March 2004

Five leaders identify major threats to chiropractic today

WASHINGTON, DC — Five leaders in chiropractic were asked to identify the single most important threat to chiropractic today. And although each had a different opinion, the problems each of them pointed out caught the attention of attendees and delegates at the American Chiropractic Association’s National Chiropractic Legislative Conference.

Kent Greenawalt, president of Foot Levelers, Inc., moderated a panel discussion among David Chapman-Smith, secretary-general of the World Federation of Chiropractic; Mark Sanna, DC, CEO of Breakthrough Coaching; Peter Ferguson, DC, president of the National Board of Chiropractic Examiners; Frank Nicci, DC, president of New York Chiropractic College; and Dennis Perman, co-founder of The Masters Circle.

The panel was asked to give their opinions on four questions:

1. What is the greatest threat facing this profession?

2. What is the greatest opportunity?

3. What is the one thing that ACA can do to take advantage of the opportunity or fend off the threat?

4. What effect would unity between the International Chiropractors Association (ICA) and ACA have on the profession?

Chapman-Smith listed a number of possible key threats to chiropractic. “I thought about lack of funding for public research, lack of a single authoritative voice … continuing low levels of public trust. But ultimately I thought [the most significant threat] was the public’s loss of perception on you as spine-care experts. We are now in the bone and joint decade … competitors are pouring major resources into this market.”

Sanna concurred with Chapman-Smith on the issue of perception. Sanna’s concern was that “we have been pigeonholed into a pain-relief modality.” Sanna said chiropractors must break out of this perception and upgrade their capabilities to focus on functional improvement.

“We must rise to the level of care and not accept being pigeonholed into the pain-relief model managed-care has put us into,” he stated.

Related to the problem of perception was Perman’s take on the most important threat — insecurity and lack of self-esteem. This has led to unnecessary internal competition, he said. “The perception is that there are only so many patients out there and ‘if I don’t get them, you will’,” he commented.

“When we learn not to be paranoid but appreciate our uniqueness, we can go forward,” emphasized Perman.

Education was on the minds of Ferguson and Nicchi. Ferguson said, “Five years ago we had over 15,000 students [in chiropractic colleges]. Today we have 10,000. That number [of students] will continue to drop until 2007 and then will level off.”

Nicchi was concerned about a disconnect between the profession and research. “We need support from the profession at large for research. It’s the validation of our profession.”

Greenawalt asked the five leaders about unity between ACA and ICA.

“Given the impossibility of going to the legislature with two voices, that merger would be important,” said Chapman-Smith. “We have seen what has happened when mergers occurred in other countries. They have brought associations back from the ashes. It is our perception outside the United States that U.S. chiropractors tolerate division too much.”

Sanna echoed Chapman-Smith’s comments. “A single voice brings with it a tremendous opportunity for chiropractic.”

“I don’t know if it will happen,” said Ferguson, “but we must grow up and stop being self-serving. We have to understand that we have different opinions. As a profession, we must have one voice to go to Congress. How embarrassing when two groups have two different viewpoints!”

Perman alluded to the recent New Jersey unification in his remarks. “They came together to join strengths. We can transcend those thing that make us different.” (See “New Jersey unites! 6 chiropractic associations are now one,” on www.ChiroEcoNewsflash.com.)

He then stated, “Teams go through four different stages —forming, storming, norming and performing … If we can acknowledge that we are at the norming stage, we can stand proud. Be willing to help each other — that will make a big difference in our profession.”

Source: Editor Linda Segall covered the ACA’s National Chiropractic Legislative Conference in Washington, DC.

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