News / Profession

Addressing a Public Health Issue: Neck Pain

The World Congress on Neck Pain is designed to foster multidisciplinary dialogue on prevention, diagnosis and management.
Tina Beychok

A diverse group of prestigious institutions representing chiropractic, conventional medicine and other health care disciplines are supporting the World Congress on Neck Pain in Los Angeles. The congress will run from Jan. 20-22, 2008, at the Hyatt Regency Century Plaza Hotel. The list of organizations sponsoring the event includes the American Public Health Association, Harvard Medical School, the World Federation of Chiropractic, the American Chiropractic Association, the Foundation for Chiropractic Education and Research, National University of Health Sciences, Canadian Memorial Chiropractic College, the National Athletic Trainers' Association and the American College of Occupational and Environmental Medicine, among others.

The event will be truly multidisciplinary, bringing together doctors of chiropractic, medical doctors and others to present and discuss the latest scientific research on the prevention, diagnosis and management of neck pain. The specific themes of the congress are public health and automobile safety. In keeping with these themes, topics will range from neck pain in the workplace to surgical vs. nonsurgical treatment of neck pain, to prevention and treatment of neck pain resulting from automobile accidents.

Two chiropractors are members of the scientific committee: John J. Triano, DC, PhD, associate dean, division of research, Canadian Memorial Chiropractic College; and Jan Hartvigsen, DC, PhD, associate professor, director of research, clinical biomechanics, Institute of Sports Science and Clinical Biomechanics at the University of Denmark. Four other DCs are scheduled presenters: Scott Haldeman, DC, MD, PhD, who will be speaking about the "Bone and Joint Decade"; Pierre Cote, DC, PhD, who will discuss "Neck Pain Associated With the Workplace"; Eric Hurwitz, DC, PhD, who will discuss "Non-Surgical Interventions for Neck Pain"; and Gabrielle Van Der Velde, DC, PhD candidate, who is scheduled to speak about "Evaluating the Impact of Benefits and Harms Associated With Non-Surgical Neck Pain Treatments and Patients' Health."

Dr. Haldeman is president of the Bone and Joint Task Force; clinical professor, department of neurology, University of California-Irvine; adjunct professor, department of epidemiology, school of public health, University of California-Los Angeles; and adjunct professor, research department, Southern California University of Health Sciences. Dr. Pierre Cote serves as senior scientist in the Rehabilitation Solutions, Musculoskeletal Health and Arthritis Program, Toronto Western Hospital; an affiliate scientist, division of outcomes and healthcare research, Toronto Western Research Institute, University Health Network; and as an assistant professor, Department of Public Health Sciences, Faculty of Medicine, University of Toronto.

Dr. Hurwitz is associate professor of epidemiology in the department of public health sciences in the John A. Burns School of Medicine at the University of Hawaii. He also serves as a member of the scientific secretariat of the Bone and Joint Task Force on Neck Pain and Its Associated Disorders. Dr. Van Der Velde is a scientist in the Rehabilitation Solutions, Musculoskeletal and Arthritis Program, Toronto Western Hospital; a scientific associate, division of health care outcomes and research, Toronto Western Research Institute, University Health Network; a research fellow, Institute for Work and Health, Toronto; and a PhD candidate in the department of health policy, management and evaluation at the University of Toronto.

Registration fees for chiropractors and other health professionals are $625 until Nov. 15, 2007. After Nov. 15, registration increases to $675 until Jan. 15, 2008. Members of the ACA, the FCER and the WFC who register will receive a discounted rate: $575 until Nov. 15 and $615 until Jan. 15, 2008. There is also a post-congress workshop, "Injury Scaling Uses and Techniques," taking place Jan. 22-23, 2008. The $600 workshop involves 14 hours of classroom work and covers a brief history of injury-scaling methods, uses and misuses of the Abbreviated Injury Scale, coding rules and conventions, and methods for assessing the multiple-injury patient. The registration deadline is Dec. 21, 2007. Congress attendees who stay for the Jan. 22-23 workshop will receive a $15 rebate on both their regular registration rates and workshop fees. For more information, including online registration, visit www.neckpaincongress.org/main.cfm.

September 2007
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