Many people who seek medical care do not have a clinically identifiable disease or pathology. Their problems are based on what I call "derangements" or blockages in normal physiology and present as dysfunctions in one or more organ systems that left unchecked would ultimately lead to disease and pathology. Typically these patients come to us having usually been told that everything looks normal based upon the standard tests routinely run by their medical doctor (physical exam, urinalysis. Functional Medicine Practitioners know that most patients are by no means "normal" but are a long way from being in a state of optimal health. Many patients fall through the cracks of the current medical paradigm because they are neither sick from a pathological (no tissue changes, no findings on diagnostic testing, etc.) These patients fall into the gray area of medicine and we need a different approach to be able to deal with this. As a healthcare provider working in the realm of Functional Medicine, you need to have as many tools possible to access the body. You must be able to "cast your net wide". Such as medical records, physical exam, urinalysis, saliva, f***l and/or blood testing. Once you have all this information you must be able to process it. You must be able to quickly and efficiently communicate to the patient exactly what you think is going on with them. And finally, you must be able to clearly and concisely recommend what they must do to achieve a greater state of health and well-being. That's what Functional Medicine is all about!!
