Abstracts that address one of the following areas will be considered: research design; outcomes research; clinically oriented fundamental basic research; psychosocial aspects; educational research; and public health care issues. Suitable presentations include reports of original research and clinical case studies.
The deadline for submission of all materials is January 15, 2000. For an abstract to be considered, authors must complete and submit an ICSM abstract submission application. Applications may be obtained from FCER at:
Robin R. Merrifield
1304 Perry Avenue
Bremerton, WA 98310
Tel: (800) 343-0549 or (360) 478-2716
Fax: (360) 478-0834
E-mail:
Western Australia Minister Speaks Out on Medicare and Chiropractic
At the opening of the Attadale Professional Centre on September 3, Doug Shave,MLA, the Minister for Lands, Fair Trading, and Parliamentary and Electoral Affairs for the parliament of Western Australia, delivered a speech regarding Medicare coverage for chiropractic care. In his speech, Mr. Shave emphasized the qualification of chiropractors to perform spinal manipulation and called on Medicare to provide clearer guidelines regarding the delivery of (and payment for) spinal manipulation.
"Medicare must have clear guidelines to permit it to define which medical providers are qualified to provide and charge for the provision of nonmedical modalities, including spinal manipulation," said Mr. Shave.
"Medicare is a federal responsibility, however, the state governments are required to set the qualifications required by the health providers who wish to charge for a particular service. Accordingly, governments throughout Australia have established a clearly defined qualification for chiropractors and osteopaths as the principal providers of spinal manipulation.
"It is unsatisfactory if the end result of the process is that the same service could attract a Medicare rebate when provided by a medical practitioner who may not have had a specific qualificiation for spinal manipulation, but not when it is provided by a qualified chiropractor.
"While I hope very much that in the future, West Australians will receive the same Medicare coverage for chiropractic as for other health services, it is equally fair to ensure that only those duly qualified practitioners provide spinal manipulation," Mr. Shave concluded. "This is in the best interests of scientific medicine, the patient and the taxpayer."
Foot Levelers Center Opens at Palmer
There was nothing unlucky about the Friday the 13th dedication ceremony of the new Foot Levelers Center on the campus of Palmer College of Chiropractic this past August. The new structure is the result of a donation of more than a quarter million dollars from Foot Levelers, Inc., to Palmer. The center has two classrooms that offer ergonomic seating for more than 250 people, advanced environment comfort controls, upscale decor and state-of-the-art audiovisual equipment. One room contains fiber optic internet connections and satellite conferencing capabilities which can provide continuing education programs worldwide.
"We realize the importance of conveying a contemporary image and using technology to its fullest extent to create superior education," said Kent Greenawalt, president of Foot Levelers. "We have always been dedicated to promoting chiropractic education and research, so the opportunity to sponsor this special learning center was very appealing."
Anabolic Labs Contributes to ACA/HCFA Lawsuit
The American Chiropractic Association's lawsuit against the Health Care Financing Administration continues to gain support from all areas of the chiropractic profession. One of the latest contributors to ACA's legal defense fund is Anabolic Laboratories, which recently donated $3,000 to the fund and has pledged to donate more in the future.
"We have always been a strong supporter of chiropractic, and are as concerned about threats to the future of chiropractic as you are," said Tony DiBitonto, Anabolic's national sales manager. "We will join the fight to defend the profession against unprecedented legal maneuvers designed to cripple the industry."
The company also plans to make a contribution to the legal fund next year based on a percentage of sales from their chiropractic products division. The amount is estimated to be between $2,000-$7,000 and will be presented next June. "Every time a chiropractor makes a purchase from Anabolic, they will also be contributing to their own defense fund," said DiBitonto.
JAMA: Now without Publisher and Editor in Chief
Howard Wolinsky, writing for Medcast Medical News, reports that Paul Blackney, senior vice president for publishing at the Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA), is leaving to be CEO of Worldspan, a travel-related corporation.
You'll recall that the JAMA fired its editor, George Lundberg,MD, in January. The purported reason for the firing was for publishing an eight-year-old piece of research that involved a sexual survey of college students. The timing of that publishing was judged to be political, in that it coincided during the presidential impeachment proceedings. There was also speculation that Lundberg was fired for critizing doctors on national television for not doing autopsies to cover up medical mistakes.
Congressman Stupak Meets with Michigan Chiropractic Society
Representative Bart Stupak (D-MI) was among several lawmakers who discussed the inclusion of chiropractic in health care benefits with the Michigan Chiropractic Society at their most recent convention.
"Chiropractic care should be included in health care," said Mr. Stupak, who sits on the House Commerce and Leadership committees and the Health and Environmental subcommittee. "Now there's some issue of reimbursement on Medicare and others, but chiropractic care is a licensed profession. If a state will license it like we do in Michigan, then it should be part of any health care plan put forth by the government, whether it's a federal employee's health care package, Medicare or Medicaid."
State representatives Michael Prusi and Doug Bovin also visited the convention, which was held in Marquette this past August.
Texas Chiropractic College Establishes Postceptorship Program
Three decades ago, Texas Chiropractic College became one of the first chiropractic colleges to offer preceptorship programs. These programs allow chiropractic interns who have not yet graduated to visit and work in existing practices under the direct supervision of a licensed preceptor doctor. They also give interns the opportunity to visit licensed doctors of chiropractic, observe procedures, participate within clinical activities and gain exposure to an operational clinical setting.
Starting this fall, TCC will begin offering a postceptorship program for graduate students. The one credit hour program is designed to assist graduating students who remained unlicensed for a period of approximately six to eight months after graduation.
Legally, such students are prevented from practicing chiropractic until their licensure is obtained. With the adoption of this program, however, preceptorship students could enter postceptorship and continue their affiliation with their current preceptor after graduation. This process could continue on a trimester by trimester basis until the student completed the necessary requirements for licensure.
The policies, qualifications and responsibilities of the new postceptorship program are coordinated by Dr. Lew Huff, TCC's director of postceptorships. For more information, contact Kathryn Cooper of the Office of Institutional Advancement at (281) 487-1170.
Detroit Lions Hire Team Chiropractor
In the last issue of Dynamic Chiropractic, it was reported that both the St. Louis Rams and Denver Broncos have doctors of chiropractic looking after their players' physical condition.
We've learned that the Detroit Lions also have a chiropractor on their staff. Christopher Lewis,DC, a 1996 graduate of Palmer College of Chiropractic West, became the Lions' official chiropractor in July. He treats members of the team twice a week, attends home games at the Silverdome, and also travels with the team to provide care at away games. "So far, the job has gone well," Dr. Lewis recently told DC.
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