September 2005
RCS proudly follows ACC 'Chiropractic Paradigm'
by Dr. David A. Jackson
In the long history of
our profession, I doubt whether any document has received the kind of broad‑
based, almost unanimous support that the ACC's position paper on
chiropractic has. The Association of Chiropractic College's "Chiropractic
Paradigm," formulated in 1996, was signed by every chiropractic college
president in North America. Subsequently, it was endorsed by the World
Chiropractic Alliance, the International Chiropractors Association, the
American Chiropractic Association, the World Federation of Chiropractic, and
numerous other chiropractic organizations.
The reason it was so
overwhelmingly approved is that it managed to create a definition of
chiropractic that was inclusive rather than exclusive. It did not limit the
profession to treatment of musculoskeletal conditions, nor did it prohibit
that practice purpose.
In reading over the ACC
Paradigm, as well as the ACC's mission, I was struck by how it mirrors the
mission of RCS (Research & Clinical Science). Specifically, the ACC's
mission (according to information on its website) is to:
*** Enhance
chiropractic education and scholarly activity.
*** Organize, promote
and sponsor research relevant to chiropractic education and practice.
*** Develop and
implement mechanisms to affect health care policy, related public opinion,
and interdisciplinary relationships.
*** Foster
professionalism and ethical conduct.
*** Increase public
awareness and utilization of chiropractic education and care.
*** Foster development
of a multicultural and inclusive profession.
The mission of RCS is
to "Educate, train and equip chiropractors with the latest objective health
outcomes assessment tools and procedures, and link participants through the
largest population, web‑based health outcomes project in the history of the
profession."
In doing that, RCS will
most certainly:
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Enhance chiropractic
scholarly activity. In fact, it will create an entire
community of clinical investigators ‑‑ all of whom will be approved by an
independent Institutional Review Board and monitored to ensure they meet
scientific and ethical standards.
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Promote research
relevant to chiropractic education and practice. The research
conducted by RCS will be the largest population‑based clinical study on
chiropractic and its impact on health and wellness ever conducted. It will
produce the kind of scientific evidence we need to improve the quality of
care we provide patients and prove the efficacy and safety of chiropractic.
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Develop and
implement mechanisms to affect health care policy, related public opinion,
and interdisciplinary relationships. Once we have irrefutable
evidence about chiropractic's far‑reaching benefits, that evidence will help
shape health care policy, and create a positive image of chiropractic in the
minds of the public and other health care providers.
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Foster
professionalism and ethical conduct. As clinical investigators, RCS
doctors will be guided by the highest standards use of evidence‑based care.
Their professionalism and ethics will be scrutinized by RCS and an
independent IRB panel and be beyond reproach.
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Increase public
awareness and utilization of chiropractic education and care.
It's not enough to say "trust me ... chiropractic works." We have to have
the evidence to say "Here's the scientific proof that chiropractic can
improve your life." RCS will conduct an aggressive global campaign to make
the research results accessible and understandable to the public.
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Foster development
of a multicultural and inclusive profession. The RCS panel
is a living model of the kind of multicultural and inclusive community that
can be brought together to work for the good of chiropractic. RCS doctors
will represent the largest possible array of nationalities, as well as
techniques and practice purposes.
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The parallels between
RCS and the ACC doesn't stop with our missions. They are reflected in the
way in which both of us view chiropractic.
The ACC Paradigm
states:
‑‑ The purpose of
chiropractic is to optimize health.
‑‑ Chiropractic is
concerned with the preservation and restoration of health, and focuses
particular attention on the subluxation.
‑‑ A subluxation is
evaluated, diagnosed, and managed through the use of chiropractic procedures
based on the best available rational and empirical evidence.
‑‑ Direct access
chiropractic care is integral to everyone's health care regimen.
‑‑ Doctors of
chiropractic advise and educate patients and communities in structural and
spinal hygiene and healthful living practices.
That is a very broad
and far‑reaching vision of chiropractic, one that is shared by RCS. Our
research is aimed at proving the hypothesis that, as the ACC puts it,
chiropractic can "optimize health" and "is integral to everyone's health
care regimen." Our research is not limited to proving the ability of spinal
manipulation to relieve back pain, or that chiropractic care costs less than
medical treatment for musculoskeletal conditions.
Instead, we are looking
at the large picture to determine exactly how subluxations affect key
indicators of health and wellness; how adjustments to correct subluxation
impact specific health issues (from asthma to hypertension); to what extent
chiropractic care influences a person's quality of life.
Over the past two
years, we at RCS have worked to put together the research infrastructure
necessary to complete our lofty mission. We've designed a sophisticated
Internet‑based data collection system capable of compiling data from
hundreds of thousands of subjects throughout the world ‑‑ yet it's as easy
for doctors to use as a pen and paper! It can correlate both subjective
findings from the "Self Reported Quality of Life" study the volunteer
completes, and objective data from the doctor's examination. Since each
doctor is free to provide the same type of examination usually given new
patients, the range of test results will be extensive, giving us numerous
data points.
RCS has also put
together an impressive International Scientific Advisory Panel that will
analyze the data and prepare research papers for submission to major
peer‑reviewed journals.
We take our mission
seriously, and we're proud that it's so closely aligned with the ACC mission
and Paradigm. We look forward to earning the same kind of widespread support
from the profession and making an equally important contribution to the
future of our profession.
(David A. Jackson,
DC is chief executive officer of Research and Clinical Science ‑‑ RCS ‑‑ a
private sector research program exploring issues of subluxation correction
and chiropractic care as they relate to health and wellness. Previously, he
served as president of the Chiropractic Leadership Alliance and Creating
Wellness Alliance and was owner/operator of several private practice offices
in California and Idaho that specialized in high‑volume, family
wellness‑based care. For a free, no‑obligation information packet about RCS,
call 800‑909‑1354 or 480‑303‑1694, or visit the RCS website at
www.rcsprogram.com. Doctors of chiropractic may log on to a special
limited‑access area of the site by using the username DC2 and password
RESEARCH.)
