The guidelines outlined by the New York State Workers Compensation Board are designed to assist healthcare professionals in establishing continuous maintenance care for individuals with specific health conditions. These directives aim to support physicians and healthcare practitioners in creating and implementing an enduring care plan to oversee and sustain the ongoing well-being of patients.
Healthcare professionals specializing in ongoing maintenance care can rely on the guidance provided by the Workers Compensation Board to make well-informed decisions about the most appropriate and effective strategies for continuous healthcare.
It is important to stress that these guidelines are not intended to replace clinical judgment or professional expertise. The ultimate decision regarding ongoing maintenance care should involve collaboration between the patient and their healthcare provider.
Ongoing Maintenance Care
Following a diagnosis of Maximum Medical Improvement (MMI), a maintenance plan involving physical therapy, occupational therapy, or spinal manipulation (administered by a physician, chiropractor, or physical therapist) might be considered in specific cases, particularly when linked to preserving functional abilities. Despite the current scientific evidence not consistently supporting the routine use of such interventions, there are situations where maintenance therapy modalities are deemed appropriate. It’s advisable for select patients, aiming to sustain functional status, especially if prior medical records show an objectively documented decline in function. The frequency should not exceed ten visits annually after reaching MMI, with no deviations allowed from this maximum frequency.
Explanation:
– It’s crucial to set specific and measurable goals to justify the need for continuous maintenance care.
– Gradually try longer periods without therapeutic interventions to see if the achieved goals can be sustained without active medical involvement.
– Conduct a trial without maintenance treatment within the first year and then annually thereafter.
– Managing chronic neck symptoms should involve a regular patient self-management program and a self-directed pain management plan when necessary:
– Establish an independent, home-based self-management plan jointly developed by the provider and patient to encourage physical and work activities despite lingering pain, aiming to preserve function.
– Alongside the self-management plan, create a self-directed pain management plan that the patient can initiate if symptoms worsen and function declines.
– If there’s evidence of a decline in the ability to maintain function, reinstating ongoing maintenance care may be considered.
Note: Continuous Maintenance Care is part of the Functional Maintenance Care recommendations outlined in the New York Non-Acute Pain Medical Treatment Guidelines. For more details, refer to the New York Non-Acute Pain Medical Treatment Guidelines.
