Another Target to Consider
Dear Editor:
Dr. Haldeman is right on target in the need and the future need for more chiropractors. [Read “Primary Spine Care: Our Identity and Obligation” in the June 2023 issue.] However, there needs to be another target to consider. That target is patient access to chiropractic services.
We as a society and culture have become dependent on health insurance to cover our medical service needs. Patients feel their health care costs should be covered by their insurance carrier. We know from various studies the health benefit, cost-effectiveness and high patient satisfaction of chiropractic services.
This other target should be on the medical community to encourage better access to patient care. I worked on staff for a large medical group in Los Angeles for 27 years. I found the medical providers, in numerous specialties, saw the benefit of utilizing chiropractic services. They themselves received care at times.
The company had the foresight to provide this service. However, once this group was acquired a few years ago by a very large, expanding, nationwide medical company, the chiropractic services were no longer desired.
Ironic that a recent study published in this journal promoting the benefits of chiropractic care as first line of care for neck pain over other forms of health care services was released by the research department of this same large medical company. Obviously, the business department is not in communication with the research department and its medical providers in the trenches.
Perhaps helping the insurance industry recognize the benefits of providing better access should be the next target.
Patrick Wilbur, DC
Upland, Calif.
Editor’s Note: Comment on an article, address a trending topic, or share your thoughts on any issue relevant to the art, science or philosophy of chiropractic by submitting a short letter to the editor to editorial@mpamedia.com. Include your full name, degree(s), and the city and state in which you practice. Submission is acknowledgment that your letter may appear in an upcoming issue, and could be edited lightly for grammar and style guide considerations.
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.
