Ohio DC Turns Dying Tree Into Symbol of the Profession
Editorial Staff
Necessity is the mother of invention, as the saying goes, and in this case, a dying tree has become a striking symbol of chiropractic. David T. Ryan, BS, DC, CSAC, a 1988 graduate of Palmer College of Chiropractic who practices in Columbus, Ohio, was notified by several of his tree-savvy patients that the large silver maple in front of his office was doomed. "Carpenter ants were moving in and out like a free Vegas buffet," said Dr. Ryan. Knowing he had to take it down, Dr. Ryan contacted one of his patients who happens to be a tree trimmer. Along with the quote for removal, the tree trimmer suggested it might be nice to carve the tree into something.
Always wanting a spine figure of some sort in his front clinic area, this provided Dr. Ryan with the perfect opportunity to take a doomed tree and turn it into a powerful statement about chiropractic. According to Dr. Ryan, it was only a few hundred dollars more for the chainsaw artist, Jack Cantley (from Centerburg, Ohio), to carve the bone replica out of the dying tree.
"The best part of the whole thing is we are our own landmark," said Dr. Ryan." It is lit up at night with bright white lights shining on it and a pulsing red light in the area of a bad disc. I am dedicating it to all the chiropractic physicians and their patients. Yes, it is here at 6040 Cleveland Ave., Columbus, Ohio, but it is for the enjoyment of everyone who has been touched by chiropractic. I invite any doctor to have their picture taken with the spine in the background. It makes a great picture for the media."
While the national and state organizations are hard at work campaigning for chiropractic, it's important to appreciate the role individual doctors can play in informing the public about chiropractic care and sharing the positive message of all you do to promote health and healing. So, what have you done in your office or surrounding area to promote chiropractic? If your office features a unique representation of the spine or similar pro-chiropractic element, send a high-resolution photo and a short (300 words or less) background story to editorial@mpamedia.com. We'll publish a few of the most creative ideas with accompanying photos in a future issue of DC.
Because they have yet to pass national legislation protecting the chiropractic profession, Japanese DCs are in a similar situation that U.S. DCs faced. We were fortunate enough to be able to pass chiropractic licensure state by state. The DCs in Japan must accomplish this nationally, which has proved to be an extremely difficult task. And in spite of their efforts, Japanese DCs are currently faced with two chiropractic professions.
Donald M. Petersen Jr., BS, HCD(hc), FICC(h), Publisher
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Recently, I taught a 12-hour whiplash class to a group of chiropractors for continuing education. I taught that performing O’Donoghue’s maneuver enabled the providers to differentiate cervical strain from sprain. To my surprise, one of the attendees stated that it is not possible to diagnose a cervical strain and sprain with a whiplashed patient using O’Donoghue’s maneuver.
