Dynamic Chiropractic: Secrets from the drug world

Unity: My goal in this column is to provide various points of view from people in chiropractic who have a reputation for being knowledgeable and wise - and more importantly, for caring and helping our profession be everything we can be. In this issue, I have invited Dr. Frank Corbo to give his viewpoint on unity. Please read and enjoy!

My goal in reprinting this fictitious memo is to prompt you to see how our profession may be perceived (We are the "they" referred to in the letter!), and also to tell you that we are facing a very real battle with a truly formidable foe. The pharmaceutical industry, with which I have been intimately involved, has extremely deep pockets. It will not part with its piece of the pie that easily. There's too much at stake for it to lose. It won't hesitate to pour billions upon billions of dollars into marketing and advertising campaigns, and if you simply look at the results - distancing yourself from the fact they sell drugs - you'll see that their plans are working in near-flawless fashion.

How formidable is our foe? As I mentioned previously, I've seen the pharmaceutical industry from the inside out. Without getting into details, let me share this one fact that gets the point across. Its budget for marketing and advertising in one year (and this was almost 15 years ago) was more than the chiropractic profession's public relations and marketing campaign budget in our entire 108-year history! Because of this economic fact, we are challenged even more to rally and unite as a profession. Make no mistake: This is indeed a battle, and we are the underdogs.

Here's a review from my file on attention deficit disorder. I've included it to show you the lengths to which they (In this case, "they" means the pharmaceutical moguls.) will go to in order to increase their market penetration. Reading this will change your life.

The Fleecing of America's Children: A Conspiracy?

Am I going overboard? I honestly don't think so. This excerpt from an article in the Chicago Sun-Times that brought me to tears:1

Of those prescriptions, 53 were written for infants who had not yet reached their first birthday!

This is why we need to unite: not because of us and our professional needs and aspirations, but because of the people worldwide besieged and duped into a life of sickness care. When I said their marketing plan was almost flawless? Here's what I meant: The cracks are beginning to show, as indicated in this review of a recent Los Angeles Times article regarding the pharmaceutical industry:

There's Hope on the Horizon!

* After years of basking in the glow of huge profits and a sterling public image, big brand-name drug companies are reeling from attacks by senior citizen groups, state and federal regu- lators.

* "Clearly there has been a lot of up- heaval and uncertainty in the indus- try right now," said Merck and Co., Inc. Chairman, Raymond V. Gilmartin.

* The $400 billion industry is in for a lengthy period of turmoil and change.

* "On the revenue side, they're likely to get kicked in the shin. And on the product side, the well has run dry," said Uwe Reinhardt, a Princeton University professor and expert on health care policy. "It is not an easy future."

* The public is highly suspicious of the pricing controversies. In fact, a poll revealed that price gouging was cited most often by consumers when asked why they thought health-care cost were escalating.

Now, I'm not saying the entire drug industry is about to crumble, but it does appear that things are beginning to teeter a bit. (Remember: No one ever thought Rome would fall!) As Paul Zane Pilzer, economist and author of the bestseller The Wellness Revolution said, "Chiropractic is positioned to emerge as the leader in the wellness industry."

This guy knows his stuff. He's on the cutting edge of economy, finances, and health care. He writes public policy! Listen to him; he cautions us by saying that we need to get our act together now or we're at risk of someone else taking over the wellness industry. And if you don't think he's serious - did you listen to or read about the segment of the Sept. 24 "Today in New York" program on WNBC-TV, regarding manipulation for treating ear infections?2 You would find Mr. Pilzer's words almost prophetic!

In the words of Calif. Congressman Ed Royce: "At best, your influence is diminished; at worst, your message sends mixed signals ... your challenge is difficult enough without having to battle yourselves through legislative arenas."

This brings to mind three important points:

* We are a family - a dysfunctional family, but a family nonetheless. All families have their disagreements. This is not inherently bad. In fact, our greatest growth can take place here.

* Before you criticize another chiropractor, look yourself in the mirror. Ask yourself, "If I were the only one in chiropractic doing something for this profession, where would our profession be?

* If we doubled the amount of patients choosing chiropractic care, I guarantee the bickering would stop. We'd all be too busy to occupy ourselves with such trivial things.

On behalf of billions of people worldwide, please take the time to restore broken relationships inside the chiropractic arena. I know of several that need restoration. Take those first steps - don't delay. Remember that each day we wait, our adversaries get a deeper foothold on us. Recall the research on the infants - not even able to walk - taking Ritalin! We cannot let stuff like that continue. But, unfortunately, it will, if we don't stand up - as a profession - and say, "Enough is enough!" Draw a line in the sand and stand united, shoulder-to-shoulder. If we don't create a united front, ask yourself the question, "Who will?" Scary thought, isn't it?

It appears that we need to gather together all the leaders of this great profession in one room, lock the doors, and stay there until we decide who we are as a profession and where we're steering this ship. On the way in, we must check our pride, personalities and precious chiropractic ideologies at the door, roll up our sleeves and get to work on what we all agree on - caring for the well-being of all people.

References

1. Skertic M. Ritalin roulette: Some infants get medication despite advice of experts. Chicago Sun-Times, April 21, 2002. www.suntimes.com/special_sections/ ritalin/cst-nws-ritage21.html.

2. There is a link to a related article on this and a letter describing the segment at www.amerchiro.org/media/record/ wnbc_tv.shtml.

Frank A. Corbo, DC

Anaheim, California

A printable version of this article is available online at www.chiroweb.com/ columnist/greenawalt. You may also leave a comment or ask a question at the "Talk Back" forum at the same location.