Guest Lecture- Panel #3

Today’s guest panel discussed the roles and expectations of inter-professional education, collaboration and integration of chiropractors in medical practices. Our panel consisted of Dr S. Mior, Senior Advisor to the President and Senior Clinical Consultant to the MOHLTC for collaboration models; he will speak on inter-professional education and inter-professional collaboration, Dr M. McGregor, Acting Dean of Graduate Education and Research, who will speak on the social dilemma of chiropractic factions, Dr S. Injeyan, Chair, Dept. of Pathology and Microbiology who will be speaking on public health and Devan Nambiar, coordinator of Rainbow Health Ontario's training initiatives on LGBTQ health disparities who will speak on health care in special populations. Dr. Mior discussed inter-professional education and collaboration. He told us to develop our skills that involve interaction, communication, and the ability to write referral notes because these skills will help build collaboration between us and other healthcare professionals. His discussion reminded me that it is important to start building on these skills now as it will build my framework and allow me to start building a network of communication and relationships with others in my field and in other healthcare professions which will benefit me when I start my own practice. Dr. McGregor discussed the social dilemma of chiropractic and their role and impact. She discussed that change in the workplace, public arena and legal arena takes time and that we must keep this in mind when trying to implement change. She said we need to maintain our science and literature because that’s where our abstraction comes from. This factors into our factions through bounded rationality. She also discussed how we have a problem of factions, which is a good thing because it is an important part of maturation. The take home message I got out of her discussion is that medicine is complicated and in order for us to provide the best form of patient centered care we need to work as part of a team. Dr. Injeyan discussed public health and chiropractic. He talked about how the chiropractic paradigm has shifted and now focuses on psychosocial, emotional and spiritual elements with a view of promoting health and preventing disease through interdisciplinary collaboration. Like chiropractic, medicine has moved from a single cause/ approach to a psychosocial paradigm that is now being taught in our schools and encouraged in practice. The scope of chiropractic in Ontario gives us a wide and far reaching mandate when communicating with a patient and working with other health care professionals. He discussed determinants of health and factors that interact in order to determine health and health outcomes. As chiropractors we understand that we are in a position to effect health promotion through advice and treatment whenever applicable when dealing with these different factors. He also talked about chiropractors and immunizations. In Ontario we are able to interact with our patients with regards to immunization and any other health issue as long as we provide them with information that is accurate and is evidence based. Devan Nambiar discussed LGBT concerns and patient centered care. He raised awareness that with hormonal therapies and those that are transitioning that there are health concerns with regards to changes in muscle mass, bone density and hormone levels that as chiropractors and healthcare providers we need to be aware of when we treat this group of patients. He discussed the importance of understanding the terminology surrounding the LGBT community in order to provide care that is patient centered and makes your patients feel comfortable. He discussed the difference between sex and gender. Sex is assigned at birth whereas gender involves your characteristics and what you identify with. This panel discussion taught me the importance of understanding your patient population in order to make them feel comfortable, understood and provided for. By better understanding our patients we will create better relationships and trust within our professional lives and with patients that will affect how we practice as chiropractors and the type of care we provide. This panel discussion was important to me because when I start my own practice I want to provide the best patient centered care that I can and I can accomplish this by incorporating this discussion and what I learnt today in my practice.