Chiropractor Welnes Issue – May 2009 Cal for Submisions Canadian Chiropractor magazine would like to announce our first-ever wellness issue dedicated specifically to taking care of Dcs and their CHAs. Our May issue has traditionally featured “Health and Wellness” articles aimed at broadening our readers’ knowledge regarding a wide range of patient challenges that may arise in clinic. This year, Canadian Chiropractor will be putting a slightly different spin on this. We are dedicating a whole issue to taking care of you, the chiropractor and your staff! The May 2009 issue will be filled with articles and tips to help you maintain your own wellness while you serve others. We’d like some of these articles/tips to come from you! If you know of a health issue that affects Dcs and/or CHAs, or have a wellness tip/technique/exercise/ regimen to keep your colleagues going through long clinic days, we invite you to e-mail it to our editor at mdidanieli@annexweb.com. No more than 500 words please – no specific fonts, etc., required. Please include your name, the address of your practice, your e-mail address and your telephone number. All, previously unpublished, submissions will be reviewed by members of the Editorial Advisory Board – reviewers will be blinded to the author’s identity. Judging will be based on relevance, originality and creativity. For Dcs: three prize winners and three honourable mentions will be announced, and published, in our May 2009 issue! For CHAs: two prize winners and two honourable mentions will be announced and published. Submissions will be accepted from any DC and/or CHA working in Canada. Submissions from members of the Canadian Chiropractor staff and Editorial Advisory Board as well as regular writers for the magazine will not be considered. Deadline for submissions is March 9, 2009. If you are interested in writing a full-length feature article for this issue (i.e., not a contest entry), please feel free to contact us at mdidanieli@annexweb.com or 289-259-1408 for full details. Let the wellness begin – good luck, and thank you, to all entrants! DRX9000™ Informational Website for Canadian Dcs Non-surgical spinal decompression therapy continues to gain popularity in the back pain community worldwide. In light of the success that existing Canadian practitioners have experienced with the DRX9000 True Non-Surgical Spinal Decompression System™, Axiom Worldwide has developed a new Canadian informational website with further information on the non-surgical spinal decompression treatment. The new informative website (www.Axiom-Canada.com) includes product information, clinical research data, educational podcasts, informative videos, additional resources, polls and much more. Axiom Worldwide prides itself on providing safe, non-surgical alternatives that patients should consider prior to undergoing surgery. For additional information please visit: www.AxiomWorldwide.com. CMCC Practice Opport Unity ’09 In 2009, Canadian Memorial Chiropractic College (CMCC) will be holding its annual Practice Opportunity event on Friday, March 27. This year, the event will be taking on a new and exciting format! Now called “Practice OpportUnity,” it is being expanded to include an interactive daytime program for all current CMCC students. The daytime program will feature a keynote address by Dr. Donald R. Murphy of the Rhode Island Spine Center. Following the keynote presentation, students will attend panel presentation/discussion groups led by industry professionals. The evening program, a trade show format, will provide exhibitors – as well as chiropractors selling their practices, and those looking for an associate – with an opportunity to speak to graduating CMCC students and to display their products to future chiropractors. The Practice OpportUnity event will be held at CMCC. For more information about Practice OpportUnity, and to obtain a registration form, please visit www. Cmcc.ca or email events@cmcc.ca. NEW REFERENCE WEBSITE FOR L’ORDRE DES CHIROPRATICIENS DU QUÉBEC The people of Quebec now have access to a unique and complete chiropractic website at www.ordredeschiropraticiens. qc.ca. This new website, created by l’Ordre des chiropraticiens du Québec, contains a wealth of information to help the public better understand, and appreciate, chiropractic. The website offers visitors a host of tools, geared to enhancing public knowledge regarding the benefits and efficacy of chiropractic: • a video of president of the Ordre, Dr. André Marie Gonthier, to introduce, and welcome, visitors to the site, • a video explaining the role of the Ordre’s board with respect to the public, • a section dedicated to public safety and protection, • a “Did You Know” section with tips for achieving optimal health and staying in shape, • a complete description of Doctor of Chiropractic training and education, • a glossary of chiropractic treatment techniques and the conditions that can be addressed with chiropractic, • a search engine for locating local chiropractors, • a “Frequently Asked Questions” section addressing common questions by patients: – What is chiropractic? – Who could benefit from seeing a chiropractor? – How do I choose a chiropractor? – What should I expect at my first chiropractic visit? Dr. André Marie Gonthier, DC, and president of the Ordre, is proud to launch this new public portal for chiropractic information. “We want the public at large to have access to a reference site for chiropractic, with information that is evidence-based and complete,” says Dr. Gonthier, “and which, furthermore, is presented in a comprehensible and user-friendly format. In this way, the public can enjoy navigating the site while learning about the profession.” The site was created as a way to reflect the fact that the profession of chiropractic can offer a unique, yet solidly established, service to Quebecers. The Ordre wished to create a site showcasing the natural and safe approach that is at the foundation of chiropractic. As well, by adhering to a basic website design, which is, at the same time, easy to navigate and very dynamic, the site promises to facilitate public discovery and learning with respect to the profession. WFC celebrates chiropractic in the 21st century Co-sponsored by the Canadian Chiropractic Association, Celebrating Chiropractic in the 21st Century is the theme of the WFC 10th Biennial Congress to be held April 30-May 2, 2009 in Montreal, Quebec. The event boasts an outstanding program that’s sure to offer something for everyone. The event’s keynote speaker is Dr. David Eisenberg. Dr. Eisenberg, the Harvard graduate and internist who is internationally famous for his scientific articles concerning the growth and integration of complementary and alternative medicine in health care, will speak on A Model of Integrative Care Involving Chiropractic and Allopathic Doctors at a Harvard Teaching Hospital. Dr. Eisenberg currently serves as director of the Osher Research Center at Harvard Medical School and director of the program in integrative medicine at the Brigham and Women’s Hospital. Among the subjects to be explored is the philosophy of chiropractic and health care. One session has three leading authorities speaking on whether the biopsychosocial model should be the philosophical model for all health care: • Serge Robert, PhD, professor of philosophy, Faculty of Human Sciences, University of Quebec at Montreal, who has lectured and published prolifically on the philosophy of science and health since the 1980s, • Guy Riekeman, DC, president, Life University, Marietta, Georgia, one of the chiropractic profession’s most dynamic and popular lecturers, • Alan Breen, DC, PhD, professor of musculoskeletal health care, Anglo-European College of Chiropractic, Bourne-mouth, England. Dr. Breen gave an enthusiastically received philosophy lecture at the Paris Congress in 2001 24 • Canadian Chiropractor | FEBRUARY 2009 www.canadianchiropractor.ca news Speakers at the event also include Dr. Gerard Clum, president, Life College of Chiropractic West and Past President of the World Federation of Chiropractic, who will discuss “Where We Have Come From and the Road Ahead.” Highlights of the congress social program include an opening reception, a Thursday night Quebec cultural dinner and show, and the Saturday night gala banquet and dance. OPENING MINDS TO THE BIGGER PICTURE The past 30 years have seen a distinct attempt to leverage our significant success in helping people with spinal pain into a raison d’être for the entire profession. From educational programs focused on the limited scope of care of spinal therapeutics, to professional ad campaigns centred around sore backs, the push to position ourselves as “spinal specialists” has cost hundreds of thousands of dollars, yet failed to move the profession forward on any meaningful level. The mantra of “bring ‘em in for back pain and educate them on the big picture once they’re in” has been repeated ad nauseam. But has it worked? It could be easily argued that today’s chiropractor is working harder but generating less income than he/ she could have in the ‘70s. As well, the fight for the back pain market has become much more congested. If we wish to move beyond our current circumstance, then, it is obvious that something has to change. The Chiropractic Awareness Council of Ontario (CAC) is determined to be a positive force in helping to create that change. CAC has recently entered into an agreement with Open magazine for a series of progressive co-op ads in that publication. Open was chosen because of its growing circulation as well as its broad-based appeal to our target audience of “decision-makers” between the ages of 25 and 50. The campaign is designed to help reposition the public’s awareness of chiropractic to a more broad-based perspective than it currently has. While not aimed at diminishing the effect we have on all types of spinal-centred suffering, the goal is to create an awareness that chiropractic care has much more to offer than relief of acute pain syndromes. When the first CAC advertorial – titled “10 Myths About Chiropractic” – created an increase in traffic to the CAC public information website, www.CAC4Life.com, we realized we were on to something. The concept of this piece was simple: address the most common misunderstandings regarding chiropractic, and share the truth. The second ad, “Help for a Sick Society,” will be introduced in the spring issue of Open. At the heart of this piece is a straightforward discussion that the status quo in health care is failing miserably, while positioning the logic that chiropractic is a viable alternative. Over the next year, CAC-Ontario will present various health topics, in advertorial format, that will set the stage for the long-overdue and much-required task of repositioning chiropractic in a manner that goes far beyond spinal “conditions,” that is to say, the type of practice that the majority of the profession has an affiity for. If we wish to truly meet our potential of giving our highest level of service to our communities, we need to ensure those communities truly understand what that potential is. The CAC-Ontario co-op ad campaign is a step in the right direction to making this wish a reality. SECOND OPINION – CHIROPRACTIC LOOKS AT HEALTH CARE The British Columbia Chiropractic Association (BCCA) aired its television program, titled Second Opinions: Chiropractic Looks at Health Care, throughout December on KVOS-TV. This production is an edit and update of the BCCA’s former DVD, titled Your Health, Your Spine, which was widely aired seven years ago. The BCCA board is confident this program resonated strongly, regardless of Canadian or American public audiences and our members alike. Coverage reached the population area of approximately 600 chiropractic offices. Says Dr. Don Nixdorf, executive director of the BCCA, “This production and its schedule marks a new level of commitment to public awareness of necessary health care.” The BCCA board thanks Drs. Longstaffe and Nero for making their office available for filming, and Dr. Lidia Mickelson, who continues to lend her support and presence to the BCCA media productions – which now include Second Opinions: Chiropractic Looks at Health Care, - being aired in partnership with ActNowBC and WorkSafeBC. For information on how to acquire your own office copy of Second Opinions: Chiropractic Looks at Health Care, please contact Dr. Don Nixdorf, executive director of the BCCA, at Don@bcchiro.com Parker Colege Establishes Drugless Research Hal of Fame Making its debut during the first annual Parker Gala at the 2009 Las Vegas Parker Seminars, the Drugless Research Hall of Fame, founded by Parker College of Chiropractic, is an innovative recognition platform designed to showcase significant drug-free contributions in research worldwide. Parker Seminars is the largest event in chiropractic and an ideal platform to highlight the efforts and achievements within chiropractic research. The first inductee to the Drugless Research Hall of Fame was announced at the Parker Gala – the honour has been bestowed upon Dr. Ronald Rupert, Director of Research at Parker College. The goal of the Drugless Research Hall of Fame is to recognize the often unheralded heroes of chiropractic research and honour them for their contributions to the field and for promoting drugless lifestyles. These individuals dedicate their time, energy and effort to research for the benefit of the entire chiropractic profession. It is imperative for the profession to support chiropractic research, which will, in turn, impact patient outcomes and the growth of the profession. Research establishes credibility, plays a pivotal role in today’s health care policy, and has a crucial role in issues of reimbursement. The lack of research in many areas diminishes the proper role and compensation of the chiropractic profession. The profession has a serious need for research, in areas spanning from the care of children to that of the aged, from treatment to prevention, from basic science to clinical science, and from visceral issues to somatic conditions, to name a few. Nominations will be taken in 2010 for inductees into the Drugless Research Hall of Fame. CMCC GRADUATE ACCEPTED FOR WHO INTERNSHIP Jennifer Nash, a 2008 Canadian Memorial Chiropractic College (CMCC) graduate, has recently begun a three-month internship at the World Health Organization (WHO) headquarters in Geneva, Switzerland. This is a unique opportunity, and Nash is the second chiropractic student – and the first ever Canadian chiropractic student – to be accepted into this program. During her time at CMCC, Nash was passionate about attending the World Congress of Chiropractic Students (WCCS). She represented CMCC at the 2005, 2007 and 2008 annual WCCS congresses in Denmark, South Africa and Mexico, respectively. At the most recent congress, Nash was nominated, and selected, to represent the WCCS by submitting an application for the intern position at the WHO. Her application was accepted and Nash now has the opportunity to assist with the preparation of new global guidelines and technical documents related to the training, safety and regulation of manual therapies and guidelines for evidence-based traditional medicine, including chiropractic. Nash practises at The Natural Way Health Clinic in Waterloo, Ontario, but is currently taking a three-month leave from January 12 to April 3, 2009, to complete her WHO internship. The position is completely unpaid/unfunded by the WHO; therefore, the burden of the travel, accommodation and living expenses falls on the interns themselves. Anyone who would like to make a contribution to support Nash’s internship position in Switzerland, is asked to send a cheque – made out to the “WFC” – to the World Federation of Chiropractic, Suite 203, 1246 Yonge Street, Toronto, ON M4T 1W5, Attention: Khalid Salim, or contact Khalid directly with Visa or MasterCard details at ksalim@ wfc.org or at 416-484-9978. Canadian Chiropractor would like to extend sincere congratulations to Dr. Nash, for achieving this opportunity, and wishes her, and her fellow interns, success in Geneva.