Frequently asked questions.
Answers about booking, coverage, what a first visit involves, who you will see, and how our policies work. If yours is not here, call 905-856-2299 or email info@essentialhealthclinic.ca.
Booking and your first visit
You can book any service yourself. No doctor has to send you.
No. Every service at Essential Health Clinic is direct access. You can book chiropractic care, massage therapy, physiotherapy, osteopathy, psychotherapy, and aesthetic treatments yourself, without a doctor's note. Some extended health plans ask for a note before they will reimburse you, even though the clinic does not need one, so check your plan.
Book online through JaneApp at essentialchirormt.janeapp.com, where every practitioner's live calendar is open. You can also call 905-856-2299 or email info@essentialhealthclinic.ca during clinic hours.
The first visit is an assessment. Your practitioner takes your history, asks what brought you in, examines the area, and runs the screening tests that fit your case. They explain what they found before any technique is chosen. Most first appointments run forty-five to sixty minutes.
Essential Health Clinic is at 8099 Weston Road, Unit 28, Woodbridge, ON L4L 2V5, with free on-site parking. Open Monday, Wednesday and Thursday 9 a.m. to 8:30 p.m., Tuesday 8 a.m. to 8:30 p.m., Friday 9 a.m. to 8 p.m., and Saturday 8 a.m. to 3 p.m. Closed Sunday.
Most disciplines have same-week openings. JaneApp shows live availability for every practitioner, so you can see what is free before you book. If the practitioner you want is full, call 905-856-2299 and reception can look at other options.
Wear loose clothing that gives access to the area being treated. Bring your benefits card if you have extended health coverage, and your claim number if the visit relates to a car accident or a workplace injury. Arriving a few minutes early gives you time to settle before your practitioner starts.
Yes. Motor vehicle accident and WSIB cases need specific paperwork. Bring your claim number to the first appointment and reception will tell you what your insurer needs from us.
Insurance and payment
Three quick orientation answers. The coverage page goes discipline by discipline.
Most extended health plans in Ontario cover chiropractic care, massage therapy, physiotherapy, osteopathy, and psychotherapy. Yearly caps and per-visit limits vary by plan, and aesthetic treatments are usually not covered. The insurance page walks through each discipline and what to check with your insurer.
For most adults, no. OHIP does not pay for massage therapy, chiropractic care, or physiotherapy at a private clinic, and it does not pay for sessions with a Registered Psychotherapist in private practice. Those visits are covered by an extended health plan or paid by you.
The JaneApp booking page carries the live fee for every service, so it is the number to trust. Our pricing page lists the full service catalogue by discipline and links straight through to booking. You can also call 905-856-2299 for a quote before you book.
What to expect from treatment
How long care usually takes, how it feels, and what is normal afterwards.
Acute pain often responds within four to six sessions. Longer-standing patterns usually take eight to twelve. Your practitioner gives you a realistic range after the first assessment and reassesses as you go, so the plan follows how your tissue responds rather than a package bought up front.
Most treatment is comfortable. Some techniques create pressure or a short ache while they work, including deep tissue massage, cupping, and shockwave therapy, which feels like rhythmic tapping at the injury site. Your practitioner explains what a technique will feel like first and adjusts pressure whenever you ask.
Mild soreness for twenty-four to forty-eight hours is common after deeper soft tissue work, a first adjustment, or shockwave therapy. It usually settles with water, gentle movement, and rest. Pain that is sharp, spreading, or getting worse is not expected, so call 905-856-2299 if that happens.
Loose, comfortable clothing that gives access to the area being treated. Shorts for a lower body concern, a tank top for a shoulder or upper back concern. Osteopathy and craniosacral therapy are done fully clothed. Changing space is available at the clinic.
In most cases, no. Clinical assessment is enough to identify the cause and start treatment safely. Imaging is ordered when red flag symptoms are present, or when the exam points to something structural that needs confirming. We do not perform imaging in clinic, so your practitioner refers you if it is needed.
It depends on the cause. Some activity is safe and helps recovery. Other movements aggravate the condition for a while. Your practitioner reviews your routine at the first visit and tells you what to keep, what to scale back, and what to pause.
Many patients feel some change in the first few visits, and acute pain often shows progress within four to eight sessions. Skin and collagen treatments work on a longer clock, usually three to six months. Your practitioner sets an expected timeline at the assessment based on what the exam found.
Our practitioners and credentials
Who you will see, what they are registered to do, and how to pick.
The clinical roster is three chiropractors registered with the College of Chiropractors of Ontario, six Registered Massage Therapists registered with the CMTO, a physiotherapist with an MScPT, an osteopathic manual practitioner with an M.OMSc, and a Registered Psychotherapist. Every treatment is performed by a registered practitioner and none is delegated to unqualified staff. The team page lists everyone.
Chiropractic, massage therapy, physiotherapy, and psychotherapy are regulated health professions in Ontario, each with its own college. Manual osteopathy is not. There is no college for it and the title is not legally protected, which is why our osteopath's training is stated up front rather than assumed.
As a rough guide: physiotherapy for load, capacity, and getting back to activity; chiropractic for joint mechanics and adjustment; massage therapy for soft tissue tone and tension; osteopathy for a whole-body pattern that keeps re-forming. All four practise here, so picking the wrong one costs you one appointment rather than another search.
Yes, for chiropractic care. Dr. Becky Lancione sees pediatric patients and is certified by the Academy Council of Chiropractic Pediatrics. There is no minimum age, and the technique is low force and matched to the child's stage. Anything outside chiropractic scope is referred to your pediatrician rather than treated.
Massage therapy is, and every RMT here is trained in prenatal positioning and the modifications each trimester needs. Chiropractic care and pelvic floor physiotherapy are also used through pregnancy. Most energy-based skin treatments are deferred until after pregnancy and breastfeeding. A high-risk pregnancy may need clearance from your obstetrician first.
Questions about specific treatments
The routing questions we hear most, and where each one is answered in full.
Deep tissue, Swedish, sports, prenatal, aromatherapy, myofascial release, structural integration, craniosacral, visceral, and cupping. If you are not sure, book a sixty-minute Registered Massage Therapy session and your RMT will assess and recommend the technique.
Light, rhythmic hands-on work that helps move fluid through the lymph system. Patients book it for swelling, fluid retention, and recovery after cosmetic surgery. Brazilian lymphatic drainage is the post-surgical and body-contouring protocol, the LINFA Method is the whole-body option, and facial lymphatic drainage covers face and neck only.
Plantar fasciitis, Achilles tendonitis, calcific shoulder tendinopathy, tennis elbow, golfer's elbow, patellar tendinopathy, and hip bursitis. It is used for long-standing conditions that have not improved with standard treatment. Most protocols run three to six sessions spaced five to seven days apart.
The needles look the same and the reasoning behind where they go is different. Acupuncture here uses point selection based on the chiropractic exam. Dry needling targets myofascial trigger points found during a physical assessment. Your assessment settles which one fits your case.
Pelvic floor physiotherapy, which covers incontinence, pelvic pain, diastasis recti, and recovery after birth, and is available to all genders. Ramandeep Singh, MScPT assesses and treats weakness, tension, or coordination problems in the muscles supporting the bladder, bowel, and reproductive organs, using external techniques and internal techniques where you choose them.
No. The clinic does not offer injectables of any kind. Skin work here is device and product based: Morpheus8 RF microneedling, Lumecca IPL, Triton laser hair removal, HydraFacial, medical-grade facials, dermaplaning, and AlumierMD skincare.
Morpheus8 and Triton are used across the full Fitzpatrick range when the settings are matched to your skin. Lumecca IPL is usually limited to lighter tones, Fitzpatrick I to IV. Your practitioner confirms what suits your skin at the assessment.
Yes. Nicole Bonich, RP is a Registered Psychotherapist and works with anxiety, burnout, depression, life transitions, and perimenopause. She offers virtual sessions across Ontario as well as in-clinic appointments, and she is accepting new clients.
Cancellations, no-shows, and privacy
The full text of each policy lives on its own page. The short version is here.
At least 24 hours' notice to cancel or reschedule, and there is no fee. Cancel through JaneApp using the link in your confirmation email, by phone at 905-856-2299, or by email at info@essentialhealthclinic.ca.
A cancellation inside 24 hours, or a missed appointment, is charged at 100 percent of the appointment fee against the credit card on file in JaneApp. A receipt is issued. Genuine emergencies are reviewed case by case and fees are waived where the situation reasonably warrants it.
You will be seen for the time left in your slot so the next patient is not pushed back. The full session fee may still apply because the time was held for you. Call 905-856-2299 as soon as you know you are running late and we will do our best to adjust.
For a first appointment with a new practitioner, and before any aesthetic treatment, a credit card on file or a deposit may be required at booking. The card is only charged for a late cancellation or a no-show, or applied to the fee at your visit.
No. Cancellation and no-show fees are not covered by extended health benefits. The fee is your direct responsibility.
Your file is held in JaneApp under a written confidentiality and data-protection agreement, and your records are handled under Ontario's Personal Health Information Protection Act and Canada's PIPEDA. Health records are kept for at least 10 years from your last visit. You can ask for a copy at any time.
Still have a question?
Call 905-856-2299 or email info@essentialhealthclinic.ca. Each treatment page carries its own questions in more detail.
Still not sure what to book?
Book any assessment and your practitioner will identify the right discipline before a technique is chosen. If a colleague fits your case better, you are referred inside the clinic.