VISIONARY LEADERSHIP IN REGULATION 16TH ANNUAL JOSEPH JANSE, D.C. LECTURE FCLB MAY 5, 2006 Federated Chiropractic Licensing Board Officers, Fellows and Delegates, Chiropractic and Consumer Members and State Regulators, National Board of Chiropractic Examiners Officers, District Directors and Delegates, Chiropractic College Presidents and representatives, Association Past and Present Officers, honored guests and FCLB and NBCE Staff: I am humbled and honored to speak to you on this 80th Anniversary of FCLB. Although I am the 16th presenter of the Annual Janse Lecture, and the topics of my predecessors have been in-depth and profound, my purpose today is to provide insight as a regulator of 10 years, an officer and Past President of the American Chiropractic Association, a current member of the Board of Health in the State of Nebraska and most of all a practicing doctor of chiropractic for over 33 years. I challenge you today to invoke your leadership skills as the theme of this years Annual Meeting in the spirit of which Dr. Joseph Janse devoted his life for the chiropractic profession. As you are aware, your most important position in protecting the public is your greatest challenge, while realizing, protecting the public cannot be done without protecting the chiropractic profession. Since many of you only know the pioneer and icon Dr. Joseph Janse by name, let me tell you briefly a little bit about this man, visionary leader and doctor of chiropractic. Dr. Janse spent from 1934 through the mid-1980’s at National College of Chiropractic, now National University of Health Sciences. Through his Presidency of 40 years he took National from private ownership to non-profit status and full accreditation for both the Bachelor of Science and Chiropractic degrees. National was the first chiropractic college to do so. An undaunting task for any institution, all fueled by one man through visionary leadership. Dr. Janse, along with his educational endeavors, was also inherently involved in the organizational activities of the profession. He was 1 instrumental in the formation of the Council on Chiropractic Education, the establishment of the National Board of Chiropractic Examiners, and the American Chiropractic Association’s Councils on Roentgenology, Orthopedics, Neurology, Physiological Therapeutics, and Nutrition. He was a chiropractic clinician with 11 state chiropractic licenses and a Diplomate in the American Council on Roentgenology, the current Council on Diagnostic Imaging. Yet he is probably best known for his mastery of the English language and his eloquent speaking abilities which left those in his audience touched by his passion, delivery and his tireless efforts to work for the chiropractic profession, which he devoted his entire life, even at the sacrifice of his beloved family. Dr. Joseph Janse was my mentor and my hero. I stand before you today because of the message he carried to each and every student at National College to join their local, state and national associations and to give back to this profession to which we all owe so much. “No man is an island, entire of itself; every man is a piece of the Continent, a part of the main.” Said John Donne. That is why many of you are here today---because you hold the same ideals and dedication for the patients and the chiropractic profession we serve. In reverence to Dr. Janse, I do not want to relive the disappointment, hurt and anger that was present one year ago at the Annual FCLB/NBCE Meeting. Rather, I bring healing and solutions through visionary leadership in the spirit of and in a manner in which Dr. Janse would be proud. “One should examine oneself for a very long time before thinking of condemning others.” said Moliere. During the ten years that I served as a member of the Chiropractic Board of Nebraska, I witnessed the struggle and the difficulties at each Annual Meeting of the FCLB and NBCE. Those struggles continue here today. If you are tired of the emails, accusations and battles, you have the power and authority to make informed decisions in order to preserve the credibility of the NBCE examinations and demand accountability of your elected officials. It is the right time to do the right thing for this profession and not succumb to political pressure. Full accountability, transparency, disclosure and equitable term limits for incumbents, as well as newly elected officers, will strengthen the NBCE as well as moving it beyond the ongoing division and time wasting struggles for power and control. ”You see disgust and resolve are two of the great emotions that lead to 2 change,”…Jim Rohn. If you have heard “the whisper”, as I have heard “the whisper”… you should understand. The question you need to ask yourselves is …Why?…why is there resistance to making the changes and following standardized accountability procedures? We know that change is inevitable, but that progress, many times, comes slowly. The patience and persistence and the congeniality of individuals in this profession like Dr. Janse should serve as a stimulation and encouragement to persist. Winston Churchill once said in World War II, “You can always count on the Americans to do the right thing after they have exhausted all other possibilities.” I believe that quote is applicable to the chiropractic profession today. We will do the right thing for the right reason. “If not now---when?” asked Hillel. I utilize a tool called “processing an idea” that came to me from Dr. Kenneth Luedtke, former ACA President, to help build team spirit in my office. Processing an idea refers to the fact that all individuals who are involved with a change need to have the same time and availability of thought to understand and accept any change. It is not fathomable to bring individuals together once a year at this Annual Meeting and ask them to accept an idea that others have been processing all year. I have high hopes that the ground work that has been laid and the eventual NBCE By-Law changes will be a step in the right direction. We have far too many battles looming over the horizons to continue to waste time on these issues when we should be preparing and protecting this profession for our survival. Martin Luther King, Jr. said, “We must learn to live together as brothers or perish together as fools.” Just as the United States Congress passed a law limiting the President of the United States to two terms following Franklin D. Roosevelt’s unprecedented 4th term, so will this Body make changes for the betterment of it’s organizations in the future. THE COURAGE OF INTEGRITY The highest courage is to dare to be yourself in the face of adversity. Choosing right over wrong, ethics over convenience, and truth over popularity…these are the choices that measure your life. Travel the path of integrity without looking back, for there is never a wrong time to do the right thing. ---Successories 3 Now, ladies and gentlemen, our task at hand! Where do we stand in healthcare today as a profession and why? I maintain we are where we are today because of choices we have made and where we have concentrated our thoughts and efforts. As Earl Nightingale, the famous radio commentator, pointed out in his audio program, “The Strangest Secret”, it is a law of nature—“We become what we think about”. Just last year, after 110 years, this profession has finally agreed for the most part on an identity. Because we have concentrated and thought about our differences rather than our similarities, and because we have spent countless hours, days and years in discussions and meetings about our differences, we have failed miserably to promote this great profession. Unfortunately, the great majority of the public remains as unfamiliar with chiropractic today as they are about the popular Japanese numbers puzzle Su Doku. You may question, and you should, how does my presentation today involve you as regulators and members of your respective Boards? How can you, through visionary leadership, draw upon the history of regulation and the visions that were put forth by Dr. Janse? First a history lesson: The first state-level professional regulation in the United States was accomplished through Virginia’s Medical Practice Act in 1639. It was not until the late 1800’s, however, that state licensure activity began in earnest and by 1900 most states had licensed attorneys, dentists, pharmacists, physicians and teachers. Keep in mind that this profession, which had it’s beginning in 1895, spent the first 18 years as a fledgling profession and attained the first Law regulating the practice of Chiropractic in 1913 in the great State of Kansas. Therefore, between 1900 and 1960 most states granted licensure to 20 additional groups including accountants, nurses, real estate brokers, barbers, chiropractors and funeral directors. This is a key factor for the chiropractic profession. That time lag has affected us detrimentally throughout our 111 years of existence. As regulators, you are aware that licensure is intended to protect the public by screening out individuals who would do harm and disciplining those who have inflicted harm. The basic question still remains—who benefits most from licensing…the public or the regulated profession? Requests for licensure rarely come from an outraged public seeking to end some intolerable abuse. Typically they are made by professional and occupational associations acting on behalf of their members. 4 Proponents of licensure frequently argue that licensure is needed to protect the public’s health, safety and welfare. The actual result of licensure, however, may be that the licensee’s are the beneficiary of the law. Licensed practitioners gain an exclusive right to deliver services.