PRESIDENT'S MESSAGE: How Do We Make 2007 as Successful as 2006 at Northwestern?

Advancing the Health Care Professions

For 25 years, I worked diligently as a private practitioner to do two things – to build my practice and to build my profession. Now, as president of Northwestern Health Sciences University, I am dedicated to two goals – to build my institution to become the nation’s university of choice in natural health care education, and to help our professions take a central position on the American health care scene.

As president of Northwestern, I inherit an impressive legacy of professional activism by my predecessors. From John Wolfe, DC, the founder of Northwestern, to John F. Allenburg, DC, and to Alfred Traina, DC, Northwestern’s leaders have always worked to build their professions while leading the institution. This 67-year history of advocacy for the natural health care professions is based on a simple equation: 1) recruit the brightest, most passionate students you can find; 2) provide them with the most comprehensive education possible to prepare them for the realities of the health care environment; and 3) continue to support them when they become alumni. That support ranges from political lobbying to general consumer public relations, from creating new clinical models to providing the tools needed to succeed in practice.

During the last six months, Northwestern has engaged in a wide range of activities designed to advance the natural health care professions. These have included:

• Sending 24 students to the National Chiropractic Legislative Conference in Washington, D.C. Our students effectively lobbied senators and representatives on behalf of the chiropractic profession, raising awareness and building political support for chiropractic.

• Donating $15,000 to the Foundation for Chiropractic Progress. This organization is committed to building greater awareness of the chiropractic profession among American consumers. Northwestern will also donate another $15,000 to the public relations campaign in the next year.

• In conjunction with the Minnesota Chiropractic Association, Northwestern Health Sciences University has been an effective voice for natural health care at the Minnesota state capitol for many years, thanks in large part to the efforts of Dave Kunz. He represents not only the interests of all of Northwestern’s programs, but has been diligently working on legislation that benefits doctors of chiropractic, acupuncturists, Oriental medicine practitioners, and massage therapists.

• Including an expanded Student and Alumni Resource Center in our new 48,000-square-foot building. The Resource Center will provide our current students and all of our graduates with a wealth of tools designed to help insure that they succeed in their chosen natural health care career. The new building will also feature the Integrity Management Smart Center, a state-of-the-art technology center designed to foster enhanced learning opportunities for our students and our alumni.

• Bringing new communication tools to the marketplace that are intended to raise awareness of the natural health care professions and enhance practitioners’ ability to increase their patient volume. These tools include the Natural News Service, HealthyU, the Health Heroes, and Northwestern Naturally. Combined, they are creating millions of positive consumer impressions annually about natural health care.

Northwestern will continue to aggressively seek new opportunities on your behalf to advance our professions, and we will work continually to assist natural health care practitioners in succeeding in the health care environment of the 21st Century.