Medical Profession’s Reply To Chiropractors’ Claims

Press, Volume C, Issue 29680, 25 November 1961, Page 13

Medical Profession’s Reply To Chiropractors’ Claims

(N.Z Press Association)

WELLINGTON, Nov. 24 “In all fairness to the medical profession of this country I feel called upon to correct several of the statements of Sir Wilfrid Sim,” said Sir Charles Bums in a statement today. He was replying to a statement, published yesterday, in which Sir Wilfrid Sim replied to an earlier statement by Sir Charles Burns about chiropractic legislation which has been placed before the House of Representatives. Sir Charles Burns said registration for chiropractors had been fought not only by the New Zealand branch of the British Medical Association. In fact the matter was referred to a select committee of the House of Lords in 1931 and 1935 and until now registration had not been granted in the United Kingdom to either osteopaths or chiropractors. “Sir Douglas Robb of Auckland is Commonwealth President of the British Medical Association. As such he made it his business to be present at one meeting of the Public Health Committee this year for the express purpose of showing his official sympathy with his New Zealand colleagues in their fight against the present Chiropractors’ Registration Act.

“It should be noted that Sir Douglas Robb is a world authority on medical education and with this background, on several occasions in recent months he has advanced to members of Parliament cogent reasons against the registration of chiropractors." said Sir Charles Burns. He said Sir Wilfrid Sim had claimed that “Chiropractic is established in the community and has come to

stay." But he must be aware that chiropractic was on its way out in the United States, the country of its origin. U.S. Schools “As stated in the Stanford Report on chiropractic in California, the number of schools devoted to the training of chiropractors in the United States, has fallen from over 200 to approximately 30, while the number in California has diminished from 39 to 3. “These findings which are based on sound statistical evidence, scarcely support Sir Wilfrid Sim’s statement that chiropractic has come to stay.” said Sir Charles Burns To the claim that many medical practitioners approved individually of chiropractic, he said: “It can be stated categorically that no statement was made in evidence before the committee that medical practitioners approve of chiropractic. “To state that a great many patients of the chiropractors come from medical practitioners, is pure sophistry—patients are never referred by medical practitioners to chiropractors. “True enough, patients dissatisfied with their doctors do go of their own accord to chiropractors, but for the most part they return disillusioned and ready to accept the situation that their complaints are not in fact curable by any measures known to medical science. “The suggestion in Sir Wilfrid Sim’s statement that these patients have been sent to chiropractors is absolutely false and cannot be too strongly challenged.” “Sir Wilfrid Sim refers to the fact that in Canada chiropractic has been practised

under Act of Parliament for 25 years. Of most of the individual states of Canada this is true, but not of the country as a whole, “Canada is unfortunately too cloee to the United States to avoid being invaded by members of the numerous medical cults born, and bred in that country. “I have it on the authority of the honorary secretary of the British Medical Association (New Zeeland branch) to say that our association will make no difficulty about sending an observer to the United States," Sir Charles Burns said, “and we have no hesitation in prophesying that the evidence which will be obtained will- show clearly that in spite of what good its practitioners may claim to do as a healing service, chiropractic is unfortunately only another of the many medical cults, which have come and gone throughout the ages."