Primary Spine Care 17
Advanced
Imaging, Diagnosing & Reporting Online
15 CE and CME Hours
*Please note, this course is only approved for 10/15 CE in the State of Texas.
Advanced Imaging, Triage & Collaborative Case Leadership
15-Hour Clinical Skills Training for Chiropractors Who Want to Lead Spine Care (Not Just Support It)
If you want to serve as the primary provider for spine care—and confidently collaborate with medical specialists based on evidence-based clinical findings—this course is built for you.
You’ll learn the imaging and diagnostic tools required to make accurate spine diagnoses, triage appropriately, identify neurological red flags, and interpret advanced imaging—including MRI and CT—with clinical and collaborative precision.
This is not theory. It’s a practical, clinic-ready training designed to help you deliver better outcomes, improve referral relationships, and elevate your documentation and credibility across healthcare and medical-legal environments.
Who This Course Is For
This program is ideal for chiropractors and spine-focused clinicians who want to:
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Serve as the primary spine care provider
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Improve diagnostic confidence and triage accuracy
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Strengthen collaborative relationships with MD PCPs, specialists, ERs, and urgent care
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Interpret MRIs/CTs with greater clinical certainty
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Improve documentation to support patient care, referrals, and case outcomes
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Expand credibility in medical-legal and multidisciplinary settings
What You’ll Be Able To Do After This Course
By the end of the program, you’ll be able to:
✅ Triage spine patients more effectively (urgent vs. non-urgent decision-making)
✅ Perform and interpret neurodiagnostic indicators and neurological differentials
✅ Confidently interpret advanced imaging (MRI, CT, X-ray) for spine pathology
✅ Detect ancillary tumors and critical non-musculoskeletal findings
✅ Apply evidence-based documentation that improves clinical collaboration and outcomes
✅ Build stronger interprofessional credibility through demonstrative reporting
Course Description
This course provides essential clinical skills for chiropractors who want to function as the primary provider for spine care, emphasizing the imaging and diagnostic tools required for accurate diagnosis and confident clinical decision-making.
You’ll learn how to coordinate patient care through effective collaboration with medical specialists—where the chiropractor leads case management based on evidence, advanced imaging interpretation, and diagnostic findings.
Key competencies include:
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Triage
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Neurodiagnostics
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Advanced imaging interpretation (MRI, CT, X-ray)
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Ancillary tumor detection
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Differential diagnosis and clinical decision pathways
Everything taught is designed to be applied immediately in practice.
Key Learning Objectives
1) Triage Skills
Learn how to assess and prioritize spine patients based on urgency, red flags, and diagnostic evidence—ensuring optimal outcomes while reducing missed pathology risk.
2) Neurodiagnostics
Build competence in identifying neurological disorders using proven diagnostic tools and clinical reasoning that supports collaborative case leadership.
3) Advanced Imaging Interpretation
Develop the ability to interpret MRIs, CT scans, and X-rays with clarity—supporting accurate diagnoses, stronger care plans, and better outcomes.
Course Goals
This training is designed to help you:
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Collaborate with medical specialists more effectively
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Deliver better patient care through enhanced diagnostic clarity
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Strengthen your clinical and professional authority through demonstrative documentation
Program Curriculum (15 Academic Hours)
Module 1 (2 Hours)
Current & Future Trends in Documentation and Practice Growth
Track: History Taking & Examination
Faculty: Mark Studin, DC | Don Capoferri, DC
Evidence-based demonstrative documentation is increasingly the defining factor in successful patient-centered collaborative care. This module outlines how documentation has become a reputation-building tool that supports stronger relationships with MD PCPs, specialists, ERs, and urgent care centers—and helps eliminate the outdated “non-specific back pain” dogma through evidence, imaging, and outcomes.
You’ll learn how to document in ways that elevate clinical credibility, support case coordination, and improve utilization based on proof—not opinion.
Module 2 (2 Hours)
MRI Spine: Ancillary Tumor Detection + Advanced Imaging Stroke Detection
Track: Diagnostic Testing & Differential Diagnosis
Faculty: Patricia Roche, DO, CAQ (Radiology/Neuroradiology) | Mark Studin, DC
A clinical case-based review of spinal MRI interpretation including:
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Sagittal and axial analysis
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Sequence proficiency: T1, T2, STIR, proton density
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Detection of spinal abnormalities and overlooked pathology
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Ancillary tumor findings including:
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Abdominal aorta morphology review for stroke risk indicators
This module strengthens your ability to identify critical findings that go beyond musculoskeletal pain—improving safety, outcomes, and collaborative clinical leadership.
Module 3 (1 Hour)
Advanced Credential Reporting and Authority Building
Track: Documentation
Faculty: Mark Studin, DC | Don Capoferri, DC
Guests: Jordan Kovacs, DC, FPSC | Dallas Humble, DC, FPSC
Learn how to develop a professional bio and CV that establishes credibility in clinical, collaborative, and medical-legal environments. You’ll also learn how to incorporate outcome statistics into demonstrative reporting so your work reflects measurable real-world impact.
This module includes:
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How to structure a professional bio and CV
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How to present and frame outcome statistics ethically
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How demonstrative reporting increases credibility and opportunity
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What it takes to become published and how scientific publication elevates authority
Module 4 (2 Hours)
Age-Dating Herniated Discs and Trauma
Track: Diagnostic Testing & Differential Diagnosis
Faculty: Mark Studin, DC | Don Capoferri, DC
Age-dating disc herniations and traumatic injury is a core skill for the advanced spine clinician. This module teaches evidence-based analysis using MRI, X-ray, and pathology interpretation to determine chronicity and clinical relevance.
You’ll learn how to:
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Compare imaging findings with joint pathology and injury mechanisms
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Establish defensible conclusions grounded in evidence
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Use age-dating to support prognosis, care plans, and collaborative discussions
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Strengthen medical-legal credibility through reproducible rationale
Module 5 (1 Hour)
Case History Presentation: Clinical Grand Rounds
Track: History Taking & Examination
Faculty: Mark Studin, DC | Don Capoferri, DC
Guest: Melissa Studin, ESQ - Focusing on what the courts accept as experts and necessary functional loss reporting
A guided clinical grand rounds session focusing on:
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Disc, ligament, and spinal pathology interpretation
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Diagnosis and prognosis formulation
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Treatment plan development
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High-risk clinical conditions:
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Cord edema
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Myelomalacia
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Myelopathy
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Tethered cords
Learn how follow-up exams refine diagnosis and how care plans must adapt as new findings emerge.
Module 6 (2 Hours)
Updated Trends in Spinal Biomechanics and Ligamentous Pathology
Track: History Taking & Examination
Faculty: Mark Studin, DC | Don Capoferri, DC
This master class explores ligament pathology across acute and chronic presentations using evidence-based physiology and trauma science, including:
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Ligament morphology, mechanisms, and sequelae of trauma
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Compensatory biomechanics of the injured spine
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Anatomy, vascularization, innervation, and tissue repair
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Clinical relevance to spinal adjustments and injury recovery
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How ligament pathology relates to patho-neuro-biomechanical lesions and the vertebral subluxation complex
Module 7 (1 Hour)
Case History Presentation: Clinical Grand Rounds (Advanced)
Track: History Taking & Examination
Faculty: Mark Studin, DC | Don Capoferri, DC
Guests: Mitchel Berger, MD (Internal Medicine and Oncology) | Khuma Sial, MD (Physcal Medicine and Anesthesiology) - Focusing on patient triage and necessary requirements for collaborative care with chiropractors.
A second grand rounds session to deepen clinical application:
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Disc and ligament pathology synthesis
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Progressive diagnostic and prognostic decision-making
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Treatment adaptation based on evolving findings
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Identification of high-risk neurological conditions
Module 8 (2 Hours)
Latest Evidence on Making “Non-Specific Back Pain” Specific
Track: Diagnostic Testing & Differential Diagnosis
Faculty: Mark Studin, DC | Don Capoferri, DC
You’ll learn a statistical and evidence-based triage framework comparing outcomes across:
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Chiropractors
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Physical therapists
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Medical doctors
This module evaluates short-term vs. long-term outcome evidence, pain scoring, disability metrics, and the diagnostic limitations of “non-specific” labeling.
The goal: Replace vague assumptions with measurable diagnostic clarity.
Module 9 (2 Hours)
Building Ethical Collaborative Relationships Through Documentation
Track: Ethical Billing & Coding
Faculty: Mark Studin, DC | Don Capoferri, DC
Guest: Paul Birinyi, MD (Neurosurgery) - Focusing on making non-specific back pain specific and the necessity for collaboration with "trained" chiropractors
As healthcare evolves, chiropractic documentation must meet modern standards across compliance, communication, and collaboration. This module provides a step-by-step framework for writing clinical notes that foster professional trust and interdisciplinary teamwork.
You’ll learn:
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What documentation is designed to accomplish (clinically and legally)
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How to structure notes for clarity and context
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How to improve efficiency without sacrificing accuracy
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Key legal and compliance considerations
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Future trends in record-keeping and reimbursement-driven documentation standards
Total Academic Time
✅ 15 Hours
Why This Training Matters Now
Spine care is changing. The clinicians who rise to leadership roles in collaborative healthcare are the ones who can:
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interpret imaging accurately
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triage appropriately
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document demonstratively
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communicate with medical specialists confidently
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support decisions with measurable evidence
This course prepares you to do exactly that.
Stop guessing. Start proving.
Join the program and learn advanced triage, neurodiagnostics, and MRI/CT interpretation.
Instructions: Once you purchase the course online, it will be immediately active in your account. If you have any issues, please contact Cara 631-804-2845 or CaraRoss220@Gmail.com
Troubleshooting Suggestions:
- This course is supported by PC's and Mac devices
- Minimum 20mbs download speed
- Mobile device are not ideal as tracking is automated and often not mobilized
This course is Pace approved by the Federation of Chiropractic Licensing Boards.
ACCREDITATION
This activity has been planned and implemented in accordance with the accreditation requirements and policies of the Accreditation Council for Continuing Medical Education (ACCME) through the joint providership of the University at Buffalo Jacobs School of Medicine and Biomedical Sciences and Cleveland University Kansas City, College of Chiropractic, Post-Graduate Department.
The University at Buffalo Jacobs School of Medicine and Biomedical Sciences is accredited by the ACCME to provide continuing medical education for physicians.
CERTIFICATION
The University at Buffalo Jacobs School of Medicine and Biomedical Sciences designates this live activity for a maximum of 3.0 AMA PRA Category 1 Credit(s)TM. Physicians should claim only the credit commensurate with the extent of their participation in the activity.
PLANNING COMMITTEE & SPEAKER DECLARATIONS
The Accreditation Council for Continuing Medical Education (ACCME) and the University at Buffalo Jacobs School of Medicine and Biomedical Sciences Standards for Commercial Support require that presentations are free of commercial bias and that any information regarding commercial products/services be based on scientific methods generally accepted by the medical community. The following planners and presenter(s) have disclosed financial interest/arrangements or affiliations with organization(s) that could be perceived as a real or apparent conflict of interest in the context of the subject of their presentation(s). Only the current arrangements/interests are included. *Planning Committee
Activity Director and Instructor: Mark Studin DC, FASBE(C), DAAPM – Nothing to Report
ACCME Standards of Commercial Support of CME require that presentations be free of commercial bias and that any information regarding commercial products/services be based on scientific methods generally accepted by the medical community. When discussing therapeutic options, faculty are requested to use only generic names. If they use a trade name, then those of several companies should be used. If a presentation includes discussion of any unlabeled or investigational use of a commercial product, faculty are required to disclose this to the participants.