Chiropractic + Naturopathic Doctor

Continuing Education

By Lindsay Grieve DC and Andria Hoda DC   

Features Education Profession

If you are a licensed chiropractor, chances are your governing board
requires you to participate in a continuing education (CE) program.

If you are a licensed chiropractor, chances are your governing board requires you to participate in a continuing education (CE) program. There are a variety of ways to fulfil your CE requirements: live seminars, workshops, distance or online programs, telephone conferencing and text-based courses are but a few of the options available to you. Whichever method we choose, as chiropractors we are both learners and educators, and furthering our education as doctors will allow more growth for ourselves.  Ultimately, our patients will benefit too.


WHY DO WE NEED CONTINUING EDUCATION?

Many have questioned the need for continuing education.  Upon closer examination, however, the benefits of expanding and building upon your experience and education far outweigh the perceived negative elements.

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Highlighted here are some of the positive aspects of participating in CEs:

  • Keeping up to date on current health and wellness trends and practices, which are evolving and ever-changing. This also allows your patients the security of knowing that their practitioner is looking out for their best interests and adapting to new advances in the health industry.
  • Expanding your knowledge and your comfort zone!  Learning new approaches and techniques can aid in growing your niche.
  • Ask the experts! People who teach usually have a specialty that allows them to educate the masses. Use that to your advantage and challenge yourself!
  • You can never learn too much. The one thing that no one can take away from you is your education. Learn what you can so that you have a solid and expanding knowledge base in your field – you never know when you may need it!
  • With the introduction of online courses, you have the opportunity to learn from experts from around the world. Be on the cutting edge.
  • Change is always constant in the workplace. People who accept learning as a lifelong process realize the importance of learning and implementing new skills. These new skills and training allow for easier coping with the various demands placed on us in the workplace.


KNOW YOUR JURISDICTION

In the profession of chiropractic, continuing education requirements are determined on a provincial basis. For example, Ontario recently joined the ranks of making CEs mandatory.  New legislative guidelines were put in place by the College of Chiropractors of Ontario (CCO) in January 2010 to promote competence amongst its members. The CCO now requires that active, licensed chiropractors partake in CE courses to help further the growth and development of our profession.  The rules set forth by the CCO require active members to participate in 40 hours of CE’s over a two year period:  a minimum of 20 hours in structured activities and a maximum of 20 hours in unstructured activities.  (Please visit the CCO website, www.cco.on.ca , for more detailed information on these requirements – or check with your own local jurisdiction for requirements in your area.) With the first CCO deadline of June 30, 2012, fast approaching, many chiropractors are asking where and how to obtain these CE credits.

There exists a multitude of ways to fulfill your CE requirements, but the busy schedule of today’s chiropractor can make certain methods, such as online or distance learning, more enticing than others. When deciding how to obtain mandatory credits, many key factors come into play. To name a few, one has to not only take into consideration the time spent away from their practice and family but also factor in the cost and inconvenience of travel. In 2005, a study was published in the journal, Chiropractic & Osteopathy (now known as Chiropractic and Manual Therapies), wherein a total of 1000 chiropractors were surveyed to access the level of satisfaction of chiropractors with CE programs.  The study found that, “almost half of the respondents indicated they preferred online distance learning” and those that participated in the online learning programs, “found them to be somewhat or extremely satisfactory.”1

Marshall Deltoff, FCCR(C), DACBR, is the newly elected president of the College of Chiropractors of Ontario. As a practising DC and in his role as president of the college, he weighs in on the subject of continuing education: “Continuing education for any health professional is essential. To be the best doctor you can be for your patients, you should be aware of any advances in diagnostic or therapeutic modalities, statutory legislative changes that affect how you can practise, as well as reviewing information relevant to your particular type of practice. Committing to regular and periodic continuing education is, in effect, a promise to the patients that you have the privilege to serve that you are always going to do the best job you can possibly do to aid in their healing.” 2

As was mentioned above, each province and territory has its own specific provisions with respect to continuing competency. These regulations may be obtained from your province or territory’s governing body. The format of delivery of CEs and course subject matter may be of importance for you to know in your province or territory.  Please ensure that you keep up  to date on the regulations set forth by your licensing board as the requirements for each are unique across the country.

As chiropractors, we all should be striving to provide the best quality of care we can for our patients. Without having (and taking) the opportunity to gain new knowledge and continue our education, this can be difficult even if the best intentions are there. Our patients gain a better quality of life as a result of the knowledge gleaned by their health-care providers. New discoveries, techniques and theories are made in the chiropractic profession on an ongoing basis. We should embrace our continuing education guidelines and look at them with a new vigour as we know we, and our patients, will reap the benefits.


References

  1. Stuber, K.J., Grod, J. P., Smith, D.L., & Powers, P. (2005) An online survey of chiropractors’ opinions on continuing education. Chiropractic and Osteopathy, 13:22 doi: 10.1186/1746-1340-13-12.
  2. M. Deltoff, FCCP (C), DACBR, personal communication, July 29, 2011.


 lindsay  
Lindsay Grieve, DC


 
 andria1  
Andria Hoda, DC


 

Upon graduating from New York Chiropractic College (NYCC) in 2006, Dr. Lindsay Grieve quickly immersed herself in a busy multidisciplinary practice in Cambridge, Ontario.  With her passion for chiropractic ignited at a young age, she places a strong emphasis of her practice on patient education and instils the belief that health is a product of many facets. 

Dr. Andria Hoda also graduated from NYCC, in 2005, and is a practising chiropractor and acupuncturist who directs her own multidisciplinary clinic in Ancaster, Ontario.

Collectively they founded The Doctor of Chiropractic Continuing Education (TheDCCE), Canada’s first website solely dedicated to chiropractic continuing education.  For more information about TheDCCE visit www.TheDCCE.com.


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