is also a chiropractic provider at Quest Community Health Centre.

Dr. Scales is the current president of the Niagara Chiropractic Society, a Rotarian and received OCA’s Political Service Award in 2004 and its Community Services Award in 2001. He graduated from the Canadian Memorial Chiropractic College (CMCC).

Watch for Part 2: Building Rapport with a Prescribing Health Care Professional coming on July 15, 2021.

If you're a member of the Ontario Chiropractic Association, this podcast is for you. But many of the topics we'll discuss with varied guests have a wide-reaching impact and will also likely be of interest to other professionals in Ontario's broader health ecosystem.

Listen to this trailer to learn more.

Trailer text:

You’re a chiropractor practising in a rapidly evolving profession in Canada’s largest province (by population).

You joined the Ontario Chiropractic Association for programs, services, and resources. What else?

I bet you want the backstory and how it helps your practice.

That’s why we launched ON Spinal Chat – your OCA podcast.

I’m Leslie and each month I’ll interview your colleagues, other health care professionals, or experts about what OCA is doing or supporting to:

• Help enhance your patient care

• Grow your practice or

• Advance the chiropractic profession

So take us on your commute, lunch break, or run to get the in-depth value of member care in 30 minutes or less – and then, you can start using it today.

Having led innovative interdisciplinary clinics focused on treating pain and preserving wellness for more than 40 years, Dr. Angela Mailis believes interprofessional collaboration is the best way to deliver pain management. In this part one episode of a two-part series we chat with Dr. Mailis, a physiatrist, specialist pain physician, clinical professor, and leading authority on the diagnosis and management of chronic pain. She’s joined by Dr. Demetry Assimakopoulos, OCA’s 2022 Dr. Michael Brickman Heart and Hands Award winner, who has worked collaboratively with Dr. Mailis since 2015. Together, they share their best practice approaches to pain management. Dr. Mailis also outlines her introduction to chiropractic care, the role chiropractors play in her clinic and what she seeks in the DCs she hires. 

Topics Covered:

• Physician-led Pain & Wellness Centre in Vaughan and its interdisciplinary model
• The Centre's innovative culture, patient-centred communications and supports to optimize it
• Dr. Assimankopoulos' approach to pain management
• Unique features of Demetry's work and environment
• How Dr. Mailis learned about chiropractors and what surprised her
• Demetry's  transition to the Univerity Health Network (UHN)
• Evolution of chiropractic care at UHN
• Role and value of chiropractors at the Centre
• Dr. Mailis' message to other physicians
• Top three attributes Dr. Mailis seeks in chiropractors

Key Links to References/Resources Discussed:

• Pain & Wellness Centre in Vaughan
• Comprehensive Integrated Pain Management Program at UHN

About Dr. Angela Mailis:

Dr. Mailis is a specialist in Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation, has a Master's Degree from the Institute of Medical Science, University of Toronto, has served as Senior Investigator with the Krembil Neuroscience Centre/ University Health Network up to 2015, and became a full professor at the Department of Medicine, University of Toronto in 2005. She is a member of the School of Graduate Studies at the University of Toronto and is currently an Adjunct Clinical Professor, Faculty of Medicine, University of Toronto, Division of Physical Medicine. Since she started practising in 1982, her clinical and research interests focus on the diagnosis and management of chronic pain.

Dr. Mailis founded and directed the Comprehensive Pain Program of the Toronto Western Hospital, University Health Network (1982-2015) and continues to be a full member of the Division of Physical Medicine and Consultant at the University Health Network Comprehensive Integrated Pain Program.

She is a national Evidence-Based Guideline developer, Chair of ACTION Ontario since 2005 (a not-for-profit organization for education and advocacy for patients with neuropathic pain), and a highly respected medicolegal expert in matters of chronic pain across the country.

Dr. Mailis has published more than 130 peer-reviewed scientific papers; credited with “first publications in the world” on a number of pain conditions; recognized as an international expert on specific specialty areas; has trained numerous students and international trainees; and has lectured around the world on matters of chronic pain.

She is also a Popular Science writer (has written BEYOND PAIN published in the USA and Canada) and CARP-Advocacy electronic newsletter contributor monthly (2009-2014), while her new book “Smart, Successful and Abused” will be published in September 2019 by Sutherland House. She has appeared on numerous media outlets (print, radio, TV) over the years promoting understanding and advocacy on chronic pain.

She has participated in several hospital and university committees and serves as an advisor to the Ontario Ministry of Health since 2009 as well as federal committees and health panels.

Dr. Mailis was nominated to the 75 semi-finalists “top immigrants” in Canada for 2011. She is a recipient of the Hellenic Women’s Coming of Age Celebration Award (May 2004); Division of Physiatry, University of Toronto, Achievement Award (June 2005); the 2013 Canadian Pain Society Harold Merskey Award; and the Division of Physiatry Life Award in 2014.

As of September 2014, Dr. Mailis created an interdisciplinary best-practices community pain clinic in Vaughan (Pain & Wellness Centre). The Centre was proclaimed in October 2016 by the Ontario Ministry of Health the “Demonstration Project of Ontario” as the template for further similar community-based clinics, that connect the community to the academic hospitals. The Pain and Wellness Centre not only offers chronic pain consultations but serves as an educational hub for numerous trainees, and also a research centre studying chronic pain in the community.

About Dr. Demetry Assimakopoulos ('Dr. Demetry'):

Dr. Demetry received his specialized honours undergraduate degree from York University in 2008. He concurrently earned a specialty in Fitness Assessment and Exercise Counseling, and the title of Certified Exercise Physiologist (CEP) through the Canadian Society for Exercise Physiology (CSEP).

Dr. Demetry graduated from the Canadian Memorial Chiropractic College (CMCC) in 2012 and immediately began practising in midtown Toronto. In 2014, Dr. Demetry became the Clinical Coordinator for the University Health Network (UHN) Comprehensive Integrated Pain Program at The Toronto Rehabilitation Institute. In the hospital setting, Demetry works with a team of physicians, nurses, occupational therapists, and physiotherapists to adequately diagnose and manage chronic pain. 

He earned his diplomate in chronic pain management through the Canadian Academy of Pain Management in 2015. He has since been hosted by several provincial associations across Canada to lecture to health care providers on the conservative and interdisciplinary management of chronic pain. He was happy to finally join the fabulous team at the Pain and Wellness Centre in November 2017.

Dr. Demetry was voted to receive the members' choice  2022 Dr. Michael Brickman Heart and Hands Award  from the Ontario Chiropractic Association  for embodying a generous and giving spirit (the heart) with remarkable passion and dedication to chiropractic care (the hands).