The Chiropractic Society of Wisconsin has joined with over 50 other chiropractic trade organizations, schools, state associations, corporations and malpractice providers representing tens of thousands of chiropractors in support of the role of chiropractic and the nervous system in the immune process.
CLICK HERE to review the CSW document
According to the document:
"The CSW, using an evidence-based review approach to this issue, found very credible research and practical clinical evidence that supports the association between the human body’s immune system and the numerous natural chiropractic healthcare services including but not limited to: spinal manipulation, exercise or physical rehabilitationtherapy, nutritional therapy and wellness lifestyle education."
Based on its review of the available evidence the CSW's conclusions included the following statement:
"There exists valuable objective data that support the interconnectedness of cross-communication between the nervous system, our innate immune response, adaptive immune response as well as a direct link to the autonomic nerve system (ANS) integrity and homeostasis in the body."
As the world was starting to grapple with the emergence of Coronavirus and its related pandemic, chiropractors around the world were gearing up to care for millions of people suffering from the emotional stress and physical strain of daily life in a new normal.
The CSW addressed this issue in the rejection stating:
"Before we provide the vital data associated with this document, we feel it is very important to acknowledge the members of the CSW who kept their offices open to treat the citizens of Wisconsin during the height of the pandemic. We as an association are very proud of our members service to their communities. Because chiropractic care was deemed an essential health care service by the State of Wisconsin in Governor Evers’s executive orders and confirmed as essential by the Federal CISA organizational documents, the members of the CSW made the conscious and correct decision to keep their doors open to assist their patients and communities in need during the pandemic. Unfortunately, rather than focusing on and promoting the positive attributes that the chiropractic profession could provide the nation and world during this time of need, we are dealing with a totally unnecessary controversy over the relationship between chiropractic care and the immune system. This controversy was initiated by a single flawed document created by the World Federation of Chiropractic (WFC) and was immediately and fully endorsed by the American Chiropractic Association (ACA) and the Wisconsin Chiropractic Association (WCA) to control the narrative related to chiropractic care and the pandemic."
While most chiropractors around the country focused on helping their communities heal from the pandemic, other chiropractors were gearing up to see how much trouble they could cause for chiropractors who chose to remain open and serve the suffering masses.
Within just a few days those chiropractors who deny the vitalistic, salutogenic model of vertebral subluxation had "leaders" within the profession to help them wreak their havoc. The World Federation of Chiropractic's Research Committee under the leadership of Greg Kawchuk DC, PhD - Adjunct Faculty at Canadian Memorial Chiropractic College and Christine Goertz DC, PhD - Palmer College of Chiropractic Honorary Alumna led the Committee in the development and dissemination of a deeply flawed hit piece falsely claiming that there is no credible, scientific evidence that chiropractic has any clinically relevant effect on the immune system.
They went on to reveal the real purpose of the flawed document falsely claiming that there was no evidence that would permit claims of effectiveness for conferring or enhancing immunity through chiropractic to be made in communications by chiropractors.
Immediately following the release of the hit piece several state chiropractic regulatory boards including Texas and Wisconsin endorsed the document and sent threatening notices about discussing immunity to chiropractors licensed in their states.
The ACA through Keith Overland DC made the same false statement in a television interview on a Milwaukee TV station and Parker University President William Morgan DC conducted an interview with Parker's Director of Research Katherine Pohlman DC, Ph.D who echoed the WFC's document snickering in an interview about it stating "There is no credible research" to support such claims. Morgan threatened chiropractors that if they suggested chiropractic boosted immunity that they would be "under the hand of the law" and that chiropractors were "making claims that they can't back up".
The CSW's team that compiled their response to the Deniers expressed their shock at the WFC and ACA's conclusions stating:
"The following documents are only a small fraction of the results obtained under the CSW’s “best external evidence” review. Once we began, we continued to find more and more data that was very positive in the support of chiropractic health care services and optimum health and immune system response."
Openly confronting those within the profession, and especially Wisconsin, who sought to go after chiropractors on these issues the CSW stated:
"Wisconsin Chiropractors should not be unfairly and improperly policed by members of a chiropractic association either national or state-based for simply deciding to remain open during the pandemic...”
In their response the CSW offered a timeline of events to help people understand how the debacle unfolded in Wisconsin and how the Wisonsin Board of Chiropractic ended up adopting the WFC document and suddenly reversing its decision. According to the CSW:
- The WFC released an advice document that states, “There is no credible scientific evidence that chiropractic spinal adjustment/manipulation confers or boosts immunity. Chiropractors should refrain from any communication that suggests spinal adjustment/ manipulation may protect patients from contractingCOVID-19 or will enhance their recovery.”
- The ACA immediately endorsed the WFC position on chiropractic and immunity.
- The past president of the ACA appeared on a Milwaukee TV station and stated the WFC talking points related to zero credible evidence linking chiropractic healthcare to improved immunity.
- The WCA fully endorsed both the WFC document and the ACA’s statements from the Milwaukee TV interview.
- Subsequent to the endorsements and TV interview, specific chiropractors in Wisconsin began “policing” other chiropractors and started reporting to the Wisconsin Board of Examiners any chiropractor that indicated an association between chiropractic healthcare and assisting or boosting the immune response.
- The WFC document was improperly placed on the Department of Safety and Professional Services (DSPS) Chiropractic Board of Examiners website along with a threat of unprofessional conduct violations associated with discussions on chiropractic care and the body’s immune response.
According to the CSW:
The Wisconsin Chiropractic Board of Examiners (CBOE) placed an “announcement” on the Chiropractic Board’s website that contained two items:
- The WFC advice document
- Warning to Wisconsin chiropractors related to chiropractic rule 6 on unprofessional conduct
The CSW stated that based on the Board of Examiners “announcement,” there existed a veiled threat that chiropractors in Wisconsin should not discuss or even infer that chiropractic treatment has any association with the body’s immune system functions, or they would be subject to disciplinary actions by the Board.
And as it has happened in many cases around he country the CSW points out that the problem is that "it has moved beyond the threat stage, and there are WCA members who are currently filing complaints with the Board of Examiners against chiropractors who have simply indicated that chiropractic care can improve the immune system in patients."
Following the improper placement of the WFC document on the Board Website the "CSW put in a formal complaint to the Department requesting information on the source of the announcement and demand for its removal."
According to the CSW, on April 2nd, the full Chiropractic Examining Board met and voted to remove the WFC document from the website.
In their document the CSW very succinctly summed up the actions by the WFC, ACA, WCA, Parker and the Deniers:
From the very beginning, the WFC document was suspicious — meaning it really did not pass the smell test. The subsequent political assault by the WFC, ACA and WCA to weaponize this document against chiropractors also increased the likelihood that this document was not a true “scientific” review of the literature, but a quickly performed review to obtain a pre-determined result that could be used to “control” the narrative related to chiropractic healthcare during the COVID pandemic.
CLICK HERE for a compilation of chiropractic and immune related responses
