NWHSU Alumni and Faculty Shine at Homecoming 2023


Northwestern Health Sciences 2023 Homecoming Symposium was held February 2- 4, featuring an inspiring group of experts presenting various topics impacting the chiropractic profession.  Nineteen of the speakers were NWHSU graduates, faculty members, or both! 
 

Keynote: Interdisciplinary Care for Low Back Pain 

NWHSU graduate Christina Goertz, DC, PhD was the keynote speaker with a presentation entitled “In Search of the Holy Grail for Back Pain.”  

Dr. Goertz is a Professor of Musculoskeletal Research at the Duke Clinical Research Institute and Director of System Development and Coordination for Spine Health in the Department of Orthopedic Surgery at Duke University. She is also the Chief Executive Officer of the Spine Institute for Quality. 

Dr. Goertz has received more than $40 million in federal funding, primarily from the NIH and the Department of Defense and has co-authored more than 130 peer-reviewed papers.  

Dr. Goertz shared, “as an alum, I am always excited to get back on campus at NWHSU and I’m honored to be this year’s opening speaker at the 2023 Chiropractic Symposium. I reviewed what we know and what we don’t know about low back pain, as well as shared my research and described how one academic health center is approaching interdisciplinary care for patients with spine related conditions.”  

NWHSU Faculty and Alumni Share their Knowledge 

Homecoming featured a great line-up of faculty members this year including Dr. Maiers and her talk on the “Silver Tsunami” and preparing to accommodate the aging population, Dr. Farrar and Dr. Muldoon’s anatomy lab, and Dr. Wolfe speaking on professional boundaries.  

Dr. Major, Mendenhall, Rich and Smoley participated in a Radiology panel and Dr. Finer, Heim, Zachman, Eggebrecht, Weibel-Maanum and Oster came together to hold a seminar on adjustive procedures of not only the spine, but also the hips and shoulders.  

Closing out the Saturday session was Dr. MacDonald and Dr. Heesch’s case study on a meniscal injury in a 45-year-old male, with a focus on integrative care.  

Alum Dr. Tim Mick presented with his wife Dr. Michelle Mick on diagnostic imaging and alum Dr. Jeffrey Lavell spoke on metabolic detoxification as a nutrition CE.  

This was the first Homecoming with people attending in person in three years (with an online option), and the energy was . A special thank you to all the doctors, students, vendors and supporting staff who made this years homecoming possible!  

Story by Kit Harlow, Chiropractic Student