What is the likelihood that Chiropractic will ever become the #1 healthcare choice in America? At the outset of this blog, this was one of my stated passions. To see our profession and our individual doctors elevated to the status we should hold.
If I get hit by a truck, take me to the ER. If I have a heart attack, call 911. If I have a genetic anomaly or inexplicably develop a disease such as diabetes or a cardiomyopathy requiring life-sustaining medication, then give me that medication.
Some conditions are beyond chiropractic care to be enough. Not that one won’t still be better off with chiropractic care than without it. But in cases of life-threatening emergencies, or health issues either not associated with subluxation, or too far gone beyond full recovery, then give me the best that Allopathic care has to offer!
But for most everything else… I’m looking for my good colleague for an adjustment. Some of you don’t get this. Particularly if you’re a student or a new grad. But thousands of DCs in practice today haven’t gotten this either.
I have an ongoing conversation currently with a newer grad who has been open in his own practice for about six months. An extremely bright and intelligent young man. Yet maybe due to the chiropractic education received from his Nurturing Mother, he has little confidence in his abilities beyond pain relief and improved joint mobility. His main hangup is that while he’s aware there is research “out there” on the effectiveness of the adjustment beyond pain relief, he has not (yet) witnessed any such cases with his own patients.
The origin of his lack of confidence in this area could take multiple blog posts to address. I would request multiple comments from students who are being fed the “when all else fails, try adjusting your patient” gruel at their school… the “a subluxation does not exist” drivel that too many at our institutes of higher education are being misled to believe as scientific truth.
We therefore have an entire generation of new grads and soon-to-be-grads, as well as gobs of DC veterans, who have NO IDEA who they are nor what they can provide for a suffering humanity who are desperately seeking their care in their community.
If you are in practice, and are not aware of any conditions that have ever improved or resolved in your patients other than their pain symptoms, then you’re either not asking the right questions, or in some cases you’re not treating beyond simple relief of pain.
I used this example with this new doctor… “I live in central North Carolina. I have heard some claim that there are mountains in NC. Some have stated, anecdotally, that the Atlantic ocean can be reached without leaving my state. There is even proof of this in the geographic and travel resources. However, I have traveled to the outskirts of Wake, Chatham, Durham, and Orange counties, but have yet to see any mountains, and have not seen a coastline… since I’ve not seen it myself, I cannot believe these claims to be true.” The real truth is, either I haven’t traveled far enough, or in many cases, I’ve just been looking in the wrong direction.
Didn’t plan on this post going in that direction, but just as well that it did. This one can’t be ignored. Our profession will never be #1 when so many of our fellow “Doctors” are practicing as glorified physical therapists.
What else needs to happen before our profession rises to it’s rightful place in the American public’s healthcare decision making? We’ll dive into this one more deeply, but I’d love to hear your viewpoints. Feel free to type out a quick comment.
“til then…
