Funding the Future of Chiropractic
“Research is the only weapon that will open doors that have been closed.” — Dr. Louis Sportelli
In today’s challenging health care environment, ongoing research is necessary to demonstrate the effectiveness, safety and cost efficiency of chiropractic and alternative health care.
It’s why in 2003, NCMIC founded the NCMIC Foundation, a non-profit organization committed to funding the future of the chiropractic profession through research and educational opportunities.
For 20 years, the Foundation has collaborated with organizations, educational institutions and doctors worldwide to fund education and chiropractic research that is comprehensive, as well as far-reaching. It has also supported DCs who have pursued or are pursuing fellowships and advanced degrees from more than two dozen universities. Areas of expertise include biomechanics, rehabilitation, epidemiology, pediatrics, neurosciences, biomedical/public health, health policy/economics, communication/instructional design, research methods, health care, social science and other complementary and alternative care.
“If it were not for NCMIC, countless research projects would not have been conducted.”— Christine Goertz, DC, PhD, chairperson, PCORI Board of Governors, professor in musculoskeletal research at the Duke Clinical Research Institute, director of system development and coordination for spine health in the department of orthopedic surgery at Duke University, and CEO, Spine Institute for Quality (Spine IQ)
“The NCMIC Foundation has been very diligent in supporting clinically trained DCs in their quest to become academically trained research clinicians at the masters and PhD level,” said Reed Phillips, DC, MSCM, PhD, and NCMIC Foundation executive director. “We have funded these individuals in a variety of fields pertinent to the practice of chiropractic such as rehabilitation sciences, public health, epidemiology, neuroscience, educational design and public policy.”
The NCMIC Foundation is focused on funding the following priorities:
Education Fellowships—Support for DCs who have pursued or are pursuing fellowships and advanced degrees from more than two dozen universities.
Research Grants—Ongoing research that’s necessary to participate in today’s challenging health care environment.
The Jerome F. McAndrews DC Memorial Research Fund —This award honors Dr. McAndrews’ longtime support of the scientific and practical advancement of the study of chiropractic.
Dr. Louis Sportelli, founder of the NCMIC Foundation, said the Foundation and its efforts do more than just support chiropractors and the chiropractic profession. They change the hearts and minds of the public that’s for years, has been the subject of intense scrutiny and disapproval.
“The Foundation goes well beyond the individual doctors we serve, what it really does is provide the credibility for what we do to the general public,” Dr. Sportelli said. “I lived through the era where the word chiropractic/chiropractor was synonymous with ‘quack,’ and in the past 20 years, that stigma has been dramatically eliminated and a credibility for the profession and the practitioner has emerged. It would be impossible to truly ascertain the impact that the Foundation and the credible research has had in the court of public opinion and, frankly, that is where it really matters.”
In 2021, the NCMIC Foundation awarded two chiropractic fellowships to students attending Harvard and Yale University. The awards, the first of their kind at an Ivy League school, cemented chiropractic’s place in the health care and scientific communities.
“I am convinced that the impact of the research and foundation has increased the utilization of chiropractic services, enabled DCs to have a ‘seat at the table’ when discussions on health care are occurring,” said Dr. Sportelli. “NCMIC can be incredibly proud of the influence it has had on the consumer of health care as well as the providers.”
Hear more from Dr. Sportelli at the kickoff of More Than Coffee on Jan. 18 at 9:30 a.m. To learn more about the NCMIC Foundation or to make a tax-deductible contribution, please visit the website.