Since 1895, I would imagine there have been numerous times that many in the profession have asked the question, "Are we making progress?" The answer is undeniably yes!
My father graduated from Palmer College in 1954 and was so enamored with B.J. Palmer that when B.J. told the students there were four states that had not yet licensed their new profession, Dad packed up Mom and four children in his 1950 Studebaker and said we were going to Louisiana. Dad grew up in Detroit, and his story about how he came to be a chiropractor is as special as are the many personal stories in the evolution of chiropractors.
While Dad was away serving his country in World War II, his mother, an artist by avocation, experienced blinding headaches that none of the specialists could help. The drugs made her health worse, and she was finally told that she would have to live with the affliction. A friend of hers talked her into seeing a new kind of doctor and brought her to see Dr. Deerfield of Dearborn, Michigan. After receiving significant relief in a short period of time through chiropractic adjustments, she greeted my father upon his return and said, "Son, you are going to be a chiropractor." Grandma lived a long, good life and will always be remembered as instrumental in my dad's (as well as my own) career choice.
Dad practiced for 20 years without a license in Louisiana. He built a large practice because of the successful results he achieved with patients despite the economic and social harassment that he and our family endured. There were no insurance reimbursements or professional referrals, only the delivery of quality care with a steadfast determination to succeed because his chosen profession was "naturally right." In 1974, he was president of the Chiropractic Association of Louisiana when then-Governor Edward Edwards signed our bill into law. I was in my third year at Texas Chiropractic College, and with a classmate, Dr. Scott Isdale of Killeen, Texas, drove to Baton Rouge to experience the jubilation of those dedicated and committed doctors of chiropractic in Louisiana who had finally broken down the last barrier in state licensure laws. Louisiana was our profession's Berlin Wall.
Are we making progress? You bet we are. The stories of the pioneers of our profession always make me appreciative of the success we are enjoying today because of their sacrifices. Anyone paying attention can appreciate that we are making progress.
Thomas Edison once said, "Restlessness and discontent are the first necessities of progress." Our profession knows restlessness. Our discontent with the medical model of health care, which too often denies access of our uniquely special care to millions of suffering patients, has always given us great purpose. We are poised for continuous progress which we know will have a meaningful influence on the wellness care of the future. Our mission is powerful!
I am grateful and proud of the efforts of the American Chiropractic Association. My membership began in ACA during my first days at TCC. My dad was often heard giving advice to doctors who were beginning their practice or hoping to build a practice like his: "How can you expect patients to support you if you are not willing to support your profession?" He was a strong proponent of membership in the state and national associations as the best way to invest in one's professional future.
It is embarrassing to read that such a large number of our colleagues do not support their national association. Their indifference impedes our progress and limits our potential. As membership numbers increase, so will the resources increase, which are necessary to break down whatever "walls" are placed before us.
Our patients deserve no less than our best organized effort. As the new Chairman of the Board, I want the profession to know that the ACA is working diligently, with over 75 elected leaders in the House of Delegates and 40 full-time staff members at headquarters to identify "walls" to a successful practice for every chiropractor and for greater accessibility by the public to our science, philosophy and art. We are in the trenches together to support, defend and protect chiropractic today and tomorrow.
The value in ACA membership transcends the "what's in it for me" thinking to become a "what's in it for chiropractic and our patients" thinking. Improving access to our special, unique care by patients is a priority in the ACA.
Chiropractic deserves an organized, influential and resourceful professional national association. Our patients and a growing, overmedicated, poorly nourished, highly stressed and unhealthy society demand the chiropractic message. Colleagues who heretofore have not supported our organized efforts will be asked to join with us for the right reasons.
Chiropractic is important to the health care of humankind. We must have the resources as a profession to meet our many challenges and bring our message of wellness to the attention of decision makers, whether it is corporate America or family America.
Every chiropractor of good will in our country must understand their responsibility to nurture and support their profession on the state and national level. It's a small investment that can bring meaningful rewards to your practice and the patients you serve.
What ACA does makes a difference in how our profession thrives in the new health care environment. The concerns of our members and the issues facing chiropractic have the ACA's attention. I am confident that attentiveness and strong membership support, our profession and health care will fare well in the new millennium.
