CAAQLD Ellie Fernie Award - Chiropractic Leaders salute the Macquarie Class of 2009!
Posted on 2010-08-15CAAQLD Ellie Fernie Award - Chiropractic Leaders salute the Macquarie Class of 2009!
The CAAQLD 20 year birthday "Best of"
Posted on 2010-05-15
Before joining the CAAQLD Executive Committee I had some idea of how important being a member of the Association really was. To be honest I paid my fees, attended a few meetings and CAA seminars and read the newsletters most of the time. There have been many who have worked hard for the profession, and who still answer the call when required, both on a state and national level. Much of their effort goes under the radar and many past successes are not realized or understood by the younger generation of practitioners.
So began my search. I didn’t have to look far to find Andrew Vincent considering we trip over each other several times during the day, and anyone who knows him will remember how much he loves an interview. Andrew has worked for the CAA Executive Committee since 1988 / 99 in various roles including 2 presidencies, media spokesperson, and as an advisor to the association and registration board in various capacities.
We whittled the interview down to comprise only of Queensland’s “CAA Best of” as CAA National will be covering Australia wide.
So Andrew, it’s great to have you here as my guest in your own practice.
Welcome, thank you for having me.
How has the average Queensland chiropractor benefitted from what CAAQLD has worked to achieve in the past 20 years? Tell me about a couple of the main ones that come to mind.
What does a service station owner in Townsville, the CAA and the ACCC have in common?
This is hardly an appropriate time for a joke, mate. (I have a job to do).
Grasshopper, never let an interview get in the road of what you really want to say.
We all had a special interest in anticompetitive practices of large conglomerates (in our case, the AMA). Through a series of fortunate events I was introduced, via the Townsville service station owner, to the Queensland head of the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC). When he heard that, among other things, the AMA expressly prohibited its members from referring patients to chiropractors he insisted that the ACCC should have a look at this case. The result of that meeting in a small Brisbane office, with the tireless help from dozens of CAA members rising to the call and contributing to the “Antipathy file”, was that the AMA was given the ultimatum of “Cease and Desist” or face a $10,000,000 fine as an association and $500,000 payable by each member who breached the ruling. Following this, as Mr Ducret (ACCC) witnessed, “the AMA assured that it would not seek to take action to discourage members from dealing with chiropractors or prevent chiropractors from working in private hospitals, or discourage the offering of courses or research through universities”. “The AMA or its affiliates will not seek to exclude chiropractors from participating fully in the healthcare delivery system”.[1]
That’s huge. What an awesome outcome for Australian, and potentially international, chiropractors and communities.
That’s not all. Yes this was a big step for chiropractic’s professional standing but the whole process immediately opened doors for access to the rest of the community. The people who rallied behind us also got the attention of politicians, professionals, families etc.
That’s a big one that’s been ongoing. Queensland is still the only state in Australia that requires a written referral from a G.P. before a patient can receive chiropractic care covered by Work Cover. There was a huge push for the profession that began on a national level when we gained registration in ’79. Now the end result is not in our favor in Queensland, yet, but the tireless hours put in by members of the association nationally gained huge collateral. The media (newspapers and radio interviews); the backing by unions; the members of legislative assemblies; and the massive patient support with petitions etc.
A great effect of the work done by the CAA both with Work Cover and the ACCC enquiry was that the profession became recognized as a coordinated political force that can rally when necessary.
I have heard that very same thing from friends in other professions. Even though there is no crisis at the moment, what would you say to members and particularly non-members to encourage them to remain active with their association? Why should we continue to sharpen the saw?
May I be blunt?
Instead of doing the crossword (or whilst pausing at the ninth) this weekend, grab a pen and paper and calculate how much it would cost you if your fees were not covered by private health care funds; MVA insurance; Work Cover; Veterans’ Affairs. The loss of income due to patients heading somewhere else would age you. Welcome to some of the benefits you are getting from the work of the CAA. That alone should keep you warm at night.
Why am I still an active member of the CAA? Because I believe you need to keep looking after the goose that lays the golden egg.
Andrew, thank you for your time and a great interview.
You are welcome. (END)……
There have definitely been some great achievements within Queensland and I know there are many we didn’t cover (more interview opportunities). And I, if I may speak on behalf of the profession, wish to thank those of you who have and continue to work so hard to achieve what we enjoy as chiropractors in practice today. There are so many ongoing projects from continued public presence to the active lobbying of our policy makers.
The work is never over and there are always new goals to achieve. An association is only as strong as its members are active, so I encourage all chiropractors to support the profession and association. Members, let your voice be heard by attending the meetings and encourage our colleagues who are not members to get in amongst it.
Thank you for lending me your eyes!
Yours Faithfully,
Dr Aidan McGuigan
[1](Simpson, Dr J.K.; “The Influence of Political Medicine in the Development of the Chiropractic Profession in Australia”; 2002; p307) [Thank you to Dr Keith Simpson for your excellent publication, we kept it close at hand!]
The CAAQLD Executive
Posted on 2010-05-09
CAAQLD 2009 / 2010 EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE
Phone: 5444 3499
Fax: 5444 2877
Email: s.culley@hotmail.com
Phone: 3282 4478
Phone: 3221 1346
Fax: 3221 1601
Dr Craig Matthews
Phone: 3207 9000
Fax: 3207 0955
Phone: 3348 7088
Phone: 3356 8457
Fax: 3356 9132
Email: drsandy@grangefamilychiro.com.au
Email: admin@caaq.com.au
Office Hours: Mon to Wed 9am – 3pm, Fri 9am – 2pm
CAAQLD's 2009 Chiropractic Awards
Posted on 2010-02-15Please see here for various awards including "Chiropractor of the Year" and "Recognition of Service".
Recognition of Service Award - Dr Tony Williams
Posted on 2008-10-06Dr Tony Williams was recently presented with his award for Recognition of Service, as he was unable to attend the CAAQ Ball to collect his award.
