Addressing the Opioid Crisis Austin McMillin, DC Clinic Director, ProActive Spine Care

A person would have to be completely disconnected to not know of the opioid debacle. As with all epidemics, the scope and scale of the tragedy is daily news. There is a lot of talk, and perhaps a sense of movement in a positive direction, but the numbers just keep getting worse. Most certainly it will get turned around and maybe even fade away. But it makes a logical person wonder how this all happened in the first place. After all, this is not the first social crash with bad side effects from big pharma. It’s probably just the biggest.

The bottom line is that chiropractic care should be more frontline and mainstream in health care.

We should call it what it is: pain killers. That is, pain management that kills the host. A recent PBS

exposé on the opioid crisis called it “manufactured death.” Yes, that’s pretty raw — but it’s truthful. The fact that the benefit for big pharma with this mess has been huge profit is just…appalling.

But for chiropractors we should call it a major opportunity. Not the kind of opportunity that takes advantage of grief and misery, but the kind that throws out a lifeline of common sense, and one that points out what we, the chiropractic profession, have been shining a light on all along. And like all opportunities, it will just slip on by if not acted upon.

To help you take that action with accurate information, the WSCA has prepared the following evidence-based informational brochure (see pages 17-20) concerning the opioid crisis. The purpose of this document is to give chiropractic providers a channel and useful tools to open a reasonable and professional discussion regarding safe, effective, and reasonable care alternatives. The bottom line is that chiropractic care should be more frontline and mainstream in health care.

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We recommend that chiropractors understand some key issues when engaging different groups with this material:

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Chiropractic care cannot solve every pain or chronic pain problem. It is also not the sole answer, but it is a key front-line consideration in non-opioid pain management.

Plexus

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