Should I trust a health care provider that offers other therapies that I consider fraud?
We have two beautiful children, a set of 7 years old identical twins. Sharing the same genetic code, they share many of their talents and challenges. One of their (few) challenges lies in their fine motor skills, which makes it harder for them to learn to write.
Their school suggested a physical therapist (or physiotherapist) specialized in children, which they have good experiences with. Our initial contacts so far have proven pleasant and promising. Checking out their website, however, I noticed they offer some other therapies as well, tat I consider highly disputable. For instance: therapy aimed at infants in which they stimulate the neck muscles and vertebra to combat the KISS-syndrome. (Most of the scientific world considers this syndrome as nonsense and this therapy as dangerous.)
My dilemma is that my wife and I are about to hand our children into the care of people that work for the same ‘clinic’ that offers therapies we both consider to be fraud. My wife’s thinks we should just continue since we will not be ‘using’ the disputed therapies and most if not all physiotherapists are engaged with the ‘alternative scene’ in some way or another.
I am hesitant, since I feel we are about to engage with people that work in a highly questionable facility.
I would appreciate your thoughts
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12 Answers
Get a second opinion if you’re uncomfortable.
As long as you only give permission for the one therapy, and the therapists are properly certified, I don’t see what the other practices have to do with it.
I guess I’m a little confused. Is it the clinic that offers the therapies you consider questionable, or is it the therapists themselves? If it’s the therapists, just ask for another referral. If it’s the clinic, it might be worth at least meeting with the therapists to see what their viewpoints are. If they seem squirrelly, then you can bail out.
I the therapist specializes in what your child needs stay the course. The alternate therapies merely shows they are open to other things that may enhance their specialty and their practice is all. If you are certain it is a highly questionable facility why would you be there though in the first place??
I would interview the therapists that you are going to be working with. Tell them your discomfort with the therapies on the web site, and reassure yourselves through questions that these are trustworthy people who are going to apply proven techniques with your kids.
I would do whatever is best for your daughters. If the doctors at this clinic are highly recommended for their type of therapy then I would not worry about the other things they do.
Personally, I would share your discomfort and would try to find a different clinic with a good reputation that did not engage in these questionable techniques.
From what I’ve been able to gather the treatment you describe falls into the category of chiropractic medicine rather than traditional medicine. This isn’t necessarily a bad thing if it prompts them to take a holistic approach to your child’s well-being. I think you will be alright if you simply make your preferences known that you don’t want that kind of therapeutic modality.
It’s up to you which therapies to use. If the facility uses therapies you are happy with also why would you refuse the facility. My HMO offers acupuncture which I don’t believe in but that doesn’t stop me from using the resources I do believe.
BTW the weekly therapy sessions are not going to make a big difference. It is you and your wife learning the techniques and incorporating them into daily activities that will have the greatest effect.
Thank you all, for your thoughts. I will do as @marinelife suggested. I would feel too uneasy w/o at least reassuring my worries with the therapists that will treat my boys [@Supacase ;-)].
These therapists are indeed not the same individuals that offer the therapies that my worries stem from. Otherwise I would definitely go somewhere else. It still worries me, that they associate themselves with the clinic though, since I truly believe that what their colleagues do is dangerous, fraudulent and therefore unethical.
Again… thanks and lurve to you all…
@whitenoise Sometimes “clinics” are just places that basically rent space and other services to individual therapists, sometimes they are collectives of therapists with similar beliefs. I think you are right in trying to find out what the exact relationship of this particular individual to the rest is.
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