NOVAH HEALTHCARE · MISSISSAUGA
Questions people ask us
Booking, fees, what a first visit is actually like, and how we think about pain. If what you need isn’t here, call 905-848-6682 and ask — someone will answer.
BOOKING & YOUR FIRST VISIT
Do I need a referral from my doctor?
No. You can book directly with any practitioner here. Some extended health plans ask for a
physician's referral before they will reimburse you — that is your insurer's requirement rather
than ours, so it is worth checking your plan before your first visit.
How do I book an appointment?
Two ways, and neither is better than the other.
Online at novahhealthcare.janeapp.com, at any hour. You will see the real available times for each practitioner, and the fee for each appointment type listed beside it.
Or call 905-848-6682 during clinic hours and we will book it with you. Plenty of people prefer to describe the problem to a person first, and that is a perfectly good way to start.
What happens at a first appointment?
How long you are there depends on which appointment you have booked. An initial chiropractic visit is the shortest at 40 minutes; an initial lymphatic and lymphedema assessment is the longest at 90. The exact length is listed beside each appointment type when you book online.
Whichever one it is, mostly we listen.
You will be asked what brought you in — what you are dealing with, how long it has been going on, what makes it worse, what helps even slightly. You will also be asked about things that can seem unrelated: who is around you, what activities you engage in, where do you spend your time, what else you are carrying at the moment. There is a reason for that, and it is explained further down this page.
Then an assessment appropriate to your situation, a plain conversation about what we think is going on, and a plan you have agreed to. With most of the physical disciplines, treatment usually begins in that same first visit rather than waiting for a second appointment.
You can ask questions at any point, and you can decline any part of it.
Which practitioner should I start with?
If you already know, book them. If you don’t, call 905-848-6682 and describe what is going on — it takes a couple of minutes and it saves you guessing between nine services.
Starting in the wrong place is easy to correct, and nobody here will mind.
Do you offer online or virtual appointments?
Yes, for most of what we do.
What a virtual appointment involves depends on the discipline. Psychotherapy works much the same on
video as it does in the room. For the physical disciplines it is assessment, exercise and
education: the hands-on part of care can only happen in person, but a great deal of what helps is
not hands-on.
Acupuncture and TCM is in person only.
If driving or commuting is the thing standing between you and being seen, that is exactly what a
video appointment is for. And if you are not sure whether your situation suits one, call
(905) 848-6682 and ask before you book.
Video appointments run through JaneApp, the same system you book with. You will get a link from JaneApp. Just follow the instructions.
For psychotherapy, you need to be physically in Ontario at the time of your session. That is a
requirement of the profession's regulator.
One practical note: not every extended health plan reimburses a virtual appointment the same way it
does an in-person one. Your insurer can tell you before you book.
What should I wear, and what should I bring?
Comfortable clothing you can move in. Bring your extended health information if you have it, a list of anything you take regularly, and any imaging or reports you happen to have — though we do not need those to begin.
Can I be seen in a language other than English?
Care at Novah is available in English, Vietnamese, Tagalog/Filipino and Hindi. Tell us when you book which you would prefer and we will do our best to match you with a practitioner who speaks it.
What if I need to cancel or move an appointment?
We ask for at least 24 hours’ notice. You can reschedule yourself in the online booking system, or call 905-848-6682 and we will move it.
Cancelling with less than 24 hours’ notice is charged at 50% of the appointment fee. A missed appointment with no notice is charged in full — when nobody tells us, there is no chance to offer that time to someone else who needed it.
Neither is there to catch anyone out. And if the reason you are cancelling is that you are having a bad day and cannot face the drive, say so — most appointments here can be switched to video instead.
FEES & COVERAGE
What does an appointment cost?
The fee for every appointment type is shown beside it in the online booking system at novahhealthcare.janeapp.com — fees differ by discipline and by appointment length, so that is the accurate place to look.
If you would rather ask a person, call 905-848-6682.
Is any of this covered by OHIP?
No. Chiropractic, physiotherapy, massage therapy and the other services at Novah are not covered by OHIP.
Most extended health plans cover several of them, usually up to an annual limit for each discipline. Your plan booklet, your insurer, or your workplace benefits contact can tell you what yours covers — they are the only ones who can tell you accurately.
Do you bill my insurance directly?
Usually, yes. Nearly everything we do can be billed directly to most extended health plans, and we handle it at the desk so you only pay the difference.
Three situations work differently, all worth knowing before you come in.
Some insurance policies don’t permit direct billing at all. Please contact your insurer to learn if your policy does.
If you have two plans, we can usually bill the first but not always the second. Where the second can’t be billed directly, you pay the remainder and send that portion to the second insurer yourself.
Custom orthotics and items such as herbs and lymphatic wraps" are the exception. Most insurers require you to pay upfront and submit the claim yourself, so we generally can’t direct bill those.
If you would rather know where your own plan sits please contact your insurance provider.
Do you handle motor vehicle accident, workplace or veterans’ claims?
Yes, all three.
Workplace injuries. We are registered with WSIB for the Musculoskeletal and Mild Traumatic Brain Injury Programs of Care, and we also see WSIB patients whose care falls outside those programs.
Motor vehicle accidents. We provide care under the Minor Injury Guideline, and where more is needed than the guideline covers, we prepare and submit the OCF-18 treatment plan to your auto insurer.
Veterans. We are registered with Blue Cross and Veterans Affairs Canada.
In every case, bring your claim number. That is genuinely all you need to start — we will tell you which forms are needed and deal with the insurer or board from there.
Can I get a free consultation?
Yes — ten minutes, with any of our practitioners, at no cost. Most can be done by video or in
person; for acupuncture and TCM it is in person only.
Who it’s for. Anyone who hasn’t worked with that particular clinician or service before. That includes people already being seen here: if you have been coming to our massage therapist for two months and you are curious about chiropractic or acupuncture, you can sit down with that practitioner for ten minutes first and ask whatever you like. Knowing who you are about to see, and what they actually do, makes the first real appointment easier.
What it is. A conversation. Ask about the approach, the practitioner’s background, what a session involves, whether it is likely to suit you.
What it isn’t. It does not include an examination, and no treatment is provided. There is no obligation to book anything afterwards.
What happens if you go ahead. The first paid appointment is always an initial assessment for that service. That isn’t an upsell — we need a proper work-up to be sure there is nothing that would make treatment unsafe for you. The fee for each initial assessment is listed in the online booking system.
How to book one. Online, the same way as any other appointment — every practitioner's ten
minutes is bookable at novahhealthcare.janeapp.com, including the in-person one with our
acupuncturist. Or call (905) 848-6682.
FINDING US
Where are you, and how do I find Unit #104?
170 Queensway West, Unit #104, Mississauga, ON L5B 3A8 — a small two-storey medical building.
There are two entrances. Use the north entrance, which is the main one. The east entrance leads to the lower level and won’t get you to us.
Once you are inside, there is a building directory on the wall to your left and a pharmacy on your right. Walk past the pharmacy and a long hallway opens up on your right. Go about twenty metres down it. Unit #104 is on your right, with a Novah Healthcare sign beside the door.
We are on the main floor, so there are no stairs and no elevator to manage.
Is there parking?
Yes — free parking all around the building, and usually plenty of it.
The north entrance is the one you want. There are three accessible spaces directly in front of it for anyone with a permit.
Is the clinic accessible?
Yes. The north entrance has a ramp and a door-opening button, and we are on the main floor — no stairs, no elevator.
Accessible washrooms are across the hallway from the clinic. They are kept locked, so ask us at the desk and we will give you the key.
Wheelchairs are available in the building at no charge. They are kept in the main stairwell on the lower level — that stairwell is immediately on your left as you come in. One thing worth knowing: because they are a floor below, someone has to go down and bring one up in the elevator. If you think you will need one when you arrive, call 905-848-6682 ahead and we will have it waiting at the entrance.
What are your hours — and do you have evenings or weekends?
Monday to Friday, 9am to 6pm. Saturdays by appointment.
Not every service runs at every hour. Psychotherapy currently includes evening and Saturday times; for the other disciplines, later-afternoon appointments are often easier to get than people assume, so if that is the only thing that works for you, say so when you book. Every practitioner here can also see you by video, which opens up times that a drive across town would not.
The online booking system shows live availability for each practitioner, which is the only place that stays accurate.
HOW WE THINK ABOUT PAIN
Why do you ask about my sleep, my job and what’s happening at home, when the problem is my back?
Because pain does not happen in one body part with the rest of a life switched off.
Everything a person is carrying sits on one side of a balance — physical strain, yes, but also broken sleep, money worry, a job that cannot be changed, caring for someone else, being on your own with it. What they have to carry it with sits on the other side: strength, understanding, support, resources, a sense of safety. Pain tends to be at its loudest when that balance tips.
So we ask about both sides, because both sides are things that can be worked on. Easing the load is care, not small talk before the real appointment starts.
My scan came back normal but I still hurt. Does that mean it isn’t real?
It is real.
Pain makes more sense as an alarm than as a damage meter. It is your nervous system’s judgement that something needs protecting — and that judgement is not a direct readout of tissue damage. A clear image and severe pain can both be true at the same time, and very often are. An alarm can also keep sounding long after the thing that set it off has healed.
Being believed is part of the clinical work here. It isn’t a courtesy we extend before getting on with the real thing.
Will you be able to cure my pain?
We don’t promise that.
What we work towards is different, and for most people living with long-standing pain it turns out to be more useful: less interference in the things you actually want to do, more capacity to get through a bad week, and a clearer understanding of your own situation. Some people find their pain reduces a great deal. For others it stays and comes to matter less.
We will tell you what we think is realistic in your case. If we don’t think we are the right place for you, we will say so.
Why might I be asked to see more than one practitioner?
Because one discipline often cannot reach everything that is holding a pain in place. Someone whose knee hurts may need the strength work, and the footwear, and some help with the sleep that has been broken for a year.
Where we think a second practitioner may be able to help, we will explain why. It is always your decision, and nothing gets booked without you agreeing to it.
I’ve had this for years and tried a lot of things. Where would you even start?
With what you have already tried, and what each of those things changed — including the ones that didn’t work. That is genuinely useful clinical information, not a preamble to get through.
Then with the whole picture rather than the painful part on its own: what your days actually look like now, what you have stopped doing, what is still steadying you. Pain that has lasted years usually has several things holding it in place, and they are rarely all clinical. We start with the ones that can be changed.
What is The Weave?
A free tool for drawing a picture of your own life — the people, places, work and routines in it — and marking which ones steady you and which ones drain you. Most people find at least one thing they hadn’t noticed.
You can download it and use it on your own, without booking anything. Read about The Weave →
Will I have to do exercises at home?
Usually something, though not always exercises. Whatever is asked of you should be small enough that you can still do it on a bad day.
If a plan isn’t fitting into your life, tell us. That is information about the plan, not about you.
Do you offer psychotherapy, and is what I say kept private?
Psychotherapy is available at Novah, and is booked the same way as anything else here. You can see who provides it, and their credentials, on our team page.
Everything you tell any practitioner at Novah is health information and is kept confidential under Ontario’s health privacy law, with the narrow exceptions that law itself sets out. We will explain those if you want to know them.
IF YOU NEED SUPPORT NOW
You don’t have to carry it alone
Some things need help sooner than an appointment. These lines are free and open now.
Ontario — ConnexOntario
1-866-531-2600. Free, 24/7, for mental health and addiction support near you.
Canada — 9-8-8 Suicide Crisis Helpline
Call or text 988, 24/7.
Anywhere else
findahelpline.com lists free, confidential lines by country.
STILL NOT ANSWERED?
Call 905-848-6682 and ask. If it’s a question we get more than once, it ends up on this page.