Dr. David Jolson and Fran Haas Jolson, L.Ac opened Upstate Spine and Sport on Oct. 30. Their new medical practice offers treatments ranging from chiropractic care and acupuncture to sports rehabilitation and soft-tissue massage. Their approach to medical care can provide immediate and long-term relief without surgery, injections or prescription drugs. 

By teaming with primary care physicians, orthopedists and other medical professionals across the region, Upstate Spine & Sport provides unique and innovative solutions that empower patients with a fundamental understanding of their health and the knowledge needed to take control of their care in ways that bring relief and a healthier life.

“The patient’s health is the most important thing. They’re the center of everything, and we want to be a part of their team with their primary care doctor, their orthopedist, and their ob-gyn doctor,” David says.

Fran, who grew up in Greenville where she attended Riverside High School, speaks from experience.

Battling her own chronic health issues while living in Chicago after graduating from Wake Forest University, Fran began visiting a variety of doctors who prescribed drugs and suggested a fiber supplement – all with little result.

“It’s trial and error because they’re not sure, either,” says Fran, adding that not one of her Chicago doctors suggested she change her diet.

But she saw immediate results after visiting an acupuncturist, who focused on balancing her body through nutrition and balancing her life with more positive energy and less stress. She cut sugar out of her diet and sharply reduced dairy products. She ate more vegetables and less fruit.

“Why didn’t anyone tell me this before?” she asked herself. “I could have fixed this years ago and been leading a much healthier life.”

Sold on the concepts and wanting to learn more in order to help others, she attended the National University of Health Sciences near Chicago, where she received a master’s degree in acupuncture.

“With acupuncture you can see results quickly and, depending on what’s going on with the patient, you can see long-term results,” says Fran.

David grew up in Cincinnati surrounded by family in the medical profession. His father is an orthopedic surgeon, as was his grandfather. Attracted to the medical profession, he graduated from Kenyon College northeast of Columbus, Ohio, and returned to Cincinnati to begin work in a medical management position as he explored his options in the medical field.

Soon, he met a chiropractor who “flipped everything on its head for me.” David saw a hole in the field of musculoskeletal medicine between primary care physicians and surgeons – solutions that didn’t involve surgery, injections or pain drugs with their attendant side effects and potential for addiction.

David attended the National University of Health Sciences where he met Fran and obtained his doctor of chiropractic medicine degree.

In addition to getting a degree, David achieved numerous certifications by attending more than 800 hours of classwork outside his curriculum while teaching and tutoring in the anatomy labs during his five years at NUHS. The broad range of experience armed him with a hybrid of tools from chiropractic treatments to sports rehabilitation and soft-tissue techniques.

“The key,” he says, “is picking the right tool to help patients get better as quickly as possible, and help them understand their problem so they can help themselves rather than rely on you as a clinician.”

This approach can help patients feel better without surgery, or provide a deeper understanding of their pain so that surgery, if necessary, is more targeted and has an improved chance of success.

“If you can teach a patient, empower a patient – whether that’s through nutrition or diet or how to move better – that’s how you make a bigger difference,” David says. “Because then they take back their lives.”

Upstate Spine & Sport is located at 110 Laurens Rd. in Greenville, South Carolina. Its phone number is (864) 400-8005. Get more information from upstatespineandsport.com or by visiting the Facebook page @UpstateSpine.