May 2006Georgia
association wants investigation of CCGPP
The
Board of Directors of the Georgia Council of Chiropractic (GCC)
addressed a growing concern regarding the potential impact
of the new "Best Practice" guidelines being developed by the
Council on Chiropractic Guidelines and Practice Parameters (CCGPP)
According to the organization, serious conflicts of interest
appear to exist within the CCGPP Research Commission,
chaired by John Triano, DC. It also questions CCGPP claims
that its document will transcend the political and
philosophical differences that have divided our profession
for more than a hundred years.
To
address their concerns, the GCC passed a resolution stating
there is ample evidence that "the Chairman of the Commission
of the CCGPP has formally expressed views which are contrary
to the beliefs of the majority of practicing chiropractors,"
and that he "is collaborating with members of the managed
care industry in order to promote a chiropractic identity
that is in conflict with the majority of practicing
chiropractors."
The
resolution went on to emphasize that the organization
"considers said collaboration with the managed care industry
a direct conflict of interest with the duties of the
Commission of the CCGPP" and called for his resignation.
Although not specifically referred to in the resolution,
Triano -- who is praised as "one of chiropractic's most
respected researchers" on the Quackwatch website run by
arch-chiropractic critic Stephen Barrett, MD -- has
repeatedly and publicly dismissed the notion of vertebral
subluxations. In one research paper, he presented a "new
model of subluxation," which he calls the Functional Spinal
Lesion.
In
addition, contrary to the evidence presented in all major
national surveys, Triano had stated that only 20% of the
profession still "believes in the subluxation theory." His
quotes frequently appear on Internet sites such as
Quackwatch, quackfiles, and other anti-chiropractic sites in
support of their contention that chiropractic is "quackery."
He was also a key member of the committee that developed the
widely-rejected Mercy Guidelines.
In its
resolution, the GCC called for a "full and independent
investigation by the Board of Directors of COCSA into any
and all recent communications between members of the CCGPP
Commission and members of the managed care industry" and
noted that "if the outcome of this investigation does indeed
reveal a collaboration between the CCGPP Commission and
members of the managed care industry, the Georgia Council of
Chiropractic publicly calls for the resignation of all
members of the CCGPP Commission who have been involved in
said collaboration."
In
explaining its position the Georgia organization noted its
own view of chiropractic as "a separate and distinct healing
art that focuses on the detection and correction of the
vertebral subluxation" and expressed dedication to the
Palmer Postulates (that there is a fundamental and important
relationship [mediated through the nervous system] between
the spine and health; that mechanical and functional
disorders of the spine [subluxation] can degrade health; and
that correction of the spinal disorders [adjustments] may
bring about a restoration of health).
The
resolution pointed out that these postulates are "ubiquitous
within the profession and are to be found in some form in
the mission statements of every North American chiropractic
college and in the curricula of those colleges and are
further embodied in the ACC Paradigm" and that, according to
the most recent and complete survey of the profession
performed by the Institute for Social Research of Ohio
Northern University, the majority of the profession accepts
and practices according to these postulates.
This is
not the first time the issue of conflict of interest has
been raised in regards to the CCGPP members. Last year, Alan
Immerman, DC, who often serves as a consultant to dispute
the claims of chiropractic IMEs, reported in an article for
<I>The Chiropractic Journal<I> that CCGPP chairman Eugene
Lewis, DC, claimed all committee members had signed
statements of non‑conflict
of interest. However, Dr. Immerman noted, Triano, DC has
performed IMEs for State Farm Insurance Company and other
members might also have been paid by insurance companies to
review chiropractic claims.
