Spin Doctors: The Chiropractic Industry Under Examination PDF
Preview Spin Doctors: The Chiropractic Industry Under Examination
SSppiinn DDooccttoorrss TThhee CChhiirroopprraaccttiicc IInndduussttrryy UUnnddeerr EExxaammiinnaattiioonn PPaauull BBeenneeddeettttii WWaayynnee MMaaccPPhhaaiill WWiitthh aa ffoorreewwoorrdd bbyy DDrr.. BBrraadd SStteewwaarrtt aanndd aann aafftteerrwwoorrdd bbyy DDrr.. SStteepphheenn BBaarrrreetttt S P I N D O C T O R S This page intentionally left blank. S P I N D O C T O R S The Chiropractic Industry Under Examination Paul Benedetti & Wayne MacPhail The Dundurn Group Toronto • Oxford Copyright © Paul Benedetti and Wayne MacPhail, 2002 All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or trans- mitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise (except for brief passages for purposes of review) without the prior permission of Dundurn Press. Permission to photocopy should be requested from the Canadian Copyright Licensing Agency. Copy-Editor: Andrea Pruss Design: Scott Reid Printer: Transcontinental National Library of Canada Cataloguing in Publication Data Benedetti, Paul Spin doctors : the chiropractic industry under examination/Paul Benedetti, Wayne MacPhail. Includes bibliographical references. ISBN 1-55002-406-X 1. Chiropractic--Evaluation. 2. Chiropractic--Complications. I. MacPhail, Wayne, 1955- II. Title. RZ242.B45 2002 615.5'34 C2002-904310-7 1 2 3 4 5 06 05 04 03 02 THE CANADA COUNCIL LE CONSEIL DES ARTS FOR THE ARTS DU CANADA SINCE 1957 DEPUIS 1957 We acknowledge the support of the Canada Council for the Arts and the Ontario Arts Councilfor our publishing program. We also acknowledge the financial support of the Government of Canadathrough the Book Publishing Industry Development Programand The Association for the Export of Canadian Books, and the Government of Ontariothrough the Ontario Book Publishers Tax Creditprogram. Care has been taken to trace the ownership of copyright material used in this book. The author and the publisher welcome any information enabling them to rectify any references or credit in subsequent editions. J. Kirk Howard, President Printed and bound in Canada.e Printed on recycled paper. www.dundurn.com Dundurn Press Dundurn Press Dundurn Press 8 Market Street 73 Lime Walk 2250 Military Road Suite 200 Headington, Oxford, Tonawanda NY Toronto, Ontario, Canada England U.S.A. 14150 M5E 1M6 OX3 7AD C O N T E N T S Dedication 6 Acknowledgements 7 Foreword 11 Introduction 15 1 A House Divided 25 2 The P.T. Barnum of Chiropractic 43 3 Subluxation: The Phantom Menace 59 4 The Not-So-Well-Adjusted Child 81 5 Neck Manipulation and Stroke 117 6 The Forgotten Death of Lana Dale Lewis 153 7 Courting York — The Unsuitable Suitor 171 8 Are Chiropractors Back Doctors? 185 9 So, How Did They Become Doctors Anyway? 203 10 Gizmos, Parlour Tricks, and Nonsense 209 11 A Profession Out of Control 229 Conclusion 267 Afterword 273 Notes 277 For my loving, and loved, wife, Barbara Ledger Wayne MacPhail For Mom and Dad, for everything Paul Benedetti A C K N O W L E D G E M E N T S This book couldn’t have happened without remarkable contributions from dozens of our friends, colleagues, interview subjects, and others, who gave freely of their time, documents, expertise, and support. This project began as a series of online features on canoe.ca. Those arti- cles would never have seen the light of the screen without the commitment and encouragement of Hugh Stuart at @home Canada and Mike Simpson at canoe.ca. They both embraced the idea of online investigative journalism in a corporate climate that was anything but receptive to the idea. Mike Simpson, former executive producer at Canoe, is a strong proponent of solid journalism, and he just loves a good story. His support, both in terms of resources and leadership, was extremely valuable. We were greatly assisted by excellent spadework and diligence by Anjali Kapoor at @Home Canada. At Canoe, reporter Tim Kran did valuable investigative fieldwork, as did Natasha Marko. Sharon Lem did excellent research on university affiliations. Online editor and reporter Diana Luciani was extremely helpful in putting the whole series online. Executive Producer of News Art Chamberlin used his substantial experience and editing skills to get our copy into shape. An online series has to look as good as it reads, and Art Director Dan Clark made sure of that with his creative and highly functional interface. Thanks go as well to graphic artist Ayako Shimizu,who created the striking logos and banner for both online series. 8 S P I N D O C TO R S Finally, Alan Shanoff put our series through a stringent legal filter, providing excellent advice, wise guidance, and a great deal of support both before and after the stories appeared. He is a fine lawyer and a solid journalist in his own right. We would also like to thank media lawyer Brian Rogers for his careful reading of the book and his sage advice, both legal and journalistic. Thanks must go as well to Florence Sicoli, who cast an experienced editor’s eye on a feature story Wayne wrote for the Hamilton Spectator that sprang out of our research into neck manipulation. Our admiration and thanks go, of course, to the Lewis family, especially Mike and Judy Ford, who have shared their struggle with us while year after year carrying the crushing burden of Lana Dale’s death and the questions surrounding it. The family’s lawyer, Amani Oakley, despite the weight of her inquest responsibilities, was extremely helpful, responding to our frequent requests for information and documents quickly and with good humour. We’ve both been impressed by the courage and generosity of the victims of neck manipulations: Kim Barton and Diane Rodrigue have both risen above misadventures that would have left lesser women defeated and silent. Similarly, Nilla Corvaro generously shared her story with us. We are also enormously indebted to Sharon Mathiason, who has suffered more loss than any human being deserves and still found time to answer our endless questions and reply to our frequent requests for documents and information. Her ongoing battle for truth and safety in health care is a tribute to her daughter, Laurie. Through the years we’ve been chipping away at this story, Dr. Murray Katz has been a tireless aid. We can’t thank him enough for the hours he’s spent walk- ing us through the medical jargon and sharing his documents selflessly with us. Though he has an active family and a busy practice, he has worked endless hours helping victims and families through terrible times. The chiropractic community sees Murray as the Great Satan, but we have found him to be a loyal, honest, and good-hearted mensch. Likewise, Dr. Stephen Barrett has been a great help over the years, as has his remarkable Web site, quackwatch.com. Dr. Barrett even took the time to cast an expert eye on some early drafts of chapters and made invaluable comments. Chiropractor Samuel Homola provided knowledgeable commentary on the profession, both in interviews and in his fine book. Third-generation chiropractor Charles DuVall Jr. kindly gave of his time and expertise to share his special insight into the profession. Dr. Marvin Levant responded to many requests for information and helped us understand the issues around chiropractic and x-ray. Thanks too to Dr. Terry Polevoy, a pediatrician with his finger on the pulse of chiropractic quackery in Canada. Terry tipped us off to some great stories. Dr. Tony Hammer, who showed stam- ina dealing with the College of Chiropractors of Ontario, also generously shared his travails with us. Physiotherapist Jeff Garrett deserves our thanks for Acknowledgements 9 his courage and his insights into manual therapy. Neurologist Dr. John Norris has also been very kind in sharing his stroke expertise with two simple-minded laymen. Of course, we’re grateful to Dr. Brad Stewart, who wrote the powerful preface to this book and who has ably championed the cause of those harmed by chiropractors in Canada. Thanks must go as well to the men and women on Dr. Barrett’s health fraud list, many of whom responded to our queries provid- ing references and guidance. Writing a book like this is a painstaking task that can smother you in data and detail. We were greatly assisted by our friend and researcher Deborah Jessop, who, armed with her information science skills, hunted down docu- ments with tenacity and never failed to deliver gems every time we met. We would be remiss not to thank our good friend and mentor Wilson Southam for his sage counsel, unwavering support, and occasional chauffeur service. Wayne’s wife, Barbara Ledger, spent several long days carefully reading and correcting our sorry drafts. She also had to put up with being in a con- fined space with both of us for hours and hours during the last, harried days of this book’s creation. Thanks Barb, you did a remarkable job. Paul’s wife Marni and his three children, James, Matthew, and Ella, were unfailingly supportive, enthusiastic, and understanding about their father’s long hours at the computer. They offered daily encouragement and the occa- sional cold drink. Thanks too to the many friends who offered moral support and assistance as we pushed to the finish line. They include: Brent Wood and Brenda Flaherty, who lent us their home and air conditioning; Kevin von Appen, our dear friend, who mocked and cajoled us along; our good friend Wade Hemsworth, who offered advice and wisdom gained from writing his own books; Warren Barton, friend and mentor, who offered unstinting enthusiasm and support; Dave Estok, who gave his friendship and solid journalism advice; Brian Mather and Ruth Barker, who lent us encouragement and stroke data; Steven Toth and Sandra Makino and Lightning for the laser printer offer, fine dinners, and humour; Madelyn Herschorn and Gail Alexander at Centennial College for support, interest, and a life-saving library search; Anne Mullens for her advice on book writing; and Stephanie Ledger and Ron Van Logchem for their hospitality and encouragement. We would also like to thank our family and friends for their encouragement and support. The making of a book is a team effort, and we would like to thank all the folks at Dundurn Press for having faith in us and for bringing the book to life. We would like especially to show our appreciation of our agent, Kathryn Mulders, who believed in us and this book from day one, and who has had to put up with our unusual e-mails.
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