Abstract
BackgroundThere is increasing interest by chiropractors in North America regarding integration into mainstream healthcare; however, there is limited information about attitudes towards the profession among conventional healthcare providers, including orthopaedic surgeons.MethodsWe administered a 43-item cross-sectional survey to 1000 Canadian and American orthopaedic surgeons that inquired about demographic variables and their attitudes towards chiropractic. Our survey included an option for respondants to include written comments, and our present analysis is restricted to these comments. Two reviewers, independantly and in duplicate, coded all written comments using thematic analysis.Results487 surgeons completed the survey (response rate 49%), and 174 provided written comments. Our analysis revealed 8 themes and 24 sub-themes represented in surgeons' comments. Reported themes were: variability amongst chiropractors (n = 55); concerns with chiropractic treatment (n = 54); areas where chiropractic is perceived as effective (n = 43); unethical behavior (n = 43); patient interaction (n = 36); the scientific basis of chiropractic (n = 26); personal experiences with chiropractic (n = 21); and chiropractic training (n = 18). Common sub-themes endorsed by surgeon's were diversity within the chiropractic profession as a barrier to increased interprofessional collaboration, endorsement for chiropractic treatment of musculoskeletal complaints, criticism for treatment of non-musculoskeletal complaints, and concern over whether chiropractic care was evidence-based.ConclusionsOur analysis identified a number of issues that will have to be considered by the chiropractic profession as part of its efforts to further integrate chiropractic into mainstream healthcare.
Highlights
There is increasing interest by chiropractors in North America regarding integration into mainstream healthcare; there is limited information about attitudes towards the profession among conventional healthcare providers, including orthopaedic surgeons
Summary of Findings We found that written comments by orthopaedic surgeons most frequently endorsed diversity within the chiropractic profession as a barrier to increased interprofessional collaboration
Our findings suggest that there are a number of concerns held by North American orthopaedic surgeons that should be addressed as part of any efforts to facilitate greater integration of chiropractic into mainstream healthcare
Summary
There is increasing interest by chiropractors in North America regarding integration into mainstream healthcare; there is limited information about attitudes towards the profession among conventional healthcare providers, including orthopaedic surgeons. In 2006 the Chiropractic Strategic Planning Conference proposed a set of recommendations for advancing the chiropractic profession in North America [1] These included interdisciplinary clinical training, the integration of chiropractic into mainstream healthcare, and increased interprofessional collaboration. Advancing these initiatives will require endorsement from healthcare professionals that attend to patient populations who seek chiropractic care, which includes physical therapists, We recently surveyed 1000 North American orthopaedic surgeons (49% response rate) to inquire about their use of, and attitudes towards, chiropractic [2]. We reviewed and synthesized this material in order to supplement our previously reported findings and to further inform current barriers to the integration of chiropractic into mainstream healthcare
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