Editor's Note: If you watched the "20/20" segment on chiropractic that aired February 21, 1991, you'll remember the chiropractor that ABC chose to focus its cameras on, Dr. Deborah Mager. (See "Chiropractic Finally Airs on 20/20" in the March 13, 1992 issue.)
Dr. Mager has been in practice 13 years in Beverly, Massachusetts. She has a B.S. in both zoology and in human biology and was the "Outstanding Female Graduate" of National College of Chiropractic in 1979. She became board eligible in 1984 in chiropractic orthopedics and in 1986 the ACA Council on Sports Injuries and Physical Fitness certified her as a chiropractic team physician. Dr. Mager has served on the Massachusetts Chiropractic Board of Examiners from 1988 to the present, an appointment made by former Governor Dukakis.
Dr. Mager is currently enrolled in a 100 hour course in radiology.
ABC initially called me in September 1991. At that time they merely requested a telephone interview asking my opinion on several issues concerning spinal manipulation done by the RAND study. Roger Sergel explained to me that ABC was considering doing a segment on spinal manipulation and that it would be aired on "20/20." Mr. Sergel stated he had been in touch with Charles Fager, M.D., a Lahey Clinic neurosurgeon who had appeared on ABC two previous times discussing various treatments for back injuries. When asked his opinion about chiropractic, Dr. Fager expressed a negative attitude; however, he further referred Mr. Sergel to my office, stating I had referred several patients to him and that he had a high respect for my diagnostic abilities.
Mr. Sergel subsequently contacted me three times and told me that "20/20" had finally decided to do a segment on spinal manipulation and they were now searching for a chiropractor in the Boston area. He explained that he would probably not be filming in my office, as Beverly was too far from Needham where their camera crews were. He also explained that he would be doing a segment in California and Chicago. We had a further interview on the telephone, and I wished him well.
Four or five days later he called and said he had contacted many of the chiropractic offices in the Boston area but had found them to be too controversial. Subsequent filming in my office consisted of one full day. Camera crews arrived at 7:00 a.m. and left at 7:30 p.m. During that period of time I saw approximately 165 patients. They returned for filming to follow a new patient, Richard DiMichele, during the first day of filming. They subsequently filmed the remainder of his treatment.
"20/20" was careful to explain that they were interested only in lower spinal manipulation for this particular segment. The film crew was in my office three times before they said they had enough for this segment; this filming occurred in late October. Monday before Thanksgiving, Mr. Sergel called and said they wanted to add a human interest part to this segment and knowing that I was a runner, they asked me if ABC could come out and film me during one of my morning runs. To this I agreed and they came out the following morning.
I met the film crew at 6:30 a.m., and they filmed me jogging in downtown Beverly, past historic monuments, and on the beach at sunrise. During the filming of this segment, several adventures occurred. We were filming for approximately one-half hour when the camera crew realized that my microphone was not working; they replaced the battery and found it to be dead. During the filming of one particular jogging segment, I was chased by a very large rottweiler. At 8:00 a.m., when I was supposed to be in my office with patients, I was jogging in downtown Beverly, with my patients on their way to my office waving at me. I arrived at my office an hour late with my running clothes on, in the back of an open convertible, on a very cold late November morning. Again, I bid farewell to ABC.
"20/20" again called me and said they wanted Timothy Johnson, M.D., to interview me in Needham, and asked me for a list of physicians they could contact that personally referred patients to me. I gave them a list of 15 physicians; out of the 15 only one agreed to be interviewed. Dr. Johnson came to my office to film a segment, and I went to Needham to finish the interview. They also had Steven Price, M.D., a Hamilton internist come to my office to be interviewed by Dr. Johnson, and ABC went back to Dr. Price's office to film him there. They also did a segment with Mr. DiMichele, my patient, both at his work and during one of his morning runs.
On Monday before Christmas, they called me a final time to say that in editing the piece they wanted more footage of me adjusting the lower back of several patients, which was done in my office just before Christmas.
In early January, ABC called and said that they had finally finished editing the program and were so pleased with the segment in my office they had decided to cancel most of the footage that they had done in California so they could expand on the spinal manipulation performed in my office. This segment was finally aired on "20/20" Friday 21, 1992.
Deborah Ann Mager, D.C.
Beverly, Massachusetts
