World Federation of Chiropractic – Quarterly World Report

A time for resolutions

The holiday season always provides plenty of impetus to reflect on the year just past and look ahead to the forthcoming twelve months. For many, the new year will be a time of resolutions, a period of goal-setting that motivates us to behavioral change, either abstaining from destructive habits or taking action to improve our health and wellbeing.

As a profession, chiropractic must also be prepared to make its own resolutions. We must be prepared to step up and condemn destructive behavior that is neither in the interests of chiropractic or the patients we exist to serve. No profession is immune from instances of unethical practice, but when the spotlight is focused on chiropractic, we often feel a more acute sense of shame.

At the same time we must commit to supporting our colleagues in making positive changes to clinical practice that are informed by a better understanding of best evidence, utilization of clinical guidelines and a willingness to work collaboratively with other health professions. This is the future and while we should not forget our past, no health care profession should live in it.

With a theme of Chiropractors: TrainingTomorrow’sSpine Care Experts, our Education Conference, held in Montreal last October jointly with the Association of Chiropractic Colleges, resulted in a series of consensus statements which stressed that the education of future chiropractors must equip them to be solid participants in the area of spine care expertise. While change can be painful, failing to respond to advances in knowledge and society’s evolution can be fatal.

As a profession, we must also resolve to embrace professional differences. There will always be diversity in chiropractic and accepting that while our neighbor’s practice may be different than our own, this does not mean that we are right and they are wrong. Effective, patient-centered care has many faces.

2017 promises to be an exciting year. March will see the WFC, along with the ACC and the American Chiropractic Association, holding a joint Congress in Washington DC. This is the first event of its kind and will be the largest scientific meeting in the history of the profession. More of this later in this issue of the Quarterly World Report, but suffice to say there will be something for everyone, whether a practicing doctor of chiropractic, academic, researcher, or educator. I encourage everyone to be there.

Lastly, our New Year’s resolutions would not be complete without a commitment to innovation. Back in 2005, the WFC adopted its identity statement, that chiropractors were spinal health care experts in the health care system. How we tackle the issue of spinal health will call for innovation that will depend on available resources and cultural and environmental factors.

The WFC’s World Spine Day competition showed that chiropractors are resourceful, creative and highly innovative when it comes to raising awareness. I was delighted to see so many students from around the globe getting involved and I congratulate the World Congress of Chiropractic Students (WCCS) for co-ordinating their chapters and encouraging them to take part.

This is a great time to be a chiropractor. I wish you all a successful 2017.

– Dr Espen Johannessen, W FC President