SmartCARE Education

This course is a two-weekend, three day course to utilize Dry Needling in clinical practice and is open to Chiropractors, Physical Therapists, Occupational Therapists, and Athletic Trainers.  

It will begin with a brief history of dry needling and its contrast and comparison to acupuncture.  This course IS NOT an acupuncture course, and will not count towards Acupuncture education.  We will review relevant regional and three-dimensional anatomy as well as pathophysiology of common disorders as the weekend progresses.  

The course will cover the use of Dry Needling techniques in trigger points, myofascial pain syndromes and its use in musculoskeletal injuries and disorders.  Also included will be musculotendinous, tenoperiosteal and ligamentous applications. 

Safety and the proper handling of potential blood borne pathogens associated with Dry Needling applications will be emphasized. The course is designed to place heavy emphasis on practical, hands-on practice.    

Participants will review clinical anatomy and practice Dry Needling treatments of each tissue and region covered throughout the course.  Each attendee will be expected to complete and sign a waiver and practice Dry Needling on a lab partner.

Pregnant females are not allowed to participate in the course as all attendees are expected to needle lab partners. 

The art of palpation will be covered.  This includes identifying different subdermal tissues as the tip of the needle advances into the body including normal and abnormal muscle tissue, scar tissue, ligaments, tendons, musculotendinous junction, and adipose tissue. 

PREREQUISITES

*State practice act that includes dry needling as being within scope of practice.

*Active malpractice insurance (If you are covered by Employer /Clinic/Company/University/College malpractice insurance, then you can also take the class)

*Signed liability waiver by all attendees.  Female attendees must sign to certify they are not pregnant.

*Non-Professional participants must be enrolled in an accredited DC, DPT, MD, OT, ATC, RN or PA program. 

OBJECTIVES

Upon completion of this course, attendees will be able to:

1. Have a thorough understanding of DN history and clinical applications.
2. Understand normal and abnormal muscle contraction physiology.
3. Identify precipitating and perpetuating factors in trigger point (TP) syndromes.
4. Identify muscle attachments and trigger points by surface anatomy and muscle testing.
5. Identify ligamentous and tenoperiosteal tissues by surface anatomy.
6. Properly insert needles into each tissue identified including depth and angle of penetration.
7. Understand and apply Joint Centration concepts into treatment.
8. Understand absolute and relative contraindications to DN therapy.
9. Identify type of tissue encountered at the end of a needle using “needle palpation.”
10. Utilize the different needling techniques and stimulation performed across the field.
11. Discuss and apply electrical stimulation to inserted needles.

Course Preparation:

• Each courses is scheduled for two-weekends including 3 days, Friday – Sunday. On Friday the course begins at 4:30 pm and concludes by 8:30 pm. On Saturday and Sunday the course begins at 8 am and we should conclude by 7 pm.

• You are responsible for your own lunch on all days. Meals will be not be provided. There will be light snacks throughout the day.

• All of our labs are experiential, which requires all attendees to perform dry needling as well as receive needling during the course.

• Plan to dress in comfortable clothing all three days to allow access to the entire spine, upper and lower extremities. No jewelry or other bling needed.

• The seminar location, and dates can be found on the registration page under each corresponding course dates.

• The seminar host location will be e-mailed 30 days prior to each course date. 

• The manual and handouts will be available online to you a week before the class. Printing is not required. You can use the soft copy and bring it to the class on a tablet, computer, iPad, etc.

• Class materials like needles etc will be provided by us at the class free of cost.

• Participants must complete all online lectures and videos from the online modules ahead of time. We will be referring to a lot of video files during the class to help you understand the course better.

•  Participants must bring a massage/chiropractic/portable treatment table. 

Certification will be awarded upon successful completion of the two weekends, providing participants with 54.5 hours of hands-on dry needling education in total.

Our dry needling courses are PACE certified for Chiropractors and meet all the APTA requirements in MO.  Individual state accreditation must be requested if your state is not listed. 

For the purpose of this course, dry needling will be taught as one part of the treatment package for a variety of musculoskeletal conditions.  An introduction to corrective load management and stimulation via exercise medicine will be provided to the participants.

Participants will obtain online access to online materials and updates for lifetime

*Students, please email [email protected] with proof of enrollment before enrolling in the course.  Students must be enrolled in an accredited professional degree institution.