July 9, 2012

The article included in this message stimulates serious reflection about the efficacy of our educational systems along with our moral and ethical standards.

In the past week alone, evidence has emerged that JP Morgan Chase gambled away 9 billion dollars of investor assets, nevertheless I am confident that management will not reduce their unrealistic, bloated salaries.

In the same week, Barclays Bank was fined $500,000,000.00 for cheating the world at large by conspiring to fix the Libor rate, the basis of the international financial system, and now GlaxoSmithKline —- one of the so-called protectors of our health status has committed what I feel is the most serious fraud of all, as the article clearly confirms.

The first two criminal activities are only monetary in scope, but this one plays with your health and indeed facilitates your demise while profiting from the process.

Really, what is the world coming to?

GLOBE AND MAIL – JESSE J. HOLLAND

GlaxoSmithKline Plc agreed to plead guilty to misdemeanor criminal charges and pay $3 billion to settle what government officials on Monday described as the largest case of healthcare fraud in U.S. history.

The agreement, which still needs court approval, would resolve allegations that the British drugmaker broke U.S. laws in the marketing and development of pharmaceuticals.

GSK targeted the antidepressant Paxil to patients under age 18 when it was approved for adults only, and it pushed the drug Wellbutrin for uses it was not approved for, including weight loss and treatment of sexual dysfunction, according to an investigation led by the U.S. Justice Department.

The company went to extreme lengths to promote the drugs, such as distributing a misleading medical journal article and providing doctors with meals and spa treatments that amounted to illegal kickbacks, prosecutors said.

In a third instance, GSK failed to give the U.S. Food and Drug Administration safety data about its diabetes drug Avandia, in violation of U.S. law, prosecutors said.

The misconduct continued for years beginning in the late 1990s and continued, in the case of Avandia’s safety data, through 2007. GSK agreed to plead guilty to three misdemeanor criminal counts, one each related to the three drugs.

Guilty pleas in cases of alleged corporate misconduct are exceedingly rare, making GSK’s agreement especially unusual.

The agreement to settle the charges “is unprecedented in both size and scope,” said James Cole, the No. 2 official at the U.S. Justice Department. He called the action “historic” and “a clear warning to any company that chooses to break the law.”

The settlement includes $1 billion in criminal fines and $2 billion in civil fines.

GSK said in a statement it would pay the fines through existing cash resources. The company announced a $3 billion charge in November related to legal claims.

Chief Executive Officer Andrew Witty said the misconduct originated “in a different era for the company” and will not be tolerated. “I want to express our regret and reiterate that we have learnt from the mistakes that were made,” he said in a written statement.

The GSK settlement surpasses what had been the largest criminal case involving a drugmaker in U.S. history. In 2009, Pfizer Inc agreed to pay $2.3 billion to settle allegations it improperly marketed 13 drugs.

The cases follow a trend of U.S. authorities cracking down on how pharmaceuticals are sold, in part because of the rising cost of providing drugs through government programs.

Part of civil fines address allegations that, from 1994 to 2003, GSK underpaid money owed to Medicaid, the healthcare program for the poor run jointly by states and the federal government. The company had an obligation to tell the government its “best prices” but failed to do so, prosecutors said, and $300 million of the settlement will go to states and other public health authorities.

A portion of the $2 billion in civil fines may go to a group of whistleblowers who contributed to the government’s investigation and who are eligible to share in the recovery under the False Claims Act. Cole said the amount has not been determined.

As part of the settlement, GlaxoSmithKline agreed to new restrictions by the U.S. government to prevent the use of kickbacks or other prohibited practices. The inspector general of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services will oversee the “Corporate Integrity Agreement” for five years.

The company will not be able to compensate its salesmen based on sales goals for territories. It was also required to change its executive compensation program to allow the company to “claw back” certain pay for those engaged in misconduct.

Witty said GSK’s U.S. unit has “fundamentally changed our procedures for compliance, marketing and selling. When necessary, we have removed employees who have engaged in misconduct.”

Prosecutors have not brought criminal charges against any individuals in connection with the GSK case, although the settlement expressly leaves open that possibility. Cole declined to comment on the possibility of future charges.

Almost exactly a year ago GSK agreed to pay nearly $41 million to 37 states and the District of Columbia in an unrelated case about substandard manufacturing processes at a Puerto Rico factory.

In 2010, the company took a $2.4 billion charge in connection with Avandia to settle claims from patients.

Congratulations are in order to Adena Springs Stables, Chad Brown the trainer and Jeffrey Sanchez the jockey, on winning today at Gulfstream Park. This brings Awesome Feather’s undefeated streak to nine over the course of her short career.

The victory was truly impressive as she went into the lead mid-race and won by six lengths over Delightful Mary, who ran 2nd after putting on a tremendous late charge.

Our previous commentary on this horse October 5, 2011, Awesome Feather Wins Comeback at Belmont, provides a description of her progress after she was sidelined by a “bowed tendon”, subsequent to her 7th victory.

After her 7th race she was treated extensively with the BioFlex Laser Therapy System and has made a complete recovery from her injury, as indicated by her victory in the Gazelle on November 26, 2011 and confirmed by today’s spectacular win.

F Kahn, MD

‘Feather’ blows ‘em away

Awesome Feather lived up to her first name, putting on a dazzling show in Gulfstream’s Sunshine Millions card Saturday.

The 2-year-old champion of 2010 galloped to an almost six-length win in the $300,000 Distaff to remain undefeated in her nine-race career.

Awesome Feather won the mile and eighth stakes as if she was just toying with a well credentialed field. She stalked Tiz the Argument, who had won her past three starts by more than 15 lengths, to the far turn. Jeffrey Sanchez gave Awesome Feather her cue and she accelerated effortlessly past the early leader.

Delightful Mary, going for her third straight, charged up to challenge but Sanchez let out another notch and it was over. Awesome Feather, the 4-to-5 favorite, increased her margin with every stride, crossing under the wire in 1:49.17. Delightful Mary held second over late-running Sweet Repent.

“She just exploded like she always does,” Sanchez said. “She’s the best horse I’ve ever ridden. She’s the best filly in the world.”

Awesome Feather missed most of 2011 with a tendon injury. Trainer Chad Brown said as good as she is there might be more to come. “She’s a remarkable horse. I don’t know that we’ve seen all her gears. I really have never pressed the gas pedal. I’m afraid to.”

Awesome Feather remains undefeated in nine starts with earnings of almost $1.7 million.

On Wednesday, December 28th, 2011, I noted an article by Neil Reynolds in the Toronto Globe and Mail. This piece aptly explains the economic morass, currently prevailing.
In essence, the problem results from the existing poor leadership in so many countries and at so many levels. All decisions, in one form or another, emanate from the top and poor leaders impoverished in thought and action can only produce a negative impact, leading to disastrous outcomes in health-care, economic status, etc.
To reverse this process is frequently difficult – if not impossible. All countries and organizations must therefore periodically re-examine and revise their form of governance, in order to establish a structure that functions in an effective and reasonable manner.
In the age of technology, it is no longer permissible to state that “this is the best we have”; all countries and institutions must strive to become better. The initiation of this step is of the utmost importance, although sometimes it may lead to revolution.
At Meditech, we are aware of our mission to achieve a high level of success in treating a diverse number of pathologies, as we are focused on that objective at all times.
Similarly, in the political arena, the focus of the state should be on the welfare of its population and nothing else. Unfortunately at this time this does not appear to be the case; it is imperative that solutions be found and implemented.
______________________________________________________________________
Globe and Mail – Tuesday, Dec. 27, 2011
The moose and the modern welfare state
NEIL REYNOLDS
Dr. Seuss’s story of Thidwick moose begins one autumn day on the northern shore of Lake Winna-Bango where a herd of moose – big-hearted Thidwick and 60 others – are seeking moose moss to munch. A Bingle Bug happens by and asks Thidwick for permission to ride on his antlers. Thidwick consents: He has plenty of antler to share. The bug tells a tree spider about the deal and the spider is soon building webs in Thidwick’s antlers.
A bird settles next, then the bird’s wife, and then the bird’s uncle, a woodpecker who drills holes in the antlers and makes nesting places for four squirrels. More squatters arrive: a bobcat, a turtle, three mice, a fox, a bear, and 362 bees. Winter approaches and Thidwick must get to the lake’s distant southern shore. His beneficiaries refuse permission. They proceed to decide the argument democratically and, predictably, Thidwick loses the vote. Suddenly, the big-hearted moose realizes that he has lost his freedom – and that he lives solely for the creatures who have staked claims to his benevolence.
It would be mean to reveal the ending but as the author himself put it, in life-cycle terms, the “old horns came off so that new ones can grow.” Thus concludes the cautionary tale of Theodore Seuss Geisel’s Thidwick, the Big-Hearted Moose, a parable more evocative now than when first published in 1948. Mr. Geisel was famously liberal, a champion of FDR’s New Deal, yet his liberalism was neither squishy nor sentimental. He once said that his children’s stories were “as subversive as hell,” as Thidwick’s adventures in a modern welfare state wickedly confirm.
Across Europe these days, countries are taking a lesson from Thidwick and shedding tens of thousands of public-sector workers. Much pseudo austerity has taken place. But many benevolent countries are shaking off civil servants at a rapid clip: 20,000 in Denmark; 55,000 in Germany; 70,000 in Romania; 13,000 in Spain – and 490,000, over four years, in Britain.
Other countries prefer hefty salary cuts. In Greece, public-sector wages have been cut by 25 per cent; in the Czech Republic, by as much as 40 per cent.
For these countries, austerity is a form of repentance for cheating, after years in which they routinely borrowed and spent more than they were permitted by European Union rules. They had pledged to keep budget deficits to less than 3 per cent of GDP. In 2009, of the 27 EU countries, 21 were in violation of this commitment, with Britain (at 14.4 per cent) the worst fiscal offender of all.
Sweden was perhaps the most fiscally disciplined of the EU countries, a discipline maintained since the 1990s when it hit the wall early on (as did Canada). In 2009, Sweden’s deficit was running at 0.9 per cent of GDP, the lowest in Europe. It became the only euro-club member to need no extraordinary fiscal restraint.
Paradoxically, however, Sweden employs more public-sector workers, as a percentage of labour force, than any other OECD country: 31 per cent. (South Korea employs the fewest: 7 per cent.) In its analysis of public-sector employment in Canada, Statistics Canada provides an answer. The further a government goes into debt, Statscan says, the more aggressively it tends to cut public-sector jobs, an ostensibly obvious conclusion that nevertheless leads to intriguing tradeoffs. People who want to expand public-sector payrolls must logically champion paying down of the debt. Sweden has roughly half the federal-provincial public debt of Canada, and sets a good example of pay-as-you-go government.
Canada sustains 3.6 million public-sector workers – one in every five jobs in the entire economy. The country went through a public-sector downsizing in the 1990s but has since more than replaced the jobs that disappeared. In Newfoundland and Labrador, public-sector workers constitute 30.9 per cent of all jobs, essentially matching Sweden. In Alberta, public-sector workers constitute only 17 per cent. Go figure.
Statscan identifies a number of idiosyncratic traits in provincial public-sector employment. The Atlantic provinces employ far more public-sector workers, with 135 per 1,000 inhabitants, than the Canadian average of 105.8. British Columbia and Alberta employ the fewest. Nurtured in socialism, Saskatchewan requires 50 per cent more workers, per 1,000 inhabitants, than Alberta, its next-door neighbour. And Ontario employs more than one million public-sector workers – roughly 100,000 more than when Premier Mike Harris left office in 2002.

Awesome Feather is a horse that was purchased by Stronach Stables after she won a Breeder’s Cup Stakes Race last fall. After the race, she went lame and was found to have a defect in a major tendon (bowed tendon).

The horse was treated with the BioFlex Laser Therapy System and over 40 treatments were
applied, over a 3 month period. After the lesion had healed, rehabilitation began in the form of a training schedule.

Today was the filly’s first race since her Breeder’s Cup win and the facts speak for themselves.

Without Laser Therapy, this horse’s future as a racehorse was questionable, at best. With Laser, it is obvious that she has made a complete recovery.

Once again, the efficacy of Laser Therapy has been validated.

F Kahn, MD

BELMONT, N.Y. – Awesome Feather, last year’s champion 2-year-old filly, made a successful return to the races Wednesday at Belmont Park, beating a modest group of challengers by two lengths in the $60,000 Le Slew Stakes.

The victory kept Awesome Feather undefeated in seven career starts and rewarded the patience of her new owner, Frank Stronach, and trainer Chad Brown.

Stronach purchased Awesome Feather for $2.3 million at auction last Nov. 7, two days after Awesome Feather won the Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Fillies for owner/breeder Fred Brei and trainer Stanley Gold at Churchill Downs.

Awesome Feather was found to have a bowed tendon shortly thereafter and needed ample time to heal.

Brown said he only had Awesome Feather about “75 percent” fit for her return, but that’s all she needed to be to defeat the New York-bred Sentimental Lass.

Under regular rider Jeffrey Sanchez, Awesome Feather stalked the pacesetting Flying Train through a quarter-mile of 22.60 seconds and a half-mile in 45.30. Awesome Feather confronted Flying Train turning for home, made the lead in upper stretch, and held Sentimental Lass at bay.

Awesome Feather, a daughter of Awesome of Course, covered seven furlongs in 1:22.76 and returned $2.50 as the overwhelming choice.

“When I saw 22 and 45 and change and she’s only a length off it – for a horse off a layoff that’s a demanding pace to chase and still have finish, so I was a little worried down the backside as far as for a victory,” Brown said. “She dug in, she has the heart to a champion. It might not have been a stellar group, but she got the job done and I think she’ll be better off for it in the long run fitness-wise.

Brown said he would wait to see how Awesome Feather came out of the race before discussing what might be next for Awesome Feather.

Adam Coglianese/NYRA

Dr. Charles Burton recently visited our Laser Clinic in Toronto and subsequently sent an excerpt from the Burton Report.

Dr. Burton is a noted authority on conditions relating to the spine and has written many articles on appropriate therapeutic procedures for problems relating to this section of the anatomy.

Spine care, specifically surgical spine care, and more specifically surgical fusion spine care in the United States has been, for much too long a period of time, the “Poster Boy” for continuing remarkably poor clinical judgment in some localities. The February 11, 2011 Wall Street Journal article titled: “Whether You Get Back Surgery May Hinge on Your ZIP Code” has pointed out this phenomenon.

It is therefore a refreshing task for Burton Report to present information on something which is safe and makes sense for the relief of spinal and joint pain as well as wound healing. Just about everyone is familiar with high intensity lasers as used in space, industry, and medicine but few know much about the world of low intensity laser therapy (LILT).

General credibility in regard to the healing powers of LILT have suffered from all too familiar “snake oil” stigma related to overkill in the enthusiastic healing claims made for these sorts of phenomena. A classic example of this was the early application of electricity in the treatment of patients It has taken the dedicated effort of pioneers such as Canadian physician Fred Kahn to clearly point out that there are appropriate and safe uses of LILT in effectively treating patient disability.

The science behind therapeutic (low) levels of laser is its ability to promote, at a molecular level, enhancement of tissue growth and thus promote healing. Because different molecules absorb different wavelengths of light therapeutic LILT encompasses mainly he red (660nm) and ultraviolet (830-840 nm) light spectrum.

As someone who has testified before the U.S. Congress regarding medical device legislation, as well as having been a past FDA Medical Device Panel Chairman, it has always been amazing to the author that the FDA has never really recognized that its responsibility was not solely that of regulating medical devices but to actually promote to the public those which were basically low cost, safe, efficacious (in the right hands), and clearly in the best interest of the patient. It is certainly time that U.S. and Canadian Health authorities begin to look more seriously at promoting important treatment modalities, of which LILT, is an excellent example, which make sense.

A good part of one’s life is spent trying to open other people’s minds often including one’s own.

I thought that I would post these comments from a physician who has been using the BioFlex Laser since 2003. Early on he was so impressed with the results obtained he donated the first $1000 for the Meditech Laser Therapy Research Fund.

Seven years later, he appears to still be happy with the technology.

Clearly he is someone who cares about making his patients well.

Fred Kahn, MD
FK / km

Fred,

You are doing some “great” things in Laser Medicine. Your conference line-up reads like a “who’s who” of Laser Medicine.

Last week I treated the Chief of Family Medicine of the Jewish General for “surgery – required” Carpal Tunnel Syndrome. He is amazed and happy – no surgery is needed.

Here in Montreal the local MDs simply don’t accept when I describe the clinical outcomes, even though I get superb results with laser since 2003! Most are skeptical – typical ivory tower attitude.

I simply go about my business and treat using laser, sometimes combined with manual medicine, massage and other “hands-on” techniques.

My practice is really more like a musculo-skeletal specialist referral practice, 2nd opinions, referral of “desperado” patients where standard therapy fails, etc. The physiatrists completely poo-poo the laser approach, of which they know nothing, aside from being resistant to learning.

Having fun and making people well, that’s the main thing!

Ciao

Robert Perlman, MD

“The budget should be balanced, the Treasury should be refilled, public debt should be reduced, the arrogance of officialdom should be tempered and controlled, assistance to foreign lands should be curtailed lest Rome become bankrupt. People must again learn to work, instead of living on public assistance.”

Cicero – 55 BC

I enclose some material at this time which has been forwarded to us by both patients and healthcare professionals describing their experiences with the BioFlex Laser Therapy System. Thought it might be of interest to you.

Patricia Gabryle, BSc(Hon), ND

Low Intensity Laser Therapy has evolved from predecessor lasers to modern laser therapy systems.

Clinically verified Laser Therapies eliminate pain and inflammation in acute and chronic conditions. Laser therapy is drug free, pain free, non-invasive, with no known side effects.

Probably the greatest beneficiaries of this technology are individuals that suffer from back pain and arthritis. This includes athletes suffering from myofascitis, facet joint syndrome, sacroiliac joint dysfunction and disc herniations with nerve root compression. More significantly, dramatic effects are obtained by sufferers of chronic degenerative osteoarthritis accompanied by spinal/foraminal stenosis with attendant neurological complications. It promotes healing for many physiological conditions, is used by most professional sports teams to repair injuries, and is one of the most effective methods of healing available today.

With “back problems” laser therapy should be the universal treatment approach and clearly establish its role as the treatment of choice.

Laser therapy

By Sue Rondquist, The Province December 22, 2010

In recent articles regarding using alternative therapy to surgery I would like to give an example of the money saved when my husband cancelled his back surgery.

My husband had been waiting for many months for a surgery to fuse his spine, and we happened across bioflex laser treatment offered in Port Moody.
It took nine treatments for my husband to feel no pain. And when the surgeon called a month later, my husband cancelled the surgery.

Our extended medical paid for this, but even if it hadn’t, it was worth the $55 per treatment, as there was no downtime, no pain and he saved the system thousands of dollars in hospital costs.

I would recommend doctors have a serious look at this and other treatments to better manage our healthcare dollars.

Dear Dr. Kahn:

I wanted to share my incredible first-hand experience with your Bioflex Low Intensity Laser Therapy (LILT) device.

A basketball injury 6 months ago resulted in a 70-80% tear of the medial head of my gastrocnemius near the musculotendinous junction. I was minutes away from “going under the knife” when the surgeon decided my case was inoperable and was prescribed a splint and physiotherapy. The result was significant Achilles tendon edema, over 50% decreased muscle strength, and a large area of scar tissue that was not responding to traditional physiotherapy, including the use of single diode LILT.

In just two weeks of Bioflex LILT treatment, my Achilles tendon edema and muscle scar tissue has decreased by close to an astonishing 50%! It was almost as if I could observe and palpate a daily difference in the healing tissues. I have been thoroughly impressed with the ease of use, adaptable LASER treatment parameters and extensive array of pre-programmed treatment options that are unique to Bioflex.

As a practitioner of close to 20 years, I have come to realize there are countless ways to manipulate injured tissues to improve function. While no one manual “technique” is superior to another – it is often the “hands on ability” of the practitioner that ultimately determines the final outcome. The missing link is restoring physiological function at a cellular level which can be achieved with incredible efficiency by the use of the adaptable multi-diode Bioflex LILT device by any educated practitioner – regardless of their “hands on skill”.

Thank you for the years of research and development that have made the Bioflex LILT device the future of tissue healing.

Regards,

David Kunashko, B.Sc., D.C.

Jakes Dekker, MD is a practitioner at Cold Lake Hospital in Cold Lake, Alberta.

January 11, 2011

From as long as I can remember I have suffered from many different back injuries, each adding a little more pain to my day to day operation. My worst pain started in November of 2002, after a fall off a tanker trailer. A WCB claim was opened and I was sent to a place called the Mallard Center, where I underwent a series of physiotherapy and pain medications. It was not long after that I was told I was healed and should be ready to go back to work. The pain levels however, were still at about a 7 or 8.

I found it very hard to operate a truck in this condition, but I muddled through. Almost exactly 2 years later, I was in an accident with my big rig, where I was forced off the road and went bouncing around in a farmer’s field in the middle of winter. This time I had compressed my spine and was again placed on WCB. I was soon sent back to the Millard Center for more of the same treatment I received the first time, that was not all that useful on either occasion, and once again I was sent back to work, supposedly healed and able to work. I was now working on a continuous pain level of 4-5 on a good day and 8-9 on a debilitating day.

I went to see Dr. Dekker with all my back problems and he did the best he could with medication and physiotherapy to keep me mobile – to a degree. It was a very brutal and painful way to live on a regular basis. My quality of life was not very good, and the only saving grace was a patient Doctor and a supporting family. He sent me to multiple specialists who seem to take forever to get anything done. Without very much progress and in constant pain, my future was looking very grim. By this time I was totally out of the work force and my financial future was pretty much at a standstill. I had nowhere to go or turn with the slow wait to see a specialist and waiting time to get in, which took anywhere from 3 months to 18 months in some cases.

It was during an appointment on one of my especially bad days with Dr. Dekker, that he mentioned this laser therapy he was working on and would hopefully be up and running soon. He asked if I was interested in being one of his test patients when it was operational. I was very excited because my quality of life had been nothing more than a short walk, with which I had to use a cane, and sometimes two. The walk would last about 10 minutes before I would have to turn around and head pretty much home bound.

So I thought, why not, what do I have to lose? I was willing to try anything at this point in order to get my life back to normal.

When I went for my consult, I was informed of all processes and what was to be expected. The briefing was very detailed and I was free to ask any questions. It was a very comfortable atmosphere and made me feel at ease right away. After the consult, we decided that we would start with a 7 block session due to the damage done and what had to be repaired.

On the first and second treatments I wasn’t noticing differences in anything. As it was explained in the consult, I was told that if it was working, it would not start showing signs until the third or fourth sessions. And they were right!! After the 3rd session, I started to notice sensations in my spine that were different, as it has been so long that all I ever had in my back was either a numbing or sharp pain. On the 4th and 5th sessions, I was starting to notice major differences not only in my pain levels but my mobility seemed to be returning. By the 6th treatment, I noticed a large difference in the amount of pain medications I was taking, and noticed that they had been cut in half. After the 7th session, I was able to bend backwards, which is something I haven’t done in years with little to no pain!

I just did a follow up with the Doctor at the end of the 7 sessions to see if there was any improvements, and once we looked back on it, we noticed that where my pain levels used to be on average a 7 or 8 out of 10, are now averaging the 4 to 5 out of 10. There have even been some mornings that I actually wake up and climb out of bed with ZERO pain!! That is something that I have not had the pleasure of experiencing for far too long!!

I have 7 more treatments to undergo and if the results are as astounding as the first 7, I should be able to return to work without restrictions. I am a strong believer that the laser therapy works way beyond my greatest expectation. Not only am I getting better where my back is concerned, but my family has noticed a major change in me in that I am going back to the man they once knew. I have nothing but greatness to say about this treatment and looking forward to returning to my old life.

From the bottom of mine, and my family’s heart, we thank you so much Dr. Dekker for giving us back our lives!

You really are a life saver.

Shawn Lamothe

Recently, we had the occasion to treat one of Canada’s top ranked golfers – Danny King.

Danny has been suffering from shoulder and neck pain over the past year and has had difficulty swinging the club to his full potential while competing and in practice. Despite that, he recently had some strong finishes including a top ten finish at an international event in Bermuda and 4th place in the CPGA Championship in Florida.

After just three treatments with the BioFlex Laser Therapy System, Danny has noted a significant improvement with regard to his symptoms and is now able to swing the club freely without any pain. His course of treatment will probably require some additional sessions and should return him to a perfect state of health. He will continue to utilize a Home Unit when he rejoins the tour in Florida later this year, in order to prevent recurrence and regenerate damaged tissues.

Danny is the current all-time money leader for the Ontario PGA having won 3 Provincial Championships and 2 Canadian PGA Championships in 2006 and 2007. Over the past several years, he has been the Director of Instruction at the Performance Academy at Magna Golf Club in Aurora. This fall he plans to attend the PGA qualifying school in order to obtain his PGA Tour card.

Danny has volunteered to introduce Laser Therapy to the golfing community, particularly the professional tours. He will display our logo on his equipment. It is expected that he will become a top touring professional assisted by BioFlex Therapy.

Personally, I predict that by the time he gets to the senior tour in a decade or so, he should become one of its top ten competitors. We wish him the best of luck in his quest to obtain his PGA Tour card as he has all the shots to become a serious competitor on that circuit.

by Heather Ferguson

Dr. Marie-Josée Robichaud and Dr. Pierre Lévesque are pleased to announce the Grand Opening of the brand new chiropractic and laser treatment facility, Clinique Robichaud-Lévesque Clinic. Located at 5 Flanders Court in Moncton, this state-of-the-art facility features chiropractic treatments, including corrective and rehabilitative care, neuroanatomical acupuncture, massage therapy, orthotic care, and the Meditech Bioflex Laser, the most innovative in therapeutic laser technology on the market today. A pioneer in the use of the Bioflex Laser System in the City of Moncton, Robichaud-Lévesque Clinic’s new facility will be open to personalized tours during a special Grand Opening celebration to be held on December 3 from 4 pm to 6 pm. A ribbon cutting ceremony will be conducted with representation from the City of Moncton Council and will include a speech by the eminent Dr. Benjamin Yuen of Halifax. Drop by for a chance to view the exciting Bioflex Laser System which proved to be the catalyst in the addition of this handsome new facility to the City of Moncton’s health care landscape.

Robichaud-Lévesque Clinic occupied former premises on Church Street for 24 years. Two years ago the practice acquired the Meditech Bioflex Laser System as an upgrade to their HeNe and Infrared Laser System. Almost immediately they experienced a growth in their patient volume as the new laser technology provided an alternative, which is non-toxic, painless and without side effects, to common forms of care. The Bioflex laser therapy was able to address a wider scope of conditions that were usually treated at the clinic, such as sports injuries, sprains and strains, arthritic conditions, as well as neck and back pain that were usually addressed in the past. The system utilizes superluminous diodes and probes which, when placed on the skin, allows photon energy to penetrate tissue and interact with intracellular biomolecules, enhancing the body’s own healing process, resulting in an accelerated rate of recovery of many injuries. The Bioflex Laser System has revolutionized the practice of Dr. Robichaud and Dr. Lévesque resulting in the need for the recent expansion in their move to their present location. “From our humble beginnings just two short years ago, and as a direct result of the incorporation of the Bioflex Laser System into our clinic, we have increased our scope of practice to include patients for whom chiropractic care would have been contraindicated or for whom previously, response was limited or again patients who would normally have fallen outside of the usual chiropractic care regimen. We have also constructed a beautiful new clinic, tripled our staff, and have enjoyed a dramatic growth in our practice in general,” says Dr. Lévesque.

Robichaud-Lévesque Clinic is well situated in the heart of Moncton, and is easily accessed by residents from all three of our communities of Moncton, Dieppe, and Riverview. A multidisciplinary centre, Robichaud-Lévesque Clinic has an open, airy ambience with plenty of natural lighting and beautiful artwork on display by renowned area artist Julie Boulianne, offering a relaxing, inviting atmosphere that is so conducive to the therapies that take place within its walls. The new facility boasts a chiropractic wing and a laser therapy clinic with consultation rooms, six chiropractic treatment rooms, and five laser treatment rooms. The services of a team of seven employees complete the staff which includes RN Susan McEniry who, along with Dr. Robichaud, administers laser treatments, and massage therapist Lisa Blanchard. Robichaud-Lévesque works in tandem with other medical and paramedical disciplines, taking referrals and encouraging people to come in for a consultation. “We recognize the value of utilizing a combination of treatment methods to obtain a desired result, and we work in association with other disciplines from the various fields of physiotherapy, orthotics, and more, in order to obtain the best results for our patients,” says Dr. Lévesque. Robichaud-Lévesque Clinic is a complete family practice, encompassing the treatment of every age demographic, from children to seniors. The clinic is owned and operated by Dr. Marie-Josée Robichaud and Dr. Pierre Lévesque, who are professional partners as well as life partners, and are the parents of two teenagers. Dr. Robichaud comes from a family of chiropractors and specializes in the care of children and seniors, and Dr. Lévesque specializes in whiplash traumatology, serving an independent client base as well as fulfilling roles as a certified independent personal injury examiner, lecturer to the New Brunswick Law Society and the insurance industry, and as a chiropractic evaluator to the RCMP. Together, this exceptional couple has devoted almost a half century of combined years of experience and expertise to the health and well-being of area residents, bringing a unique blend of impeccable credentials, and caring to their patients.

For more information on Robichaud-Lévesque Clinic, contact them at 506-857-0095, fax at 506-867-0017, e-mail at info@robichaudlevesque.ca, visit their website at www.robichaudlevesque.ca, or drop by their location at the rear of the YMCA building and experience new concepts in wellness offered at the Robichaud-Lévesque Clinic.