Texas Chiropractor is Taking a Stand
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Poster Profile:
Name: DrTirpak
Email: Amy@cecruncher.com
Age: ????
Location: Tampa, FL
Position: Owner
Sign: Gemini
Bio:Helping Chiropractors find some class is my job.
Experienced Chiroprctor and Internet lover, Amy Tirpak, DC, started CE Cruncher with the support of the Advertising Agency that she co-owns.
by: DrTirpak posted: October 11, 2012
Chiropractor Loren
Mathes opened his office in Wichita Falls Texas in 1994. So after a few years in practice when a patient asked if he could do a pre-participation sports
physical for her son to compete in junior high football because a visit to her pediatrician
would take 6 weeks, he obliged for $25. Parents talk and last summer he helped hundreds
of young athletes by preforming an in inexpensive pre-sport physical.
You can imagine his
shock when without any public comments or notification the Wichita Falls Independent
School District passed a rule during the
August 27th meeting removing Chiropractors from the list of approved healthcare providers tthat could preform sport physicals in the Wichita School District. The request came from the WFISD athletic director Kenny Catney, with the misguided notion that Chiropractors ‘are not studied in the cardiovascular area’. Remarks were also heard from Brian Hull DO from United Regional on why the exams should be limited to physicians, nurse practitioners and physicians assistants. A call to Dr. Brian Hull’s office revealed that they do not offer sports physicals.
In Texas junior and senior high athletics are governed by the University Interscholastic League. The UIL created by The University of Texas at Austin over 100 years ago to provide educational extracurricular academic, athletic, and music contests in Texas schools. One of their missions is to safeguard the health and welfare of students by requiring physical examinations for participation in athletics. According to the UIL preparticipation physical evaluation form may be completed by a Physician, a Physician Assistant, Advanced Practice Nurse or a Doctor of Chiropractic.
According to UIL guidelines local school districts have the authority to
approve which medical professionals are allowed to provide exams. However it
took a lawsuit filed in by the Texas Chiropractic Association in 2002 to have Chiropractors returned to the
list of providers after a vote by the UIL to remove them.
Dr. Mathes organized other local chiropractor and spoke with
influential local community members including athletic director Catney after
hearing about the board vote. On Tuesday in a closed school board work session
Mr Catney stated including chiropractors as providers would give parents more
options.
School board member Allyson Flack requested at the meeting on Monday that a representative from chiropractors and physicians be present to answer the board’s questions. She is the wife of former board president and pathologist David Flack MD
Kevin Goldstein WFISD Board president suggested to other board members to reconsider the policy banning chiropractors. He said, “We need to align ourselves with UIL and provide options."
Dr. Loren Mathes with the help of Parker University assembled information for the board to review prior to the Monday School board meeting. He is working on coordinating 10 speakers for the Monday October 15th WFISD Board meeting to speak for 3 minutes on why Doctors of Chiropractors should be returned to the list of approved providers for pre participation sports physicals.
Interested in attending the meeting and showing your support for Chiropractic?
Contact Dr. Loren Mathes 994-691-3200
October 15 6:00pm
WFISD Education Center
1104 Broad Street
Wichita Falls, TX 76301