You went to the ER or urgent care. They told you nothing was broken, gave you a prescription, and referred you to physical therapy. Nobody mentioned a chiropractor, and calling a lawyer never crossed your mind. That's the most common path after a crash, and this page explains what a chiropractic accident evaluation can add to it. ¿Prefiere español? Lea en español.
Nothing on this page is a reason to stop your medication or skip physical therapy. Your doctor's job was to rule out fractures and serious injury, and to get your pain under control. If you come in, tell us what you're taking and what PT has you doing. We'll let your doctor know you've started care here and why.
Rules out fractures, internal injuries, and anything life-threatening. It usually isn't set up to evaluate soft tissue and joint injuries in detail, or to follow them over weeks.
Makes pain manageable so you can sleep and function. It can also make it harder to tell how much pain you'd have without it, so we ask what you're taking and when.
Exercises and hands-on work to restore strength and movement, usually on the schedule your doctor ordered.
An exam focused on the joints and soft tissue of the spine after a crash, measured with the same validated scales at every re-evaluation, and documented visit by visit.
Months after a crash, when an insurance company asks what your injuries were, the answer comes from what was written down at the time. Symptoms from a collision commonly show up 24–72 hours afterward, and they change over the following weeks. If the only record is an ER note from the day of the crash, the weeks that followed aren't documented anywhere.
We measure at the first visit, at each re-evaluation, and at discharge, including what you've stopped doing since the crash: lifting your kid, working a full shift, driving more than twenty minutes. That record exists whether or not you ever file a claim or hire anyone.
Plenty of people don't want to "make it a whole thing." That's your decision, and it doesn't stop you from getting care. In California you can see a chiropractor directly, without a lawyer and without a referral. Care can be paid through your own auto insurance or MedPay, the other driver's insurance, or a lien if you do have an attorney. We verify your coverage and confirm your cost in writing before your first visit.
If you later decide to talk to a lawyer, the records from your care will already exist. For step-by-step help with the claim side, see the Crash Kit and the car accident insurance cheat sheet.
Same-day appointments in downtown Oakland, in English or Spanish. We see patients from Fruitvale, East Oakland, West Oakland, and across the East Bay.
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