Referral to Mr. Choma may come from a number of sources. If you are a case manager, adjustor, or lawyer and looking for an assessment that requires the focus of a clinical specialist in pain science, choose persistent pain assessment, or the Pain Made Easy program.
If you are a physiotherapist, occupational therapist, chiropractor, psychologist, physician, or other health care provider, fill out the referral form. On the form, please specify if this is a request for the Pain Made Easy program (including continuation of your care), a file transfer, a second opinion, a request for a treatment plan, or IMC.
Some challenging cases with persistent symptoms may not respond as expected. For some, a referral to co-treat or transfer of care to a clinical specialist in Pain Science may help. Mr. Choma can provide a comprehensive assessment with recommendations that consider the biopsychosocial model. At times, a transfer of care may be the most appropriate. However, Mr. Choma most often prefers to co-treat across facilities and disciplines to provide consistency to the care plan and education to the therapy team where desired.
Sometimes all you need is a second opinion on diagnosis, or some direction on the type of treatment required. In this case, make it clear in your referral that you are requesting a single visit for a consultation, but not a transfer of care. Your patient will come back to you with advice to help you complete their recovery. You can use this referral form if you'd like.
Standard assessment fee applies. Mr. Choma is not funded by AHS or WCB.
If your patient is an Alberta MVA case, you have access to an Injury Management Consultation as part of the Diagnostic & Treatment Protocols Regulation (DTPR). An IMC is recommended in the DTPR (protocols) when:
-the injury has not resolved within 12 weeks.
-when alerting factors are present within the first 21 days and the injury is not resolving.
-the diagnosis is uncertain.
The IMC process has been available since 2004, yet is underused by physiotherapists in the province of Alberta. The Physiotherapy College of Alberta maintains a roster of registered Injury Management Consultants.
How to make a referral:
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Fax the AB-5 to both Mr. Choma, and to the auto insurer.
Fax #: 780-989-9788
The auto insurer is required to pay for the completion of the AB-5 and to pay for the IMC visit. Prior approval for an IMC is not required, as long as the patient is still within the DTPR (<90 days post-MVA, and 10 or 21 visits not yet complete).
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After the IMC, you will receive a report from Mr. Choma clarifying the diagnosis, and the recommended treatment approach.
An IMC consultation is a single visit, and Mr. Choma does not take over the care of your patient.
For more information on MVA tips and tricks, including how you can use the IMC process to help with your tricky cases, follow @alberta_mva_tips on Instagram.