4189.0: Tuesday, October 23, 2001 - 3:15 PM

Abstract #24762

Developing the Chiropractic Public Health Workforce

Lisa Zaynab Killinger, DC1, Michael Perillo, DC, MPH2, and Elaine Morschhauser, DC1. (1) Palmer Center for Chiropractic Research, 741 Brady Street, Davenport, IA 52803, 319-884-5854, Killinger_L@Palmer.edu, (2) Clinical Sciences, University of Bridgeport College of Chiropractic, 75 Linden St, Bridgeport, CT 60661

The chiropractic profession represents a large, and relatively untapped, resource for helping to meet the nation’s (and APHA’s) public health goals. This session will review the Chiropractic Health Care Section’s 2001 Challenge Grant project, funded by the American Public Health Association. This project is a multi-faceted effort to educate chiropractors about public health issues, heighten chiropractors’ awareness of the APHA, and recruit chiropractors as members. The project is also designed to help chiropractors participate more actively in public health activities in their local communities and at chiropractic colleges. This project offered support to a series of public health education sessions implemented at the 2001 Association of Chiropractic Colleges (ACC) conference. These educational sessions were carried out with additional funding from the US Health Resources and Services Administration, and target chiropractic educators, practitioners, and researchers. The sessions included general public health education, information on the chiropractor’s roles in the public health effort, and information about APHA and benefits of membership to the individual and the chiropractic profession. Through the Challenge Grant, APHA and other public health education materials were disseminated to all chiropractic colleges and numerous chiropractic organizations, practitioners and groups. The impact of this information dissemination and the ACC educational sessions on the APHA Chiropractic Health Care section’s member recruitment will also be reported. Third, a pre and post assessment of ACC attendees on public health-related issues will be performed, the results of which will be shared at this session.

Learning Objectives: Attendees will be able to better articulate the issues confronting the chiropractic public health workforce. Attendees will also be able to apply knowledge gained in the session towards the development of public health education at their academic insitutions and communities.

Keywords: Chiropractic, Workforce

Presenting author's disclosure statement:
Organization/institution whose products or services will be discussed: None
I do not have any significant financial interest/arrangement or affiliation with any organization/institution whose products or services are being discussed in this session.

The 129th Annual Meeting of APHA