"A Whole New World" for Chiropractors and Their Patients

From Aug. 25-27, 2006, the Gaylord Palms Resort and Convention Center in Orlando once again played host to the Florida Chiropractic Association (FCA) annual convention, which showed doctors of chiropractic "A Whole New World" available to them through a variety of vendor offerings and continuing education classes.

More than 2,300 attendees took time away from their busy practices to increase their clinical knowledge and learn about new products, many designed specifically to help their patients. Chiropractors and their patients also will benefit from the launch of a new publication directed specifically to educate patients about chiropractic, nutrition and general health needs. Debuting in January 2007, To Your Health, an MPAmedia publication, will make its way into the waiting rooms of almost 60,000 chiropractors every month. To Your Health will provide patients with the information they need to better understand the benefits of chiropractic care. To Your Health will be mailed out monthly with Dynamic Chiropractic and will feature articles about chiropractic, nutrition, general health and associated chiropractic care. (For additional information, please e-mail Editor@ ToYourHealth.com.)

Convention attendees had more than 40 hours of continuing education topics to choose from, with many presentations reflecting the convention theme of "A Whole New World." This year's education program was the FCA's largest, with more than 70 speakers presenting 60 education sessions, including: "Hyper and Hyperthyroidism: Dispelling the Myths.," presented by Michael Dobbins, DC; "A Master's Guide to Integrating Nutrition Into Practice," presented by Bruce Bond, DC; "Changing Chiropractic Identity and Practice in the Era of Evidence-Based Health Care," presented by Scott Haldeman, DC, MD, PhD; "International Outlook for Chiropractic," presented by David Chapman-Smith; "Forging a Greater Chiropractic Image in a Health Care Market Driven by Employers," presented by David Thorpe, DC, DACBOH; "Breaking Free of the Medical Model," presented by Brian Jensen, DC; "Chiropractic Specialty Practices: Future Impact," presented by Ted Carrick, DC, PhD; "Quality and Safety in Health Care," presented by Paul Barach, MD, MPH; and "The Future of Chiropractic in the Olympic Arena," presented by Liston Bochette, PhD. The FCA took into account the personal needs of attendees by offering the continuing education hours spread out over three days (Friday-Sunday) to give DCs and their families the opportunity to enjoy the resort and all that Orlando has to offer.

"Our personal highlight was the 75th Anniversary Celebration on Saturday night, held throughout the expo," said Debbie Brown, CEO of the FCA. "This was our opportunity to involve our sponsors, exhibitors and all attendees in recognizing the 75 years of growth and service by the Florida Chiropractic Association. The Plenary Session represented the largest gathering of attendees in a single class in recent history and was extremely well received. We really want to thank NCMIC and several other sponsors for their support of the Plenary Session. There were [also] a number of large and successful alumni luncheons."

Nine corporate sponsors helped make the 2006 convention possible: ProSolutions for Chiropractic (Platinum Sponsor); Standard Process Inc. (Gold Sponsor); Performance Health/Biofreeze (Pinnacle Corporate Sponsor); Breakthrough Coaching, LLC; Eclipse Practice Management Software; and NCMIC Chiropractic Solutions (Corporate Sponsors); Life Systems, Inc., and Scrip, Inc. (Crystal Sponsors); and Texas Chiropractic College (Continuing Education Sponsor). Dynamic Chiropractic was the Vendor Appreciation Sponsor for the event.

As Seen at the Show

The FCA offered attendees the opportunity to learn about the latest products provided by a variety of vendors in two separate exhibit halls. More than 340 companies offered products and services, including the following:

* ACOM Solutions, Inc., unveiled its latest chiropractic software to integrate an office's billing, scheduling, management and reporting capabilities into one system. To learn more about Rapid EMR and its practice management solutions, visit www.acomemr.com.

* Biofreeze/Performance Health (recently acquired by Hygenic) displayed its popular line of pain-relieving products, including the new no-touch method of Biofreeze application - Cryospray. As mentioned, Biofreeze/ Performance Health was also the convention's Pinnacle Corporate Sponsor. For more information, visit www.biofreeze.com.

*Foot Levelers, Inc., offered free digital foot scans on its newest Platinum scanner and gave attendees a peek at its Brooks shoe line. Foot Levelers also supported the FCA as the Educational and Promotional Recognition sponsor. For more information about Foot Levelers scanners or its extensive orthotics line, visit www.footlevelers.com.

* Future Health, Inc., displayed its documentation, electronic health record and storage, billing, scheduler and patient education software packages, called Virtual Office Suite. For more information, visit www.future healthsoftware.com.

* HCMI introduced its latest offering in digital imaging, HCMI DX, the first direct digital X-ray system designed specifically for chiropractors. To learn more about the advantages of filmless imaging and HCMI's other products, visit www.hcmi4 chiros.com.

* Integrated Health Care Practice Resources (IHCPR) introduced its education and practice integration resources to help practitioners achieve ethical health care practices. For more information on the services and guidance IHCPR offers, visit www.IHCPR.com.

* Invent Futures, Inc., of Vero Beach, Fla., unveiled its Level-headed Hat, a hat that works to properly align a person's skeletal structure and aid in proper posture. The hat works by sounding a low-audible beep, which alerts wearers that they are out of alignment. For more information, visit www.levelheadedhat. com.

* Nature Well introduced MigraSpray, a patented over-the-counter homeopathic drug intended to be a comprehensive approach for the treatment and prevention of migraine headaches. For more information about MigraSpray, its uses and where to purchase it, visit www. migraspray.com.

* Nutri-West of Florida hosted Dr. John Brimhall, who spoke about how nutrition can grow a chiropractic practice by increasing the numbers of new patients and referrals, adding value and service to each visit, having patients come back for this increased service more often and for years to follow because of the increased value and result they jeceive. For more information, visit www.nutri-westfl.com.

* Scrip Chiropractic Supply (parent company of Massage Warehouse) had a strong presence, featuring a variety of products to help chiropractors improve their practices, including tables, topical creams and pillows. For more information, visit www.scripinc.com.

Other vendors with booth displays in Orlando included Allied OSI Labs, Anabolic Labs, Aquamed Integrated Services, Apollo Physical Therapy Products, Axiom Worldwide, Cert Health Sciences, Dewing Wellness, Document Plus, Drucker Labs, Erchonia, Golden Tiger, IHS Bio-Max, Interactive Health, Kinesio USA, Kool 'N Fit, Medical Quant, Pharmax, Serola Biomechanics, Therapuetica, Ulan Nutritional System, and Williams Healthcare Systems. A complete list of convention exhibitors accompanies the online version of this article, available at www.chiroweb. com/archives/24/20/30.html.

"This was our largest conference to date in terms of expo and class offerings," said Brown. "A sold-out Gaylord Palms will ensure that we continue to have meeting space to grow even more in the years ahead."

Written by Kathryn Feather

© 2006 Dynamic Chiropractic Provided by ProQuest LLC. All Rights Reserved.