Michael Desrochers knows pain.
That comes with the territory when you’ve been a registered massage therapist (RMT) for 20 years.
But pain and the journey back to well being are not linear issues – no two pathways towards recovery are the same.
And what about bedside manner, or digging into the psychology of recovery?
This is where the painPRO advantage shines.
And this advantage will soon be in the heart of Coquitlam Centre, as the company opens up its newest location near Glen Drive and Pacific Street on Feb. 1.
“Ultimately, our goal is to find out what it is the patient wants to accomplish and what the goals are in terms of what the patient is trying to get back to – that could be picking up a grandchild or getting back into sports,” explains Desrochers, painPRO’s founder and CEO.
The painPRO approach is one of being totally comprehensive, rather than working in silos. As you recover, a massage therapist could work alongside a physiotherapist to facilitate your injury recovery, or a chiropractor could team up with an acupuncturist to get you back on your feet.
And the list of health services painPRO provides is vast: registered massage therapy (RMT), physiotherapy, chiropractic, medical doctor telemedicine, kinesiology, active rehabilitation, functional fitness, clinical pilates, registered clinical counselling, and acupuncture.
Outside of treating the physical ailments, Desrochers’s team ensures that a patient’s mental health and well-being are also taken into account through what’s referred to as the biopsychosocial model of care.
This care model shows that pain can be exacerbated by social isolation and emotional unrest that can lead to anxiety and depression – and those factors can actually slow the recovery process down.
The painPRO team members utilize this line of thinking to peel back a patient’s condition beyond the surface of a sprained ankle or cracked ribs to lend peace of mind to the recovery process.
“We create a calming environment for patients to come in to where they feel safe and they feel cared for,” Desrochers says. “Any clinic can say that, but we actually train our staff in how to talk to people, how to question, how to listen and how to dig deep. The pain can sometimes have less to do with the injury and more to do with the circumstances in your life.”
Listening and listening with care are the operative terms at painPRO. Simply relying on charts or best practices without properly hearing a patient’s concern does not move the needle towards recovery.
“One thing I’ve learned over the years is that a patient’s outcome improves when they feel heard,” Desrochers says. “We try to hire humble people so that we have open-minded staff because we’re developing relationships by solving problems through active listening and a willingness to improve.”
painPRO’s move into Coquitlam Centre comes with a sense of community and giving back for Desrochers. He’s partnered with a local dance and theatre group Arts Umbrella to give bursaries to students and treat others who’ve suffered injuries for little to no cost.
“There are some dancers who felt like their careers had ended due to the injury they sustained, but we were able to get them back at it,” Desrochers says. “With young kids like that dancing is their everything, so when they think it’s over and we’re able to bring them back to something they love, it means the world to them.”
To learn more about painPRO’s services and locations, visit painproclinics.com.
