Just over a quarter of a century ago, a group of visionary chiropractors moved to establish a non-profit Foundation to raise funds for chiropractic research in Australia -- that land down under, as the song says.

With assistance from the then Australian Chiropractors Association, Drs. R.G Hunt, D Winter, J.A Sweaney, R.W Hook, S.J Bardsley, M Chance, G.F Morris, A.O.H Kennedy, Professor A.M Kleynhans and Mr. M.R Roots started the Australian Spinal Research Foundation (ASRF) on 31 December 1976, by signing the original Memorandum and Articles of Association as a company limited by guarantee.

During the 26 years of its operation, the ASRF has raised some millions of dollars for the cause of chiropractic research and has funded over 150 research projects in universities and colleges. This is an outstanding effort by any standards and is testament to the generosity and commitment of some loyal Australian chiropractors to the importance of research.

It is noteworthy that an Australian Government inquiry in 1977 recommended that the government fund chiropractic research (the Webb Report). No government funding has yet been earmarked for chiropractic research in Australia!

In conjunction with the Chiropractors Association of Australia, the ASRF is now actively lobbying for dedicated government funding. It is our expectation that the trends already evident in North America will soon be realised down-under. We are studying with interest and hopefully learning from lobbying activities of chiropractors in Canada and the United States during the past decade.

Another strategy the ASRF Board has adopted to make its efforts even more effective is to work globally, with twin goals:

*** improving links between chiropractic research funding agencies

*** promulgating chiropractic research outcomes to practitioners in better ways

The ASRF President, Dr. Brian Kelly, has met with representatives of the Canadian Chiropractic Research Foundation, the US Foundation for Chiropractic Education and Research, the National Institute of Chiropractic Research and the World Federation of Chiropractic in recent years. Without being in any way critical of past achievements in Australia or overseas, the ASRF is keen to 'keep talking' about these important issues. (Any suggestions from readers of The Chiropractic Journal would be welcome.)

We are convinced that, while all chiropractors know the value of their profession, and although patients are voting with their dollars worldwide in favour of complementary and alternative medicine in addition to traditional medicine, the future of the chiropractic will be strongly influenced by quality research outcomes.

The Australian Spinal Research Foundation intends to be at the centre of that action.