India, roughly the size of California and the second most populous nation in the world, is a country where 252 children are born every minute, and people pay rent just for the right to sleep on a hard piece of sidewalk at night. It's also a place where chiropractic has gone virtually unnoticed for more than a century.
In June of 1997, Life University made its first visit to this ancient country to look for a site to open a chiropractic center. They also initiated talks with representatives from India and the World Health Organization in Geneva to help investigate the proper way to bring chiropractic care to India.
"India is an important part of Life University's goal to take chiropractic around the world," said Dr. Sid Williams, the university's president and founder. "A presence there will provide an excellent clinical experience and cultural exchange for our participating doctors."
With the help of Drs. Rod Handly and Gary Auerbach, the Life team found just the type of building they were looking for in the city of Bangalore. Located just south of New Delhi, in an area known as the "Silicon Valley of India," team officials found a modern facility perfect for the university's needs. Currently, the site is being studied and is pending official approval.
Dr. Handly views the opening of the clinic as just the tip of the iceberg for providing chiropractic care around the world. "A facility in India will be a starting point for Life's new program allowing student clinicians and externs to work in other nations," Dr. Handly said. The new program, known as Life Around the World (LAW), will send student clinicians and faculty supervisors to China and Egypt in the near future, with Africa, Russia, Indonesia and others scheduled at later dates.
Once in place, these centers will be supplemented with mobile units to help provide chiropractic care to the more remote areas of the world. "All of the facilities around the world will be a place for field doctors who are looking to take a few weeks or months sabbatical from their practices to come and share their experiences and expertise with students," said Dr. Handly.
When sports chiropractors first appeared at the Olympic Games in the 1980s, it was alongside individual athletes who had experienced the benefits of chiropractic care in their training and recovery processes at home. Fast forward to Paris 2024, where chiropractic care was available in the polyclinic for all athletes, and the attitude has now evolved to recognize that “every athlete deserves access to sports chiropractic."
It is estimated that 61% of patients with CTS avoid taking surgical options due to postoperative complications and costly surgical procedures. Chiropractic care offers a comprehensive and effective treatment for carpal tunnel syndrome, addressing the condition from multiple angles. Recent studies also have unveiled a game-changing adjunct to chiropractic treatments for CTS: nerve flossing.
Some doctors thrive in a personality-based clinic and have a loyal following no matter what services or equipment they offer, but for most chiropractic offices who are trying to grow and expand, new equipment purchases help us stay relevant and continue to service our client base in the best, most up-to-date manner possible. So, regarding equipment purchasing: should you lease, get a bank loan, or pay cash?
