We Get Letters

Paucity of Applications

Dear Editor:

From November 7-12, I attended the Society for Neuroscience Annual Meeting in Washington, D.C. The scale of the meeting is staggering: 22,000+ attendees and 11,000 presentations! I had been invited to speak at a social titled, "Is There a Neurobiology of Back Pain." My presentation aimed at increasing dialogue between clinicians and basic science researchers. Other speakers included Peter Grigg, PhD; William Roberts, PhD; Robert Schmidt, MD, PhD; all leaders in neurophysiology relevant to back pain; and Stephen Gordon, PhD, director of the Musculoskeletal Diseases Program at the National Institutes of Health.

Historically, there has been little interest from basic scientists in topics directly relating to back pain. Our social was obviously designed to spark some interest in this topic. We thought that the inclusion of Dr. Gordon, who administrates funding of research, would lure scientists, all of whom are struggling for funding, to come to the meeting. We had anticipated 100+ to attend, and were disappointed by the meager turnout of 20 people. This pointed to the broader problem.

The National Institutes of Health periodically publishes "RFAs," or Requests for Applications. A couple of years ago, Dr. Gordon requested applications for low back pain related research, but has been disappointed with the paucity of applications. He only received two or three grant applications. We think that this represents a problem! In the clinical world, we keep hearing about the need to develop a scientific basis for manipulative health care, but scientifically we don't even know what causes low back pain! Furthermore, there isn't much interest in the topic by scientists who are capable of doing the research (even though they are all plagued by back pain).

So what can we do about this? As a group, we have to keep supporting our associations. They are positioned to put pressure on the administrators who decide where the tax dollars earmarked for research are spent. As individuals, we have to keep our minds open and form questions about back pain mechanisms, and take any opportunity that arises to express these to scientists. Attending conferences that merge clinicians and scientists is a good venue for this, such as the American Pain Society.

I am always impressed by what the chiropractic profession can do when they put their energy to it. I think that we can make a change in this realm as well, and that it will lead to better understanding of many of the conditions that we treat.

Geoffrey Bove, DC
University of North Carolina School of Medicine
Department of Physiology

Dear Editor:

Your request for donations of $40 a month to the Chiropractic Centennial Sponsorship fund are a bit premature. 1995 will be a very special year for chiropractic. Fifty million dollars would buy a very extensive media campaign. But the entire amount would be essentially wasted if the national health care plan activated in the same year effectively guides people to MDs preferentially over DCs. At this time there is no specific inclusion or exclusion of DCs in the bill. But, the bill may allow the states to decide on their own plans. How will Oregon DCs be treated if this happens?

Mr. Petersen, please request that all current donations are sent to the ACA Political Action Committee. Forty dollars a month from 50,000 DCs for the next four months would net $8,000,000. Add this to the over $1,000,000 the ACA has already collected and we have a war chest that would insure chiropractic's broad inclusion in the Clinton health plan. Nine million dollars spent now will be worth 100 times this amount after the health plan is in place.

National health care is the greatest opportunity chiropractic has ever had to level the playing field. We are too often at the bottom fighting our way up through ERISAs, HMOs, workers' compensation, and other laws which favor allopathic medicine. With one sweep all the discriminatory language could be removed across the nation. Or, we could be treated preferentially as the recent Manga report suggests for Ontario, and as the recent worker's compensation reforms in California have guaranteed chiropractic access for patients. This is possible with PAC donations at the right time. Now is the right time.

If you are really serious, send in $1,000. I have. Twice. Fifty thousand DCs X $1,000 = $50,000,000 for PAC money. With this kind of money we could get Don Petersen Jr. for president of the US and Chester Wilk as v.p.

John McDaniel, DC, CCSP
Instructor, Palmer College of Chiropractic West

Dear Editor:

Dr. Fred Barge wrote a thought-provoking column in the September 1, 1993 issue of MPI's "DC," and one to which all DCs should give heed.

He asked the question, "How many chiropractors today see patients given up to die? How many regularly see epileptics, blue babies, babies with so-called "congenital" torticolis, pyloric spasm, childhood infectious conditions, measles, mumps, etc.?"

To that question, we respond, Kentuckiana Children's Center is one clinic that sees these patients regularly. Since 1957, we have opened our doors to the "rejects" from other health professionals, the "incurable," the "hopeless," those headed for life in an institution, and have given them hope through chiropractic.

Currently, we also see children who suffer symptoms of ADHD, autism, violent behavior, allergies, malabsorption syndrome, cerebral palsy, scoliosis, seizure activity, enuresis, severe immunization reactions, and multiple handicaps including congenital hip anomalies.

Kentuckiana was founded on the premise that handicapped children need, deserve, and have the basic human right to receive all the help necessary, regardless of their socio-economic status in life (and regardless of their insurance policy!). Therefore, no child who comes to the the Center will be denied the health care and/or special education needed just because the family cannot afford the services.

Kentuckiana's multidisciplinary clinic offers chiropractic as primary care, supplemented with nutritional therapy, psychological testing, visual therapy, social services, special education classes, and medical referrals when needed -- all under one roof and all free of charge.

We have literally thousands of success stories of children who were treated in our clinic. Some completely overcame their difficulties, such as children with epilepsy who no longer need seizure medication. Some who were severely mentally or physically handicapped, have been brought to a happier, healthier level of functioning. Almost all have benefitted.

We do not serve specific diseases or disorders, and we certainly do not limit ourselves to lower back pain! We serve children who have one or more conditions that prevent them from functioning "normally" -- mentally, physically and/or emotionally.

We help relieve the parents' emotional and financial exhaustion with counselling and our gratis services.

We offer hope because, as Dr. Barge said and we have always believed, "Where there is life there is hope."

Doctors of chiropractic, we do need to refocus! Let us serve patients, not just backaches! Let us live to serve and give, not just to get and make lots of money. Let us support chiropractic's nonprofit organizations. This will give you personal satisfaction and success, and will provide our profession with strength, vision, and more acceptance.

Probably, few (if any) of you see the number or the variety of special needs children in a year that we do, since that is our specialty, but you can help! First and foremost, open your doors to these precious children and help them!

Additionally, give your support to Kentuckiana! We are sharing our research worldwide and accepting referrals from all over the United States. We are helping the whole profession by focusing on our most precious resource, our dear children. We are accomplish this without the benefit of state or federal support. Our funding comes entirely from private contributions.

In October we began our 37th year. Why not help us celebrate our 37 years of helping special needs children with your contribution of $500, $250, or $100?

You will be blessed by your giving, and the children will be blessed by your support.

Lorraine M. Golden, DC
Founder and Executive Administrator
Kentuckiana Children's Center

Dear Editor:

My, oh my, but I must have tweaked a nerve in ACA Board Chairman, Kerwin Winkler's anatomy. Oh, how he railed against his old Palmer alumni friend, ("DC" December 3, 1993). Truth hurts doesn't it!

Notice though, how he does admit to the fact that the ACA stated, "Vaccination has been shown to be a cost effective and clinically practical public health care preventive procedure for certain viral and microbial diseases ..." Yes, he verified exactly what I said to be true! His twist on words to explain ACA's stance is as transparent as a good glass of gin. Notice too, how he gives medicine credit for eradicating German Measles and polio. Nothing could be farther from the truth. USA public health service records and those in England both clearly indicate the deaths from those diseases were almost nil by the time the vaccinations were initiated.

Now, I'm not going to indulge in a long protracted rebuttal to Dr. Winkler's diatribe against me. I could call him a Medipractor as he inferred I should join the "Flat Earth Society," but I will not. I will say this, however, Dr. Winkler and the board of ACA have clearly shown that they have accepted the disease treatment therapeutic paradigm of medicine, just as the osteopaths did in the past. This was the osteopathic profession's demise and it will also be ours if we continue to follow the leadership of Dr. Winkler and the ACA. The choice is yours fellow chiropractors.

"Enuf Said"

Fred H. Barge, DC, PhC
La Crosse, Wisconsin