Chiropractic with Dr. Andrew Arnold
What is Chiropractic?
Chiropractic is a health care discipline based on the scientific premise that the body is a self-regulating, self-healing organism. These important functions are controlled by the brain, spinal cord, and all the nerves of the body. “Chiropractic” comes from the Greek word Chiropraktikos, meaning “done by hand.”
The practice of chiropractic focuses on the relationship between structure (primarily the spine, and pelvis) and function (as coordinated by the nervous system) and how that relationship affects the preservation and restoration of health.
The skull protects the delicate tissues of the brain. The moving bones of the spine protect the intricate communication pathways of the spinal cord and nerve roots. If these nervous system pathways are impaired, malfunction of the tissue and organ function throughout the body can result.
Chiropractic also places an emphasis on nutrition and exercise, wellness* and healthy lifestyle modifications.
*The CAA uses the following definition of wellness:
"Wellness is a lifelong process of assuming personal responsibility that empowers the individual to exercise choice, make informed decisions and take action towards a more balanced, dynamically sustainable and fulfilling existence in all dimensions of life."
How Does Chiropractic Work?
Chiropractic is based upon the understanding that good health depends, in part, upon a normally functioning nervous system.
Chiropractic works by helping to restore your own inborn ability to be healthy. When under the proper control of your nervous system, all the cells, tissue, and organs of your body are designed to function well and resist disease and ill health. The chiropractic approach to better health is to locate and help reduce interferences to your natural state of being healthy.
A common interference to the nervous system is the twenty four moving bones of the spinal column. A loss of normal motion or position of these bones can irritate or impair the function of the nervous system. This can disrupt the transmission of controlling nerve impulses.
Chiropractors aim to improve nervous system function primarily through chiropractic adjustments (with particular attention to the spine, skull and pelvis), to help remove any interference that may be impairing normal health.
Chiropractic Qualifications
What training and qualifications does a chiropractor receive?
Which Australian universities have chiropractic degree programs?
What do chiropractors study at university?
What training and qualifications does a chiropractor receive?
Chiropractors are required to adhere to strict and extensive educational requirements and standards to become registered health professionals in Australia.
Australian chiropractors are five year university trained, and are government registered and government regulated health professionals.
To become a registered chiropractor in Australia you must have studied an accredited 5-year chiropractic program conducted at a University within Australia, or have completed an accredited program overseas that satisfies the requirements set by the Australian Chiropractors Registration Boards.
Which Australian universities have chiropractic degree programs?
Currently there are three universities in Australia that have chiropractic degree programs. RMIT University in Melbourne, Victoria offers a 5-year program as a three year Bachelor of Applied Science in Complementary Medicine (Chiropractic) which, on completion, provides entry into a two year Master of Clinical Chiropractic. Macquarie University in Sydney, New South Wales has a three year Bachelor of Chiropractic Science which provides the basis for entry into a two year Master of Chiropractic. Murdoch University in Perth, Western Australia offers a five year Bachelor of Chiropractic. Successful completion of the whole program of study is required for professional registration as a chiropractor.
The Association maintains an open line of communication with the three educational institutions running chiropractic degree programs. Members of the profession and the Association’s chief executive attend course advisory committee meetings and regular discussions are held between the universities’ academic staff and the CAA National Board.
The Universities encourage input from the profession in developing the structure of their courses and assistance with the operation of the student outpatients clinics.
What do chiropractors study at university?
Chiropractic university courses are of similar length and depth as medical courses, but focus on promoting healthier lifestyles via better body function, rather than on drugs and surgery.
Additionally, chiropractic education involves a special emphasis on anatomy, physiology, pathology, neurology, biomechanics, X-ray, spinal adjusting techniques and related subjects.
A chiropractor’s education never ends. To maintain quality and safety, chiropractors complete continuing professional development [CPD] courses and seminars to upgrade and improve their skills and to stay current on the latest research. CAA Member chiropractors are required to undertake mandatory CPD.
Frequently Asked Questions
A chiropractic adjustment is the skill of using a specific force in a precise direction, applied to a joint that is fixated, “locked up”, or not moving properly. This adds motion to the joint, helping the joints to gradually regain more normal motion and function. The purpose of this safe and natural procedure is to permit improved spinal function, improved nervous system function, and improved health.
There are many ways to adjust the spine. Usually the chiropractor's hands or a specially designed instrument delivers a brief and highly-accurate thrust. Some adjusting methods are quick, whereas others require a slow, constant or indirect pressure.
After years of university training and clinical experience, each chiropractor becomes highly skilled in the delivery of a variety of adjusting approaches.
How are chiropractors regulated?
Chiropractors are five year university trained, government regulated and government registered healthcare professionals. Government established chiropractic registration boards – whose regulations chiropractors must strictly adhere to in order to maintain registration to practice - exist in all Australian states and territories to ensure increased public safety for the Australian population. These bodies are responsible for maintaining the highest standards for all practitioners.
Is chiropractic care safe?
According to a New Zealand government inquiry, chiropractic care is remarkably safe.*
In relation to caring for neck and back pain, studies have shown that a course of chiropractic care was 250 times safer than a course of anti-inflammatory drugs**. However, it is important to note that while chiropractic has an excellent safety record based on drug free non-invasive care, no form of healthcare is entirely free of potential adverse effects.
While some reports have attempted to associate chiropractic neck adjustments with an occurrence of a particular kind of stroke (vertebral artery dissection), research*** conducted in 2008 in the journal Spine - undertaken as part of the World Health Organisation Bone and Joint Decade Neck Pain Taskforce - provides the strongest support for the extremely high safety of chiropractic care. According to the study, increased risks of vertebral artery dissection were likely explained by patients with pre-existing stroke-related neck pain and headaches consulting chiropractors and primary care physicians before the occurrence of a stroke.
Furthermore, the research asserted that while there was an association of vertebral artery stroke with chiropractic patients under 45, a similar association existed between the same type of stroke and use of primary care physicians in all age groups.
In the study, researchers noted that patients are no more likely to suffer a stroke following chiropractic care than they would after visiting their family doctor's office. Chiropractors use skill, not force or strength to conduct safe, effective adjustments.
Chiropractic care is a natural approach to better health that is safe and effective. Please feel free to discuss this matter with your chiropractor.
What type of educational qualifications do chiropractors receive?
Today’s chiropractor is a highly educated professional. Chiropractic training in Australia involves five year courses at Sydney’s Macquarie University, Melbourne’s RMIT University and Perth's Murdoch University. Many Australian chiropractors received similar education in the US, Europe or New Zealand.
These courses are of similar length and depth as medical courses, but focus on promoting healthier lifestyles via better body function, rather than on drugs and surgery. Accordingly, chiropractic education involves a special emphasis on anatomy, physiology, pathology, neurology, biomechanics, X-ray, spinal adjusting techniques and related subjects.
A chiropractor’s education never ends. After entering practice, all CAA chiropractors must complete continuing professional development courses and seminars to upgrade and improve their skills and to stay current on the latest scientific research.
Is chiropractic care appropriate for children?
Since significant trauma can occur at birth, many parents choose to have their newborns checked for any spinal health related problems. Later, learning to walk, riding a bicycle, and other childhood activities can cause spinal health related problems. While a bandage and some comforting words can help a skinned knee, the potential underlying structural damage to the child’s spine, skull, pelvis and extremities is the unique domain of a chiropractor.
Many childhood health complaints that are brushed off as “growing pains” may be able to be traced to the spine. Regular chiropractic checkups may be able to identify these problems and may help avoid many of the health complaints seen later in adults. Chiropractors are five year university trained healthcare professionals, equipped with the skills and knowledge to provide care especially tailored to the requirements of each individual.
Is chiropractic care appropriate for over 55’s?
More and more people are consulting chiropractors, especially in their later years. With growing concerns about over-medication and the side effects of combining various prescription drugs, safe, natural chiropractic care is growing in popularity.
Restoring better spinal function may help improve lifestyle areas associated with the over 55’s age group including mobility, vitality, endurance, and appetite. Many patients report improvements with arthritic symptoms and other chronic ailments often associated with the aging process. The adjusting technique used by your chiropractor will be modified for maximum comfort and results.
How long will I need chiropractic care?
Spinal health related problems, neglected since early childhood, may require ongoing supportive care for optimum spinal function. These long-standing problems are often associated with muscle weakness or tension, soft tissue damage, and degenerative changes to the spine. Most patients find that periodic chiropractic checkups help keep them in tip-top shape. Those who are active, have stressful lives, or want to be their very best, find that a schedule of preventative visits are helpful in the maintenance of good health and for fostering wellness.
Some patients seek chiropractic care only when their ache or pain becomes unbearable. While this style of “crisis management” is usually more costly and time consuming, chiropractors stand ready to help all patients, regardless of their health goals.
How long you decide to benefit from chiropractic care is always up to you.
Do I need a referral from a GP to see a chiropractor?
Chiropractors are primary contact, primary healthcare practitioners – as such, no form of referral is required as a prerequisite to visit a chiropractor.
* Hasselberg, PD (1979). Chiropractic in New Zealand: Report of the Commission of Inquiry. Wellington, New Zealand: Government Printer.
** Dabbs, V., & Lauretti, W.J. (1995). A Risk Assessment of Cervical Manipulation vs NSAIDS for the Treatment of Neck Pain. Journal of Manipulative and Physiological Therapeutics, 18 (8), 530-536.
*** Cassidy JD, Boyle B, Cote P, He Y, Hogg-Johnson S, Silver FL, Bondy SJ. Risk of vertebro-basilar stroke and chiropractic care: results of a population based case control and case crossover study. Spine 2008 Feb 15; 33 (4 suppl): S176-83.)
Chiropractic is a health care discipline based on the scientific premise that the body is a self-regulating, self-healing organism. These important functions are controlled by the brain, spinal cord, and all the nerves of the body. “Chiropractic” comes from the Greek word Chiropraktikos, meaning “done by hand.”
The practice of chiropractic focuses on the relationship between structure (primarily the spine, and pelvis) and function (as coordinated by the nervous system) and how that relationship affects the preservation and restoration of health.
The skull protects the delicate tissues of the brain. The moving bones of the spine protect the intricate communication pathways of the spinal cord and nerve roots. If these nervous system pathways are impaired, malfunction of the tissue and organ function throughout the body can result.
Chiropractic also places an emphasis on nutrition and exercise, wellness* and healthy lifestyle modifications.
*The CAA uses the following definition of wellness:
"Wellness is a lifelong process of assuming personal responsibility that empowers the individual to exercise choice, make informed decisions and take action towards a more balanced, dynamically sustainable and fulfilling existence in all dimensions of life."
How Does Chiropractic Work?
Chiropractic is based upon the understanding that good health depends, in part, upon a normally functioning nervous system.
Chiropractic works by helping to restore your own inborn ability to be healthy. When under the proper control of your nervous system, all the cells, tissue, and organs of your body are designed to function well and resist disease and ill health. The chiropractic approach to better health is to locate and help reduce interferences to your natural state of being healthy.
A common interference to the nervous system is the twenty four moving bones of the spinal column. A loss of normal motion or position of these bones can irritate or impair the function of the nervous system. This can disrupt the transmission of controlling nerve impulses.
Chiropractors aim to improve nervous system function primarily through chiropractic adjustments (with particular attention to the spine, skull and pelvis), to help remove any interference that may be impairing normal health.
Chiropractic Qualifications
What training and qualifications does a chiropractor receive?
Which Australian universities have chiropractic degree programs?
What do chiropractors study at university?
What training and qualifications does a chiropractor receive?
Chiropractors are required to adhere to strict and extensive educational requirements and standards to become registered health professionals in Australia.
Australian chiropractors are five year university trained, and are government registered and government regulated health professionals.
To become a registered chiropractor in Australia you must have studied an accredited 5-year chiropractic program conducted at a University within Australia, or have completed an accredited program overseas that satisfies the requirements set by the Australian Chiropractors Registration Boards.
Which Australian universities have chiropractic degree programs?
Currently there are three universities in Australia that have chiropractic degree programs. RMIT University in Melbourne, Victoria offers a 5-year program as a three year Bachelor of Applied Science in Complementary Medicine (Chiropractic) which, on completion, provides entry into a two year Master of Clinical Chiropractic. Macquarie University in Sydney, New South Wales has a three year Bachelor of Chiropractic Science which provides the basis for entry into a two year Master of Chiropractic. Murdoch University in Perth, Western Australia offers a five year Bachelor of Chiropractic. Successful completion of the whole program of study is required for professional registration as a chiropractor.
The Association maintains an open line of communication with the three educational institutions running chiropractic degree programs. Members of the profession and the Association’s chief executive attend course advisory committee meetings and regular discussions are held between the universities’ academic staff and the CAA National Board.
The Universities encourage input from the profession in developing the structure of their courses and assistance with the operation of the student outpatients clinics.
What do chiropractors study at university?
Chiropractic university courses are of similar length and depth as medical courses, but focus on promoting healthier lifestyles via better body function, rather than on drugs and surgery.
Additionally, chiropractic education involves a special emphasis on anatomy, physiology, pathology, neurology, biomechanics, X-ray, spinal adjusting techniques and related subjects.
A chiropractor’s education never ends. To maintain quality and safety, chiropractors complete continuing professional development [CPD] courses and seminars to upgrade and improve their skills and to stay current on the latest research. CAA Member chiropractors are required to undertake mandatory CPD.
Frequently Asked Questions
- What is a chiropractic adjustment?
- How are chiropractors regulated?
- Is chiropractic care safe?
- What type of educational qualifications do chiropractors receive?
- Is chiropractic care appropriate for children?
- Is chiropractic care appropriate for over 55’s?
- How long will I need chiropractic care?
- Do I need a referral from a GP to see a chiropractor?
A chiropractic adjustment is the skill of using a specific force in a precise direction, applied to a joint that is fixated, “locked up”, or not moving properly. This adds motion to the joint, helping the joints to gradually regain more normal motion and function. The purpose of this safe and natural procedure is to permit improved spinal function, improved nervous system function, and improved health.
There are many ways to adjust the spine. Usually the chiropractor's hands or a specially designed instrument delivers a brief and highly-accurate thrust. Some adjusting methods are quick, whereas others require a slow, constant or indirect pressure.
After years of university training and clinical experience, each chiropractor becomes highly skilled in the delivery of a variety of adjusting approaches.
How are chiropractors regulated?
Chiropractors are five year university trained, government regulated and government registered healthcare professionals. Government established chiropractic registration boards – whose regulations chiropractors must strictly adhere to in order to maintain registration to practice - exist in all Australian states and territories to ensure increased public safety for the Australian population. These bodies are responsible for maintaining the highest standards for all practitioners.
Is chiropractic care safe?
According to a New Zealand government inquiry, chiropractic care is remarkably safe.*
In relation to caring for neck and back pain, studies have shown that a course of chiropractic care was 250 times safer than a course of anti-inflammatory drugs**. However, it is important to note that while chiropractic has an excellent safety record based on drug free non-invasive care, no form of healthcare is entirely free of potential adverse effects.
While some reports have attempted to associate chiropractic neck adjustments with an occurrence of a particular kind of stroke (vertebral artery dissection), research*** conducted in 2008 in the journal Spine - undertaken as part of the World Health Organisation Bone and Joint Decade Neck Pain Taskforce - provides the strongest support for the extremely high safety of chiropractic care. According to the study, increased risks of vertebral artery dissection were likely explained by patients with pre-existing stroke-related neck pain and headaches consulting chiropractors and primary care physicians before the occurrence of a stroke.
Furthermore, the research asserted that while there was an association of vertebral artery stroke with chiropractic patients under 45, a similar association existed between the same type of stroke and use of primary care physicians in all age groups.
In the study, researchers noted that patients are no more likely to suffer a stroke following chiropractic care than they would after visiting their family doctor's office. Chiropractors use skill, not force or strength to conduct safe, effective adjustments.
Chiropractic care is a natural approach to better health that is safe and effective. Please feel free to discuss this matter with your chiropractor.
What type of educational qualifications do chiropractors receive?
Today’s chiropractor is a highly educated professional. Chiropractic training in Australia involves five year courses at Sydney’s Macquarie University, Melbourne’s RMIT University and Perth's Murdoch University. Many Australian chiropractors received similar education in the US, Europe or New Zealand.
These courses are of similar length and depth as medical courses, but focus on promoting healthier lifestyles via better body function, rather than on drugs and surgery. Accordingly, chiropractic education involves a special emphasis on anatomy, physiology, pathology, neurology, biomechanics, X-ray, spinal adjusting techniques and related subjects.
A chiropractor’s education never ends. After entering practice, all CAA chiropractors must complete continuing professional development courses and seminars to upgrade and improve their skills and to stay current on the latest scientific research.
Is chiropractic care appropriate for children?
Since significant trauma can occur at birth, many parents choose to have their newborns checked for any spinal health related problems. Later, learning to walk, riding a bicycle, and other childhood activities can cause spinal health related problems. While a bandage and some comforting words can help a skinned knee, the potential underlying structural damage to the child’s spine, skull, pelvis and extremities is the unique domain of a chiropractor.
Many childhood health complaints that are brushed off as “growing pains” may be able to be traced to the spine. Regular chiropractic checkups may be able to identify these problems and may help avoid many of the health complaints seen later in adults. Chiropractors are five year university trained healthcare professionals, equipped with the skills and knowledge to provide care especially tailored to the requirements of each individual.
Is chiropractic care appropriate for over 55’s?
More and more people are consulting chiropractors, especially in their later years. With growing concerns about over-medication and the side effects of combining various prescription drugs, safe, natural chiropractic care is growing in popularity.
Restoring better spinal function may help improve lifestyle areas associated with the over 55’s age group including mobility, vitality, endurance, and appetite. Many patients report improvements with arthritic symptoms and other chronic ailments often associated with the aging process. The adjusting technique used by your chiropractor will be modified for maximum comfort and results.
How long will I need chiropractic care?
Spinal health related problems, neglected since early childhood, may require ongoing supportive care for optimum spinal function. These long-standing problems are often associated with muscle weakness or tension, soft tissue damage, and degenerative changes to the spine. Most patients find that periodic chiropractic checkups help keep them in tip-top shape. Those who are active, have stressful lives, or want to be their very best, find that a schedule of preventative visits are helpful in the maintenance of good health and for fostering wellness.
Some patients seek chiropractic care only when their ache or pain becomes unbearable. While this style of “crisis management” is usually more costly and time consuming, chiropractors stand ready to help all patients, regardless of their health goals.
How long you decide to benefit from chiropractic care is always up to you.
Do I need a referral from a GP to see a chiropractor?
Chiropractors are primary contact, primary healthcare practitioners – as such, no form of referral is required as a prerequisite to visit a chiropractor.
* Hasselberg, PD (1979). Chiropractic in New Zealand: Report of the Commission of Inquiry. Wellington, New Zealand: Government Printer.
** Dabbs, V., & Lauretti, W.J. (1995). A Risk Assessment of Cervical Manipulation vs NSAIDS for the Treatment of Neck Pain. Journal of Manipulative and Physiological Therapeutics, 18 (8), 530-536.
*** Cassidy JD, Boyle B, Cote P, He Y, Hogg-Johnson S, Silver FL, Bondy SJ. Risk of vertebro-basilar stroke and chiropractic care: results of a population based case control and case crossover study. Spine 2008 Feb 15; 33 (4 suppl): S176-83.)