In a previous post I discussed differences between chiropractors, osteopaths and have even touched on things like acupuncture and massage.
One set of differences I haven’t yet talked about is the difference between chiropractors individually. Fundamentally chiropractors are chiropractors and there is little that can be said other than some are good, some not so. Some specialise in a certain field or some have a certain set of techniques which distinguishes them from others. This is very much true for any healthcare field, even something which may seem quite specialised in fact has a whole new world of ramifications and implications. This generally causes quite a bit of confusion because we all would like things to be black and white. But they aren’t. One hard and fast rule: all practicing chiropractors must be registered with the General Chiropractic Council. Then there are a few associations one can belong to and then there are colleges and unions that further entertain us with political and educational programmes. in teh Uk there tend to be two main stream sof chiropractors. McTimoney chiropractors and the rest. I belong to the rest, simply because when I chose where to train I had never heard of the former and went to an institution (the AECC in Bournemouth)) where they teach “the rest”.
My personal feeling is that a good chiropractor is someone you can work with, whom you feel comfortable with and whom you are happy to entrust your back to but also feel able to follow up on their advice. The best chiropractor is the one who does that for the most people. I have never really discriminated between techniques individually and have found good use for most of them.
Over the years I have spent an awful lot of time in seminars and workshops and have been at both the receiving and teaching end. One thing I did notice is that chiropractors choose techniques according to the type of problems they enjoy working with the most and which suit their own bodyshape and physical strength.
So the best chiropractors have the skills, the tools and the knowledge to understand your problem, find the solutions to it and discuss those solutions with you so as to come to an agreement about how to solve it. Who are they? That’s hard to say, but they tend to be busy, have a good reputation and if you don’t feel at ease or feel that they know what they are talking about then you are probably in the wrong place.
On a personal note; I have been told by many people that what I did for them was good, worked for them or did great things for their life. That said I don’t know about those people who don’t feel that way, as they tend to not say anything and as such I am not seduced by the concept of being a good, great or best chiropractor in the world. I think it is fair to say that what any clinician can only aspire to be is the best they can be, and I am by no means done getting better!
Kind regards and best wishes
Stefaan Vossen
