The crowd of 1,500 enjoyed the presentations on chiropractic pediatrics, new aspects of healing, and the future of chiropractic. The ChiroKids provided the entertainment, performing four original songs, including a rap number.
Two days later, a community forum, "Rethinking 21st Century Health," was presented to the local media and the public. Panelists included:
- Joseph J. Jacobs, MD, MBA, former director of the Office of Alternative Medicine, Nation Institutes of Health
- Gerard Clum, DC, president, Life Chiropractic College West
- Florence Comite, MD, associate professor of medicine, associate professor of obstetrics, gynecology, and pediatrics, Yale University School of Medicine
- R. James Gregg, DC, chief of staff, department of chiropractic, New Center hospital, Detroit, Michigan
- Jay Holder, DC, medical director and founder, Exodus Treatment Center, Miami, Florida
- Frederick Luskin, BS, MS, program coordinator, health psychology education, Stanford University
- Moderator: Dara Wells, executive producer, news and community affairs, WLIW-TV Channel 21
The event was well attended by both the public and the local media: the press included Long Island radio and television stations, Newsday, and CBS and ABC-TV affiliates.
Not only was this an opportunity to present chiropractic's future in health care, but it allowed the presenters and the media a chance to establish new relationships: Dr. Jay Holder learned his close and personal friend will be the doctor replacing Dr. Joseph Jacobs on the National Institutes of Health's Alternative Medicine Committee; Dr. Gerard Clum received an invitation from Frederick Luskin to present the chiropractic model at Standford University's Health and Wellness Symposium; and Yale University of Medicine asked for a speaker on chiropractic and female disorders.
The audience participated in the panel discussion via two floor microphones. Ms. Dara Wells, anchorwoman for WLIW-TV, had to call an end to audience questions with a dozen people still waiting their turns at the microphones. After the forum, Drs. Jacobs and Comite remained with the audience for more questions and discussions that lasted another hour.
The next day, the New York Chiropractic Council presented "Hooked on Health" to the Long Island community, the largest health and wellness exposition on Long Island. The 4,000 in attendance heard guest speakers Mark Victor Hansen and Joan Borysenko, and were able to participate in 18 different workshops, many given by DCs. The event was co-sponsored by the New York Chiropractic Council and This Week Publications: the latter has created a new magazine, Hooked on Health, which features many articles on chiropractic care.
Clearly this was was not your typical state convention. The New York Chiropractic Council, as it has done the last couple of years, seized the opportunity to present events that would impact the community, the media, and other health care professions. The benefits of the event to chiropractic will be substantially felt through this year and beyond, at a time when chiropractic needs it most.
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