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Indiana Association adopts CCP guidelines, rejects Mercy

The International Chiropractors Association of Indiana (ICAI) announced on Mar. 24, that its Board of Directors unanimously voted to adopt the Clinical Practice Guidelines, "Vertebral Subluxation in Chiropractic Practice."

In addition, the board also unanimously adopted the following position statements, based on the positions recently passed in New Jersey:

>>> "It is the position of the International Chiropractors Association of Indiana that the use of the term 'subluxation' or 'vertebral subluxation complex,' in and of itself, is appropriate for use as a diagnosis for reporting and documentation purposes. Nothing should prohibit a chiropractor from caring for chiropractic subluxation as determined by chiropractic analytical procedures. Chiropractic analysis which identifies the existence of a subluxation should be the only basis for chiropractic care."

>>> "It is the position of the International Chiropractors Association of Indiana that the Guidelines for Chiropractic Quality Assurance and Practice Parameters (Mercy Guidelines) are rejected for any use concerning the practice of chiropractic in the State of Indiana. Licensed Chiropractors in the State of Indiana should refrain from utilizing or referencing this document for any professional purpose concerning the consumers of the State of Indiana."

>>> "It is the position of the International Chiropractors Association of Indiana that chiropractic care is safe and effective for children of all ages when indicated by chiropractic analytical procedures. The care of children should always be based upon the needs of each individual child. Chiropractic care for children may, or may not, require the same duration as an adult, dependent on the severity of the condition and the patients' response to care."

The adoption of the CCP Guidelines and position statements were introduced to the board as a proposal on behalf of the ICAI by its director, John P. Rempel, D.C. Many of the ICAI board members referred to the adoption of the guidelines and the position statements as a "no-brainier."

Dr. Rempel, a representative of the World Chiropractic Alliance, stated:

"The board's position is now that the ICAI has adopted these position statements, we can approach the Indiana Board of Chiropractic Examiners and encourage them to adopt these position statements, and adoption of the CCP Guidelines.

"In conjunction with the ACC policy statement, these actions help establish a common perspective for our profession and we can now begin to influence the administrative and legislative political arenas to permanently define and establish our profession, what we do, and what we offer to the public.

"Once our profession's non-duplicating approach to health is clearly defined we will no longer be required to be reactionary and fearful because our profession is poorly defined and misunderstood legislatively and in general. It will allow our profession to continue to thrive and evolve without fear of encroachment from, or amalgamation into, any outside profession. We can then simply let our results speak for themselves."