Care Centered on You
Whole health puts your values, goals, and priorities at the center of care. This approach considers physical, psychological, and social factors – not just symptoms and involves you in healthcare decisions. It also recognizes how health is influenced by where you live, work, study, and play. This is described in more detail in a commentary in the journal Chiropractic & Manual Therapies.
Supporting Healthy Habits
Patient education, self-care, and shared goal setting are important parts of whole health care. Chiropractors can support these efforts through education and counseling on physical activity, nutrition, and stress reduction. Sleep and ergonomics are also areas that connect chiropractic with whole health. Through coaching and discussions about your health goals, your chiropractor can encourage you to take an active role in self-care and make informed decisions. Visits over a course of care may offer additional opportunities to discuss these habits.
These conversations put your priorities at the center, with attention to what matters to you and how health fits into your daily life. Your preferences, priorities, and health goals help guide discussions about self-care, while education helps you understand your options and take an active role in decisions about your health.
Working Together
Collaboration between chiropractors and other healthcare professionals, along with connections to community resources, is another key theme. Evidence-based clinical care combines scientific evidence, clinical judgment, and your preferences. Opportunities for chiropractors to work alongside medical, physical therapy, and mental health providers emphasize communication and coordinated care.
Exploring Chiropractic’s Role
Chiropractic’s role in whole-health care includes an emphasis on scientific evidence, making care decisions together, setting meaningful health goals, and working with other healthcare professionals. The article calls for further research, education, and training to support this approach.
Source:
Maiers, M., Ward, K., Ramcharan, M. et al. Whole health and chiropractic: a commentary on historical roots, contemporary relevance, and future directions. Chiropr Man Therap 34, 47 (2026). https://link.springer.com/article/10.1186/s12998-026-00676-6
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