| Palmer Unveils Florida Campus Several hundred area residents and chiropractic educators from around the world attended the grand-opening ceremonies on October 4 for a new chiropractic college—Palmer College of Chiropractic Florida in Port Orange (PCCF), Fla. “This is a great day for the Palmer Chiropractic University System, and it’s a great day in the history of the chiropractic profession,” Chancellor Michael Crawford said to the crowd shortly before the ribbon-cutting ceremony. The mayor of Port Orange, Dorothy Hukill, echoed Crawford’s enthusiasm at the ceremony. “This is not the end of the journey, but day one in the Palmer/Port Orange legacy,” Hukill said. “The Palmer family has become not only our partner, but our friends and neighbors as well.” Port Orange leased the college a 25-acre site on City Center Parkway and facilitated the sale of bonds to fund construction. One of the originators of the idea to bring Palmer to the area was Port Orange chiropractor Jim Hether, DC. “I can’t wait to see this campus materialize and mature,” said Vickie Palmer, chairwoman of the Palmer Chiropractic University System Board of Trustees and great-granddaughter of D.D. Palmer, DC. “I am eager to see the student body expand, and to see the faculty grow. I know we live in the present, but I feel a very strong sense of the future as I stand here looking at all of you. Today, we are making history.” Palmer Florida’s first class has 46 students—29 men and 17 women—from 14 states. Nearly half are from Florida, and they range in age from 21 to 50. Eventually, enrollment may grow as high as 750 students. The students began classes October 7 in the Allen Green Civic Center, Port Orange. Classes will continue in the initial site until fall 2003, when construction will be completed on the first phase of the college’s campus. When completed, the campus will include a clinic, a student union/learning resource center, outdoor gathering spaces, and an educational facility. Palmer Florida is offering a doctor of chiropractic program geared toward students who have already earned a bachelor’s degree, according to PCCF President Guy Riekeman, DC. The program will take 13 quarters to complete and will run year-round. The college’s curriculum will rely on small-group discussion as well as on lectures. It will stress chiropractic philosophy, basic sciences, clinical skills, and practice management, exposing students to aspects of patient care from day one. “We’re here to train students to go out and help people improve the quality of their lives,” Riekeman said. Palmer College of Chiropractic Florida is the only chiropractic college in the state and the newest college of the Palmer Chiropractic University system, which also includes campuses in Davenport, Iowa, and San Jose, Calif. |
AARP Offers California Members Alternative Health Discounts
AARP members in California can now save 5% to 30% at selected chiropractors, massage therapists, acupuncturists, yoga instructors, and personal trainers. The new AARP Alternative Health and Wellness Network includes more than 1,600 practitioners in California. AARP members receive the discount by simply showing their AARP card.
“Many AARP members select alternative health and wellness therapies to complement traditional medicine for a range of benefits, including pain management, stress reduction, enhanced fitness, or just to boost energy. We’re pleased to offer this new member benefit to help make this type of health care alternative more affordable to those members who select it,” said Laura Weber Rossman, director of new products and marketing, AARP Services Inc.
The AARP Alternative Health and Wellness Network is provided by American WholeHealth, a company that offers alternative health and wellness services to hundreds of employers, health plans, and associations.
“This new relationship between American WholeHealth and AARP is important for members, practitioners and industry,” said Bill Lubin, president and CEO of American WholeHealth. “For AARP members, the program provides strong access to quality practitioners and wellness facilities in a cost-effective manner. The program also provides a wealth of information that will help to set expectations for all involved. The practitioners and wellness facilities benefit by enjoying a new path to inform and serve the public as the industry continues to move into the mainstream of health care delivery.”
The services available through the AARP Alternative Health and Wellness Network include chiropractic care, massage/bodywork, mind/body therapy, acupuncture, nutrition, exercise/movement, holistic practitioners, yoga/chi gong/tai chi, homeopathy, naturopathy, feldenkrais, personal training, and biofeedback.
AARP is a nonprofit, nonpartisan membership organization for people 50 and over. It provides information and resources; advocates on legislative, consumer, and legal issues; assists members to serve their communities; and offers a wide range of benefits, products, and services for members.
Patients Pay More for Chiropractic Treatment
A recent study comparing chiropractic and medical care costs of low back care yielded unfavorable results for chiropractors.
Published in the September issue of the American Journal of Management Care, the study compared the 1-year costs for patients treated for acute and chronic ambulatory low back pain by medical physicians and chiropractors. The two patient groups were relatively similar.
Results from the study indicate that patients treated in chiropractic clinics incur higher costs over a 1-year period, but have about the same degree of relief as nonreferred patients treated in medical clinics.
The mean cost associated with chiropractic patients was $91 dollars higher than the $123 mean cost for medical patients. Those medical patients that were not referred for further treatment or evaluation had a mean cost of $103.
Enzyme Replacement Therapy To Treat Fabry Disease
A new drug may benefit patients suffering from a rare genetic disorder that causes severe pain in the hands and feet, eventually destroying vital organs in the body. An update of the Fabry Disease clinical trial at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center, Los Angeles, and at 19 other centers throughout the country and Europe, was presented in October at the annual meeting of the American Society of Human Genetics in Baltimore, Md, by William Wilcox, MD, PhD, a medical geneticist at Cedars-Sinai. The findings showed that patients receiving enzyme replacement therapy for a near-2-year period via infusion with a drug called r-haGAL (Fabrazyme™) continue to benefit from reduced pain and prevention of further organ damage. “This study essentially confirms the long-term safety and effectiveness of enzyme replacement therapy for patients with Fabry,” Wilcox said. Named Fabry disease after the dermatologist who first noted the symptoms back in the 19th century, it was only recently discovered that the disease is an inherited disorder caused by the lack of a particular enzyme called a-galactosidase A or a-GAL. The enzyme is needed to break down a fatty substance in cells called globotriaosylceramide, or GL-3. But when a-GAL is lacking, GL-3 builds up in blood vessel walls and does increasing damage to organs such as the heart, kidney, and brain. By the time that the disease is diagnosed, the organs have often sustained damage, ultimately leading to an early death. “Even now, the disease is often undiagnosed until adulthood when organs have started being affected,” Wilcox said. “Now we have a drug that replaces the deficient enzyme so that patients can live longer and better.” In the study, 58 patients were selected at random to receive r-haGAL or a placebo by infusion every 2 weeks for a 20-week period. After completing 20 weeks of the study, all 58 patients have been receiving an infusion of r-haGAL every 2 weeks for more than 18 months. Patients’ response to the drug was monitored via kidney and heart function tests. Tissue biopsies were also performed to assess organ function, and a specialized questionnaire was used to assess patient pain levels. The investigators found that pain was significantly improved overall, while pathology studies confirmed that GL-3, or the fatty substance in cells, was consistently reduced throughout the study period. Kidney function remained stable throughout treatment during the 18-month period indicating that the disease was not causing further damage. Although the investigators found that the majority of patients began producing antibodies in response to the drug after a 3-month period, this did not impact the continued effectiveness or safety of the drug. “Interestingly, we found that enzyme replacement therapy continues to unplug blood vessels despite the presence of antibodies,” Wilcox said. |
College Launches Philosophy Diplomate Program
A Philosophy Diplomate program was inaugurated at the Palmer College of Chiropractic, Davenport, Iowa, on November 15–17. A philosopher of chiropractic degree (PhC) was awarded from 1911 to 1965 at the early Palmer School of Chiropractic, later to become Palmer College. The school bestowed the title on individuals who pursued excellence in advanced philosophical study and wrote a thesis contributing to the philosophy, science, and art of chiropractic. With the advent of the Council on Chiropractic Education and the knowledge that some colleges were offering the degree nonacademically as an honorarium, Palmer dropped its academic PhC in 1965.
The new program, which began in November, initiates the Diplomate in Philosophical Chiropractic Standards (DPhCS) developed by the Palmer Institute for Professional Advancement, Davenport, Iowa, and the International Chiropractors Association (ICA). The 320-hour DPhCS program includes 13 live weekends and an online component, and it requires self-study from texts and the writing of a thesis. Theses are defended at a Grand Rounds challenge highlighted at Palmer Lyceum.
“This program was designed to span the course of 5 years and affords participants the luxury of a diplomate program without having to spend 30 weekends away from their family and office,” said Frank Bemis, DC, executive director of the Palmer Institute. “We are extremely enthusiastic to be able to offer participants such a dynamic group of top speakers, along with pure academics that will invigorate and enlighten all in attendance. There is nothing else like it.”
Doctors may choose to take the 120-hour Graduate Chiropractic Philosophy Colloquium or the full 320-hour diplomate, of which the colloquium serves as the first year of study. Graduates of the 120-hour program earn their Legion of Chiropractic Philosophers (LCP) honorary award and then may choose to continue with the remaining 200 hours. After completion of the program, doctors are eligible to take the DPhCS examination from the ICA Council on Chiropractic Philosophy.
At the college’s Lyceum celebration August 8–10, 30 select chiropractors and one PhD were accepted into the LCP. The 31 people defended their theses at the Grand Rounds. Two associates in the LCP and one honorary acceptance into the legion were also honored at the Grand Rounds. “The LCP allowed me to close the chiropractic chasm. That should be testimony enough for this course,” said Eugene O’Neill, DC, LCP (Hon). “When you completely secure the principles that underlie our profession, you simply apply those principles to the scenarios as they arise. It is deductive reasoning at its finest. The LCP honorary award will put you in such a position. At the risk of hyperbole, I am not the same person or chiropractor after completing this program.”
Those who hold a doctor of chiropractic degree or a master’s degree or above are eligible for the Philosophy Colloquium and may begin by completing the Philosophy Tutorium prerequisite currently offered by the Palmer Institute’s On-Line University. However, only DCs are allowed to take the DPhCS program. The first live weekend of the diplomate program was held November 15–17, and the next will be in February.
The host of the Philosophy Colloquium and the diplomate program is chiropractic educator, author, and professor of philosophy, Fred H. Barge, DC, PhC. “A great profession can only be sustained through the authentic transmission of its principles from generation to generation,” Barge said in a statement that, according to Palmer College, embodies the intent of the entire program.
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