Historically, there has been a conflict between the practice of medicine and
the practice of chiropractic. There is no doubt that the profession began in part
as a response to the failure of 19th century medical practice. Today a very
strange and mixed attitude exists relative to medicine and chiropractic. Some
of our profession desire to embrace the practice of medicine in its entirety and
abandon the traditional philosophy of chiropractic. Others want to be a
specialized branch of medicine addressing only musculoskeletal conditions.
Another group wants to be an alternative to medical practice for a variety of
conditions and sees itself as competition for the medical, therapeutic field.
Most of this group, while maintaining the superiority of chiropractic in
alleviating most medical conditions or their cause, still embraces part of the
procedures of medicine such as diagnosis and also recognizes the need to
refer certain conditions or patients with serious medical crises to medical
practitioners. These represent the majority of the present-day chiropractic
profession.
Objective Straight Chiropractic represents a totally different viewpoint. By
defining our practice by its objective we are totally divorced from any
relationship, alternative or competitive with the practice of medicine. The
straight objective of correcting vertebral subluxations to enable the innate
intelligence to be more fully expressed has nothing to do with a disease. It is a
procedure beneficial to people not diseases and it is beneficial to those
people who have subluxations even if they do not have medical conditions.
Further, if an individual has a disease and no subluxation, then chiropractic
care is not necessary.
With the foregoing in mind, Objective Straight Chiropractors do not pass
judgement on medical practice in general or medical procedures in particular.
The Objective Straight Chiropractor is an authority on correcting vertebral
subluxations and the benefit that it provides for every human being. He or she
is not knowledgeable about the efficacy or the appropriateness of medical
practice and under no circumstances gives advice or makes
recommendations relative to medical conditions or their treatment.
It should be noted that there is a larger philosophy of life often referred to as
the ADIO (above-down, inside-out) philosophy. Chiropractic is a small part of
this philosophy as it relates to the function of the human body. In sharing this
ADIO philosophy, the Objective Straight Chiropractor may on occasions
contrast it with other viewpoints and use medicine as an example of another
viewpoint. But it is the ADIO philosophy that is in contrast with other
viewpoints, including the practice of medicine, not the chiropractor.
See also ADIO Philosophy.
