Utah Chiropractic Physicians Association

 Chiropractic Night at the Bee’s Ball Game July 11th was great fun. 
THANKS to all that supported the event!

Plan now to attend the UCPA annual Summer party at Oquirrh Park August 1st from 12-6 pm. There will be a BBQ, Band, and great time to socialize with fellow Chiropractors and their staff. Call the Association Office today to register: 801-281-4100 or 877-421-8272

Utah’s Department of Health has just announced the first probable cases of  the H1N1 virus here.  These cases have not yet been confirmed by the CDC.  The UCPA is urging all chiropractors in the state to review standard precautions with their patients and staff.  Symptoms of influenza include headaches and joint pain.  Chiropractors may be seeing patients complaining of these symptoms and need to be prepared to refer these patients for the appropriate confirmation and treatment if not set up to do lab work.  The following is information recommended and approved by The UCPA Public Health Initiative for distribution by and through all chiropractic offices in the state.

Though not yet shown to be symptomatically worse than any other flu it is a new strain so very few will be immune, we are all susceptible, and some standard precautions should be taken to protect ourselves and others.

Recommendations for Chiropractors

• Keep up to date on breaking information: Utah Info, National Info
• Chiropractors should have face masks available to people who come into their office with flu like symptoms, and hand sanitizer available for use.
• Sanitation of commonly touched surfaces should be increased in chiropractic offices.
• Chiropractic offices should have printed public health information for patients regarding the H1N1 virus. (Approved Publication Here)
• Chiropractic Physicians should educate their patients and staff regarding standard safety precautions and have office procedures to follow.
• Chiropractors should adjust their history questions appropriately including asking about recent travel to Mexico, and contact with any sick persons.
• If not set up for it doctors should know where to refer patients suspected of having the H1N1 virus, for a confirmed diagnosis.
• Chiropractors should be aware of and make their staff aware of proper disease reporting procedures utilizing 1-888-EPI-UTAH.
• Additional information for the press, public, and chiropractic physicians can be found at www.utahchiro.org.

Recommendations for the Public

• Be informed.  School closures and other advisories will come through normal news channels.
• Cover your nose and mouth with a tissue when you cough or sneeze. Throw the tissue in the trash after you use it.
• Wash your hands often with soap and water, especially after you cough or sneeze. Alcohol-based hands cleaners are also effective.
• Avoid touching your eyes, nose or mouth. Germs spread that way.
• Stay home if you get sick. The CDC recommends that you stay home from work or school and limit contact with others to keep from infecting them.
• Develop an emergency plan. This should include storing a supply of food, medicines, facemasks, alcohol-based hand rubs and other essential supplies.

FAQ From the Utah Department of Health: http://health.utah.gov/epi/SwineFlu/Q&A_042809.pdf

Many people are expressing concern about the recent outbreak of a new disease, swine flu.  In line with our Public Health Initiative sponsored by the UCPA we are providing some basic information for the public and for practitioners to aid in controlling this illness and preventing future cases.

The first thing that everyone must do is gain perspective.  Swine flu has not shown to be any more dangerous than a regular flu, and many confirmed cases in the US have resolved without treatment.  However, if you have recently traveled to Mexico and develop flu symptoms please see a medical doctor so that they can get a sample to determine if you have swine flu.  Symptoms of swine flu are identical to a normal flu, and they can only be differentiated by a lab test, which is why you would seek medical assistance.  Although swine flu has been seen to require no treatment in some cases it has also been found to respond to treatment with prescription antiviral drugs.

To prevent swine flu transmission you should avoid contact with sick people and wash your hands regularly.  If you are sick you should stay home, cover your mouth when you cough or sneeze and wash your hands afterward.  Swine flu is not transmitted through eating pork or any pig product.

There have been no outbreaks of swine flu in Utah yet, but the Utah Department of Health has asked all physicians to be on the look out for anyone with flu like symptoms.  When you encounter this situation take normal precautions and contact public health officials.  You should also send a sample such as a nasal swab to public health labs for testing.  For further information follow these links:

For Chiropractic Physicians

For the Public

On Friday a press release was sent out announcing the start of our UCPA Public Health Initiative webpage.  It has many great links and helpful information for you to promote chiropractic in your area.  Remember the more we invoke this initiative the more people will associate public health with chiropractors.  When that happens we can be a powerful influence in improving the health of Utahns.

The page needs your help to grow.  We need your stories to submit to the media, we need your content and comments so come check out the new addition to the UCPA website, and help make it grow.

Those who attended… Please share some of your thoughts with us of what you got out of attending!

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This last week the UCPA in a press release urged the Department of Defense (DoD) to act on a directive of the United States Congress by bringing a chiropractic position to Hill Air Force Base in Ogden. Last year Congress required the DoD to begin providing chiropractic services at 11 new military treatment facilities by September of 2009. The 75th Medical Group at Hill Air Force Base provides health care for more than 5000 active duty military and medical services for over 50,000 TRICARE beneficiaries, according to their website.  Despite these excelent facilities and full hospital, there is no chiropractic treatment provided for the troops in Utah.  The troops have to pay out of pocket for that benefit that is a part of their benefits.  The UCPA is encouraging the designation of Hill AFB as one of those 11 new facilities to offer chiropractic care.

The history of chiropractic support of our military personnel is long. In 1944 the first bill to commission chiropractors was introduced in the United States Congress. In 1985 the DoD was directed to determine cost effectiveness of chiropractic. President George H.W. Bush authorized the DoD to commission chiropractors in 1992. The Chiropractic Health Care Demonstration Program (CHCDP) that ended in September 1999 showed overwhelmingly that chiropractic care would be beneficial to our troops and to the military. It was replaced by the Chiropractic Care Program in 2001, which was to extend chiropractic care to all active duty military personnel by 2003. In 2004 the Secretary of Defense was required to speed up the implementation of this program so that all service men and women would be able to access chiropractic care by October of 2005. Currently in 2008 according to Tricare’s website, barely a fifth, 49 of 238, Military Treatment Facilities (MTF) offer chiropractic services.

The UCPA believes that all US Military Personnel deserve access to the chiropractic treatment that has been promised to them by law as a benefit, and would like to start with Utah personnel.

Doctors of Chiropractic (DCs) are well-trained, highly-educated health care professionals that specialize in the treatment of musculoskeletal disorders. Congress began to integrate chiropractic care into the military because of the high physical stress of the environments of military operation.In these environments, injuries to the musculoskeletal system are frequent, commonplace, and oftentimes serious. Injuries of this nature harm our service men and women individually, as well as the units they serve in, decreasing moral and combat readiness.

With actions in Iraq apparently winding down Utah has been and will continue to see a return of its dedicated troops.Recently the VA cited “diseases of Musculoskeletal System/Connective System,” back pain, as the number one diagnosis of Iraq/Afghanistan veterans accessing VA treatment (Analysis of VA Health Care Utilization Among U.S. Global War on Terrorism Veterans, October Jan. 2009).Some chiropractic benefits are offered in the VA system in Utah, and active duty troops are not authorized to utilize these facilities.Rather than catching these issues early or preventing the problems, personnel in Utah have to wait until retiring from the service to get chiropractic care.

The UCPA would like to pledge its support to Utah’s Service Members by requesting that the DoD implement chiropractic services at Hill AFB.
For more information on chiropractic in the military or Utah chiropractors contact Tim Apgood at (801) 281-4100or visit the UCPA Web site: www.utahchiro.org.

UCPA Board Meets every 3rd Tuesday in SLC. Each District has a Luncheon the next day, Please Join In!

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Here is a list of the Vendors that came to the Fall Convention.
Please contact them for info on their products.

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Check out this month’s message from Randal Meek… Continue Reading »