August 2008

DCs gather for goal of 'Advancing Chiropractic'

 In November 2006, a group of dedicated chiropractors met in Portland, Oregon, to discuss a wide variety of issues and concerns facing subluxation-centered chiropractic today. Although the meeting was not affiliated with any chiropractic organization, participants shared a common vision of chiropractic as the premiere health care approach of the 21st century; one that maintained its independence and unique identity; one based on the merging of art, science and philosophy.

The group took its name -- "Advancing Chiropractic" -- from its major mission and formulated a visionary document known as the "Portland Paper." In the months after the meeting, the group continued to work together, to develop the Portland Paper, a clear and concise, yet farsighted document that outlines the mission and goals of the group for chiropractic's future.

Since they wanted to establish a firm foundation on which to build, the group has only recently "gone public" with an Internet site. Yet their goals and activities already are winning widespread support from members of the profession as well as the public, all of whom are encouraged to sign an online list of supporters.

According to the group's mission statement the longstanding conflict and competition with the medical industry, as well as internal strife caused by differing views on what chiropractic is and should be, has "led to diminished trust and respect within our profession and a lack of scientific and social advancement of the profession. This has threatened our autonomy and the very future of the profession. It detracts from efforts to promote the benefits chiropractic has to offer to individuals seeking greater health and a better quality of life."

The group notes that its threefold mission is to:

1. Unite chiropractors desiring to protect and support the rights of all doctors of chiropractic to provide vertebral subluxation correction and of all people who choose to receive such care.

2. Advance and promote vertebral subluxation-centered chiropractic to all people, including the public, the media, legislators and those directly or indirectly associated with the chiropractic profession.

3. Support evidence-based practice guidelines, which protect the right of patients to receive chiropractic care for the analysis and correction of vertebral subluxations.

Specific strategies

To fulfill its mission and advance the chiropractic profession, the group is working on several specific issues, including:

***  Communication.  A task force has been charged with increasing awareness and understanding of the role of vertebral subluxation correction inside and outside the profession. This will benefit the profession as a whole, reminding members of chiropractic's roots and clarifying for consumers what makes chiropractic unique and their expectation from chiropractic care. To further this end, chiropractic colleges will be encouraged to provide courses on the philosophy of chiropractic based on its philosophy, science, and art.

***  Research. The group is exploring ways to create a vertebral-subluxation-centered research culture within the profession. This, in part, will involve equipping doctors of chiropractic to collect data on vertebral subluxation correction, supporting the development and application of subluxation-centered guidelines, encouraging practice-based health outcomes research, increasing subscriptions to subluxation-centered peer reviewed journals, and exploring ways to involve all stakeholders in this process.

***  Governance and accountability.  In light of the all-too-frequent examples of discrimination and abuse of power occurring in state boards and other regulatory bodies, the group plans to increase accountability by these entities. One way to do this is by creating a network of active vertebral-subluxation-centered practitioners who can monitor national and local regulatory agency actions, serve on licensing and regulatory boards, take leadership roles in professional organizations, host local leadership development workshops, and participate in inter- and intra-disciplinary forums.

***  Licensure requirements. A number of states have tried to make adjunctive therapies a mandatory requirement for chiropractic licensure. The Advancing Chiropractic group is working to safeguard the right to practice vertebral subluxation-centered chiropractic, and support those chiropractors who choose not to include therapeutic approaches in their scope of practice. Its goal is to assure relevance in assessing clinical competency on the negative effects of the vertebral subluxation and to insist that the National Board of Chiropractic Examiners test on the basic chiropractic tenets of philosophy and principles provided by appropriately credentialed chiropractic philosophical instructors.

***  Model practice act. A key goal of the group is to develop a model chiropractic practice act that strengthens the legal status of vertebral subluxation-centered chiropractic, clarifies its scope of practice, and allows for differentiation from chiropractors wishing to obtain optional certification outside of this model.

***  Mutual support. Finally, the group wants to be in a position to assist vertebral subluxation-centered chiropractors to develop effective practices based on specificity of analysis and correction, the best possible chiropractic patient care, high ethical standards, sound business and financial principles, and modern marketing of themselves to their patients and community. This will be accomplished through mentoring and coaching programs, business training, and the development and provision of information and resources for chiropractors wishing to maintain a vertebral subluxation-centered practice.

Putting passion into practice

While the formal language of the mission statement is uplifting, it at times lacks the passion that rings out when its members speak.

"We are sick and tired of chiropractors who do not understand the core values of chiropractic getting into authority positions and determining what chiropractic is and what it is not," states Harold (Skip) H. George, Jr., DC, chairman of Advancing Chiropractic. "We are sick and tired of state organizations demanding what the chiropractic colleges must teach ... of seeing the identity of chiropractic compromised into the medical arena by many of our so-called chiropractic leaders."

The group's website proudly expresses its members' fervor for chiropractic and reaches out to like-minded colleagues.

"It is time for the silent majority of chiropractors to voice their opinion," the group announces on its site, www.advancingchiropractic.com. "So many of us were just too busy providing chiropractic care, we didn't observe what was happening to the identity of chiropractic... Many chiropractors who never understood the core values of chiropractic and were having trouble building practices entered into the political arena. Over the years, these individuals have continually put their efforts in changing the direction of chiropractic into a therapeutic model. If it wasn't for some of our colleagues who understood these core values and gave up time from their practices, the identity of chiropractic would have been lost into another therapeutic approach for crisis care. It is time for the silent majority to speak!"

It's clear from the rapidly growing list of doctors and chiropractic students who have signed on as supporters of the Advancing Chiropractic mission that the "silent majority" is stepping forward to speak up. Hundreds of doctors have already signed up in the short time the website has been active and many more are expected to show their support as word circulates about the work the group is doing.

In addition, chiropractic patients and supporters are urged to add their name to a special "public support" list, in recognition of the fact that the group's efforts will help safeguard their right to see a chiropractor regardless of their age or condition (or lack of medical condition) and for subluxation correction alone.

For more information on Advancing Chiropractic, visit www.advancingchiropractic.com .