Chiropractic: A Rapidly Growing Healthcare Profession

The term ‘chiropractic’, derived from Greek roots to mean ‘done by hand’, originated with Daniel David Palmer and was coined by a patient, Reverend Samuel H. Weed. Chiropractic is a healthcare profession that focuses primarily on the brain-body connection, especially the relationship between the spine and nervous system. Basically, for the brain to understand what is going on and for it to be able to respond appropriately and function optimally; there must not be any interference to the information travelling all around the body via our nervous system. The nervous system (particularly the spinal cord and spinal nerves) is protected by the spine. Hence, any areas of dysfunction in the spinal joints may create an interruption to the normal communication between the nervous system and body. These imbalances/interferences prevent the proper flow of information along the nerves, therefore preventing the brain from responding appropriately. Chiropractic is a fast-growing profession and is now practised worldwide, including in Malaysia. Chiropractic forms the world’s third-largest regulated healthcare profession and is one of the most commonly utilised alternatives to medical care. Chiropractic is well-regulated by law in over 40 international jurisdictions, such as the United States of America, United Kingdom, Australia, New Zealand, South Africa, Hong Kong, Philippines, and Thailand. As a healthcare service, chiropractic offers a conservative and cost-effective management approach for neuromusculoskeletal disorders. The World Health Organization (WHO) encourages and supports countries in the proper use of safe and effective medication, products, and practices in national health services. In 2005, WHO developed a guideline on basic training and safety in chiropractic practice.

Chiropractic education is regulated by the Councils on Chiropractic Education International (CCEI), which has accrediting bodies for different regions in the world. The chiropractic educational programme is a minimum of four years. All accredited programmes provide a curriculum incorporating elements of basic sciences (e.g. physiology, anatomy and biochemistry), clinical sciences (e.g. laboratory diagnosis, radiographic diagnosis, orthopaedics, neurology, and nutrition), and clinical intern experience. In the clinical arena, chiropractic students have limited training in pharmacology and critical care but they have significant training in clinical biomechanics, neuromusculoskeletal diagnosis, manual therapy, nutrition and exercise rehabilitation.