As the old adage goes, prevention is better than the cure. That idea is the cornerstone of a new business which is looking to educate Bermudians about their long-term health and well being.

The Posture and Pain Centre opened its doors two weeks ago in the Imperial Building in Church Street, Hamilton. with two physiotherapists, a masseur, all the latest gadgets and a fully functioning gym specially designed to help their patients' needs.

The new business, which was set up by husband and wife team Allan and Shirle Crockwell, aims to help not only heal their clients, but to educate them so they understand why they have certain problems.

"Just like a car, you would take in to get serviced every 10,000 miles, we have people with nothing wrong with them coming in to look at them," said Eleri Evans, one of the physios working at the new business. "People spend eight hours a day over a computer, and they are coming to make sure nothing is wrong, not waiting until it happens."

The new business wants to encourage office workers to look at their physical health and the problems caused by bad posture and deskbound jobs before they become a real issue.

"It's like getting an oil change before your engine seizes up. As soon as you feel a twinge, come and see us. Do not wait four weeks and then secondary side-effects set in and make it difficult to recognise the original problem."

At the moment about 80 percent of their customers are back or neck problems, but they also work on knee problems as well as working with people recuperating from surgery or injury and helping those with degenerative diseases.

As part of this aim, the physios are working to see all patients with problems on a same day basis for an initial evaluation.

"Some places have waiting lists of between two weeks and a month. That is too long. You need to be assessed right away to make sure you get the right treatment, but it is important to see someone right away. Do not wait," said Mr. Crockwell.

After the assessment, urgent patients are given priority over minor injuries, and programmes worked out.

Mr. Crockwell also gives out what he calls "homework" in between visits and encourages his staff to recommend alternative treatments that will help a patient.

"There is a great demand for not only physiotherapy, but also for a more holistic approach to well being," said Mr. Crockwell. "The place I worked in before, we often had to send people to many different places to get treatment. Here we aim to have it all in one location."

Mr. Crockwell is a masseur of nearly five years, his wife a physio for almost 16 years and Ms Evans has been working for over eight years at her job. Mr. Crockwell also hopes that they will soon have joining them a nutritionist who will add to the whole body" approach the team is taking. They are also looking for a nutritionist to help customers either reconsider their diet or find ways of shedding extra pounds.

They are also looking to attract the older members of the community to their practice with problems such as arthritis. "There is a lot you can do at any age, and people should not give up."

They treat all kinds of patients. Ms Evans said: "Anything from a sprained finger to post-surgery, orthopaedic and neurological - anything from multiple sclerosis to people who have had a stroke. We help give advice and look into their whole body well-being." Mr. Crockwell says his massage is administered as a therapy for injury or just simply as stress relief. "We want to look at the whole person and help give them strength and balance."