Collecting News
Dear Editor:
I must compliment you and your staff on an excellent informative magazine! It is so informative that over the past couple of years I've been clipping and saving articles: the soft tissue articles of Lowe, Hammer, et al.; the humorous articles; roentgen rounds; and TMJ-Cranial by Curl.
To keep a long story short, I thought -- why don't I ask you and your staff this question. Have you thought of collectively putting your worthy news items of issues past, together in an MPI book? You could write several books with articles on diagnosis, patient management, case histories, humorous articles, the bravados for chiropractic, etc. I think you see what I'm getting at. To categorize these gems would be great. I'm probably not the first to suggest it, but I'll be one of the first to order them.
I'm having my secretary transpose the articles into our computer for easy reference. There's a possibility for the future -- information on a diskette for computer retrieval.
Keep up the great work. It keeps me warm in our cool latitudes.
John H. Lubberdink, B.Sc., B.S., D.C.
Terrace Bay, Ontario, Canada
Editor's Note: We are currently in the process of compiling articles from every issue of Dynamic Chiropractic.
Dear Editor,
I attempted to read Mr. Keating's letter in the August 29th issue of "DC" regarding Dr. Gilman's and Dr. Bergstrand's paper. After attempting to interpret the letter with a dictionary I threw my glasses to the floor in disgust. Bending over to pick them up, I slammed the back of my head into an open desk drawer. When the resulting headache and neck pain did not spontaneously go into remission, I decided to go see Dr. Bergstrand for an adjustment. He said he couldn't do anything about the temper, however he could treat the cervical subluxations.
The symptoms spontaneously remissed as we were standing and reflecting on such a wonderful explanation for all the problems that clear up with our care. It has nothing to do with the adjustments, nutrition, lifestyle changes, etc. Unfortunately since we could not find an ICD-9-CM for spontaneous remission, we will have to stick to the other diagnosis codes for insurance purposes. However, I can sleep at night because of Mr. Keating's explanation. Thank you Mr. Keating.
Bruce Walker, D.C.
Quincy, California
Dear Editor:
I would like to address my comments to all fellow chiropractors who do not understand the concepts of homeopathic therapy.
First, underlying all symptomatic manifestations are distinct energy patterns of thought, emotion, and physical form. These inherent patterns of energy are the focus of treatment. Homeopathy in its truest form is energy treating energy. The practitioner merely uses the totality of symptoms to arrive at a picture, whereby the correct remedy is matched to the patient's manifestations. We cannot see the imbalance of energy, but we can see the effects of the imbalance through symptoms.
Second, the remedy by virtue of its inherent energy pattern, when proven, will produce in a healthy individual certain characteristic symptoms. And if given to a person expressing dis-ease who manifests those same symptoms, the remedy eliminates the distortion in the energy pattern through the action of vibrational resonance. This allows the body to balance and regain homeostasis and thus accelerate the healing process.
For those who would like more information about the principles of homeopathy and energy resonance, I would suggest reading, Vibrational Medicine, by Richard Gerber; and the Science of Homeopathy, by George Vithoulkas.
Ivania Dale Allen, D.C.
Alma, Michigan
Dear Editor:
After 16 years in chiropractic, I have seen very little maturing of the profession. We still have a significant percentage of chiropractors who are quick to embark on questionable practice-building gimmicks.
The latest game is Outreach 2000 of the Vertebral Subluxation Research Institute (VSRI), under the guise of research. Who has ever heard of a research program where a doctor is required to pay $2,000 or more to participate? The program has no protocol concerning the detection of the so-called subluxation, which is not even defined.
Let me quote from the literature that VSRI sends to potential participating doctors: "With our simple-to-use formula, you will be able to figure exactly how many new patients you can expect to generate from the program, and convert those volunteers into continuing patients." At the same time, VSRI publishes a disclaimer such as, "At no time does the VSRI, the participating doctor, or any agent representing those parties, solicit patients." And then, again, "...generate unlimited new patients for as little as $10 each." Is this research?
I do not understand why our national associations and licensing boards have not taken a stronger stand in "outlawing" such dubious programs. As long as these types of programs are tolerated by our profession, we will never receive respect, recognition, and acknowledgement from community leaders and policymakers. We will continue to be viewed as a "fringe" profession at best.
Bernd W. Busch, M.S., D.C.
Boulder, Colorado
Dear Editor:
"Hitlerism" and "Stalinism" are not dead in Arizona. The Arizona Chiropractic Alliance (AZCA) and the World Chiropractic Association (WCA) have adopted some of their tactics in order to avoid close scrutiny and criticism. That is, they eliminate from their mailing lists anyone who dares to find fault with the tenets and/or dogma. And yet they claim to represent all the chiropractors, and to "live and let live."
I arrived at this conclusion when it came to my attention that I had not received any of their publications for two months. At first I thought that they had quit publishing; however, upon investigation I learned that several other chiropractors who have taken issue with what they publish have also been eliminated from their mailing lists.
This would indicate to me that the AZCA and WCA cannot stand on their own merits.
Because they are afraid of close scrutiny, criticism and rebuttal, they eliminate all dissenters from their mailing lists. "Live and let live?" (Only if you agree with them.)
No "gas chambers" or "Siberian Salt Mines" but herein lies an analogy.
James J. DiPietro, D.C.
Tucson, Arizona
Dear Editor:
Thanks! Thanks! Thanks! for having Chap Reaver back. His article was a delight -- so true and humorous.
I hope he'll be back as a regular.
Paul J. Farrell, D.C.
Salinas, California
Dear Editor:
Willard Bertrand's "Next to Innate, Part 2" so enlightened me. I get it now, he is writing in allegory. I feel so foolish that I thought that he thought that he diagnosed, treated, and cured polio in one day.
Trouble is, I think some new practitioners might just be gullible enough to think that small babies with congested lungs need chiropractic treatment, and based upon their lack of experience in the real world, would not only make that claim over coffee or appropriately stronger drugs, but would take a case like that.
It is fine to philosophize, but that is where that should stop. After all, we can buy video tapes that imply that Adolf Hitler would have been a nice guy if only he hadn't had a vertebral subluxation (Renaissance, you know). C1 probably.
Children end up dead because of philosophy like this, and chiropractors end up sued or charged with criminal negligence, and chiropractic ends up looking stupid -- again. And that is exactly what we do not need anymore.
In fact, we do not need anymore philosophy. We need facts. The time for patient care based on philosophy ended at the beginning of the 1900s, and it is time to put a stop to publication of these rhetorical hallucinations. Sure it would be nice if babies with whatever, could be cured by adjustments. You just forgot one step -- prove it!
Michael W. Repp, B.S., D.C.
Shawnee, Kansas
Dear Dr. Tyler:
You've done it again! You crazy red-headed kid! "A Case Against Recycling." You're back on the track. What do they know? The twits! Phaw Tharp!
LACC graduate -- Exponet of slap, bank, rip, tear, and render school of technique.
Robert Kerr, D.C.
Monterey Park, California
When I graduated from chiropractic college in 1981 and started practice, I heard it all, and very little was positive. “You are a quack; you do not know what a subluxation is; you couldn’t get into a real health care program, so you chose the one that is slightly above a mail-order degree; you have no proof that chiropractic works; Are you really licensed?”, and so much more.
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A central challenge in creating our identity is that chiropractic is a method of care, not a technique or procedure. This is an important concept for us to promote. Our patients are treated with lifestyle modification, exercise, nutritional supplements, diet and a whole-body approach to accelerate the natural healing process. We are not simply CMT providers.
The results of a global survey released late last year (2023) unveiled some startling findings among medical and nursing students. The “Clinician of the Future: 2023 Education Edition” surveyed 2,212 students, of which 446 were in the United States, from 91 countries.
