By Flavian Santavicca, Jr., DC

1983 — Thinking back to my years in chiropractic college, I recall how frequently and seriously we discussed the possible ways to insure our success in practice — especially during our final term when the prospect of being on our own made our palms sweat.

We kicked around a bunch of ideas. One common belief was the advantage of selecting an area of little or no competition. Other simplistic ideas were put forth, all tinged with an underlying need to find a security blanket for our future.

Of course, we were no different than any other generation of youth; our heads were filled with the product of youthful enthusiasm. We were eager to make our mark in the professional world.

With maturity, I’m certain my classmates have looked back, as I have many, many times, and chuckled over some of our misconceptions, our faulty reasoning.

Today, after years as the director of a practice described as the nation’s largest, single-doctor practice, I can reflect from a unique vantage point on the changes taking place in the profession. Are these changes significant and are they beneficial?

They are as certain as the rising tide. We’re approaching a period of explosive changes, and characteristically, the results are mixed — there’s both good and bad news — and the subject must be addressed on a one-on-one basis.

Take the present controversy regarding advertising. Is this good or bad for the profession? How should the practitioner view his or her participation, especially on a local level?

The hard-core, blatant, freebee advertisements that are now quite prominent in many areas are, from my outlook, devastating to the profession.

What is the logic of spending dollars to create an impression of unprofessionalism? In the long run, it’s counter-productive … as compared to the favorable results of a solid, informative, public relations program.

There are good ways of communicating — which is the major goal of advertising — without forceful, “something-for-nothing” copy. Additionally, I question the lasting benefits of ad dollars which give away the store. For example, how many doctors that you know select their attorney, CPA or dentist for their “cut-rate” fees, rather than the quality of service offered?

Successful doctors use a weekly newspaper column with an informative context to build their practice. Other producing approaches are the open-line radio talk show, which offers opportunity to create dialogue with people in the community, lectures to civic groups and a tour of your facilities. The schools are always a good prospect for informative lectures stressing benefits of posture and prevention of sports injuries.

The underlying concept should be to teach — this is the meaning of the term, physician. The more frequently you can apply this reasoning, the faster your practice will assume the character of stability and freedom from the roller coaster of fluctuation and “hurry on in to the office” ad campaigns.

What about the relations and the problems occurring from interactions between fellow chiropractors who opt for “straight” vs. the “mixer?”

Wouldn’t it be wonderful to announce a merger of philosophies uniting both factions during the 1980s?

The realities of the situation make such a prediction moot. I hold the belief that it’s important to practice in a conscientious manner, accomplishing everything possible to help each patient. Additionally, every doctor whose approach differs from mine deserves equal respect — provided he’s within license limitations.

We can credit the good Lord, who saw to it there are many different types of healthcare practitioners to care for individuals whose response patterns may favor one type over another. Isn’t this a logical solution to filling the diverse needs of the individual who is created as an entity all his own? Chiropractic shouldn’t be accused of viewing the American public as clones of one hypothetically “ideal” person.

We should respect the differences of opinion that characterize every body of professionals. Of course, we don’t have to agree either, but without growth in thought and ideas, we qualify as the living dead.

We should always consider the origins for change in our professional viewpoints and attitudes. This specifically affects our colleges and their curriculums, especially the emphasis on business training procedures to insure our graduates of success in the years after graduation.

Many significant and laudable changes are visible within the college community. One college is moving its business management courses from the 12th quarter back to the 9th, with additional courses to follow in the last three quarters.

This will have an impact on those student discussions mentioned earlier … and explode some of the myths. Also, the profession will progress because of more postgraduate business courses being offered with greater frequency to accommodate the field doctor.

Another major area of change I perceive during the ‘80s is in our overall approach to nutritional awareness.

As doctors, we acknowledge the great accumulation of knowledge which demonstrates we are a nation consuming large quantities of synthetic, processed and devitalized foods. The problems and consequences are clearly documented from the evidence collected by experts in the field.

I’m certain not to be alone in my belief that patients benefit from a correction in improper diet … at least, they deserve to learn the relationship between nutrition and health.

Research tends to support the findings that recommending a properly formulated, wide-spectrum nutritional supplement will help overcome the deficiencies made inevitable from soil depletion. Of course, chiropractic health care is never complete without appropriate adjustments, the basis of our existence.

The reasoning for nutritional support is basic: the human body requires certain vitamins, minerals, enzymes and glandular substances to function and repair the lesions of trauma or misuse, as well as regenerate dying cells.

Another factor pointing to advisability of supplementing our diets is the daily addition of stress, with pollution following close behind. It’s virtually impossible to live in a stress of pollution-free environment.

When we talk about chiropractic adjustments, diets, nutrition and all the allied effects of good health — including exercise and adequate, comfortable sleep on a good mattress — what we’re building to is a concept commonly referred to as holistic. Frankly, I can accept this without reservation.

One of the cornerstones of a holistic practice is a solid, hide-spectrum nutritional product. Fortunately, I’ve found a source for such a product at SIVAD. It’s a patented product named Nutritional Foundation with 51 ingredients which is being promoted in an attempt to increase the chiropractor’s awareness of the value of a good, wide-spectrum nutritional program.

One determination of the value of a holistic approach is following the results found in a patient’s blood/urine test samples. These factors should normalize under a good holistic approach which utilizes all the therapeutic tools mentioned previously.

The factors of adjustments, exercise, diet improvement, a good nutritional support system, plus a positive mental attitude al have a bearing on the patient with chronic health problems. Short-cutting in any area can only result in treating only a portion of the individual’s health problems. I can’t conceive of any advantage in doing only a part of my job as a doctor, nor do I know many successful doctors who could build on this shortsighted philosophy.

With extended nutritional and business training, the colleges are gaining the respect and support of the entire chiropractic community. We should be especially grateful to the faculty members who share a lifetime of dedication with their students to propel our profession into the mainstream of professional recognition.

These are the ingredients to keep our field a separate healing art. Hopefully, we should all hold the big picture — a healthcare system without drugs and surgery — and not become bored with the relative ease of reducing the pain of an aching back with an adjustment.

It’s not too difficult to lose sight of the importance of what we do as doctors. And, we do. Many actually suffer a newfangled malady called “burnout.” We forget to share in the excitement and blessing of getting people over their traumatic experiences … we’ve been there before and we expect the miracle of recovery to occur under the application of our hands.

At some time everyday, I remind myself that I’m part of the greatest profession in the world — and I say this without taking away the importance of other healing arts. If I were invited to offer advice to young graduates, I’d tell them to share these identical thoughts and to hold their heads high as they walk down the main street in the town where they heal the sick, chiropractically.

If everything appears rosy in the future, it’s time to reflect deeper on some of the potential problems always facing our profession — the mechanisms of the national and state legislative bodies … who hold the power to wipe out our gains as if they never existed.

Sure, there would be a struggle. And, that’s what we must constantly be aware of … our political ammunition should always be dry! Apathy and complacency could strip away our professional and economic future with a single bill.

To this end, each member who relies upon the profession for his existence should return some of the benefits to the profession by support of one of more of the associations that act as the individual’s watchdog, or political overseer.

Can each of us do better in life than live with a clear conscience that what we do everyday is in harmony with our total surroundings? We’re contributors, and that’s good.