FW: ACA HOD: Invitation of ACA President to Share with your members a statement re the Status of CCE's Accreditation Authority

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From the ACA: Vern Saboe, DCACA Delegate for Oregon From: Bill O'Connell [mailto:boconnell@...] Sent: Friday, October 28, 2011 1:24 PMHODCc: EVP and VPs (Internal); Tom Daly (OFP)Subject: ACA HOD: Invitation of ACA President to Share with your members a statement re the Status of CCE's Accreditation Authority Members of the ACA House of Delegates: On September 26th our EVP, Bill O’Connell, sent you a statement representing ACA’s position about CCE’s application for renewal of its accreditation authority. I want to take this opportunity to comment further and ask that you consider sharing this information with our members in your district through the “one click” system. We have witnessed over the last several weeks an outpouring of misinformation about the forthcoming US Department of Education (USDOE) review of Council on Chiropractic Education's (CCE) accreditation authority. Whether the sources of these messages have been misinformed or they are deliberately misconstrued, their efforts have succeeded in confusing many DCs and students. As a result many have incorrectly associated CCE's accreditation application review with issues related to prescription rights and the elimination of educational competencies surrounding the assessment and management of the vertebral subluxation .As a result of this misinformation, many have been activated to a level of signing petitions and submitting negative comments to the USDOE. First, I want you to understand that ACA’s leadership stands fully behind CCE in its application for reaccreditation. This position was shared with you in a recent issue of Week In Review, (http://www.acatoday.org/press_css.cfm?CID=4604). You need to know that this position is not just that of ACA, it has been the position of the other mainstays of this profession: many state associations, the Association of Chiropractic Colleges, the National Board of Chiropractic Examiners, and the Federation of Chiropractic Licensing Boards. I will be honest with you, as President of ACA, we have had our own critical input to offer the CCE leadership relative to standards and processes (e.g., we would appreciate it if CCE engaged even more with its stakeholders in the profession). However, we believe it is paramount that these 'internal' discussions not have an 'external' negative effect on maintaining and strengthening the authority of CCE to act as the sole accrediting agency for the colleges preparing tomorrow's chiropractic profession. Why is this critical? If the USDOE determined to not renew CCE's accreditation authority:ü We all would lose the one agency that represents the unique interests of the chiropractic profession. Most of our colleges have regional accreditation, but those bodies are not focused on the needs of our profession. ü It is likely the loss of CCE accreditation by a college would have a negative impact on students' access to financial support at a time when every dollar is needed.ü Licensing in half our states would be unavailable to graduates of schools no longer accredited by CCE. Here is one example of incorrect information found on a petition. As mentioned above, some are spreading the rumor that the CCE has removed “subluxation” from its revised standards. Nothing could be further from the truth; - the CCE did not eliminate " subluxation " . Here are the facts. Apparently, there were some colleges who opposed the term because of a lack of a clear, widely agreed to definition or criteria, or because they preferred an alternative phrase. After considerable discussion and debate among the 24 member council of CCE, which represents the entire profession and the public, CCE settled on a combined term: " subluxation/neuro-biomechanical dysfunction " . This term was included among the “metacompetencies” in the January 2011 CCE Policy statement, under “CCE Meta-Competencies and Guidelines”. Thus, every student graduating from an accredited program must be able to determine the presence of subluxation/neuro-biomechanical dysfunction. Nothing substantive has changed. Please take a look for yourself if you want to know what CCE's new standards hold for accreditation in our colleges, go to http://www.cce-usa.org/ and review the actual 2012 revised standards. Before you jump on a bandwagon to eliminate the CCE,I think we should take a moment to reflect on where our educational process was and where it stands now. It is my opinion that over the years CCE’s efforts have consistently improved the educational programs for our future DCs. I believe we all can agree that every chiropractic institution in the country is producing doctors that we ALL can and should be proud of. For it is them who will lead our country towards a healthier lifestyle with less dependence on medications and invasive procedures deep into the 21st century. Preserving CCE’s control of the accreditation process is equivalent to this profession preserving control of this essential process. If we did not have a CCE, there would be no other accrediting body to consider the unique aspects of the education of chiropractic doctors. You, your colleges, and your future patients would all suffer if we lost CCE. Sincerely, Overland, DCACA President Bill O’ConnellExecutive Vice President | American Chiropractic AssociationT (703) 812-0216 | F (703) 243-2593 | 1701 Clarendon Blvd Arlington, VA 22209