Canadian Chiro Education (are they “Real” Doctors?)
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There are over 40 accredited chiropractic schools and 100,000 #chiropractors in the world.
17 chiropractic schools exist in the United States, and 77,000 #chiropractors.
Only 2 schools exist in Canada, and 8000 #chiropractors.
While I can not speak to the education that chiropractic students in other parts of the world receive, as a recent grad from the larger and more well-known chiropractic school in Canada, I do feel like I am in a very good position to give light on the matter. After all, if you are a patient of chiropractic or you are looking to book in with a #chiropractor it is probably worthwhile knowing what kind of education a modern chiropractic student receives during their schooling.
As well, the chiropractic school that I attended’s (CMCC) deadline for the class of 2027 application is closing on November 14th. If you’re a potential student looking for a professional degree, hopefully this can help you out too!
First things first, there are 2 chiropractic schools in Canada. Canadian Memorial Chiropractic College (CMCC) located in Toronto, Ontario & Université du Québec à Trois-Rivières (UQTR) located in Trois-Rivières, Québec. Of the two, UQTR is a French-speaking University, and only 20% of the Canadian population speaks French. Therefore, for 80% of prospective Canadian chiro students, the only real option is CMCC.
CMCC, at least as I understand it as a graduate, is considered “the” #evidence-based chiropractic school in north America. When I use the term “#evidence-based”, I am referring to a particular style of chiropractic that focuses heavily on research. In order to get into CMCC requires a 4-year undergraduate program completed or, in the more rare case of early acceptance, a minimum 3 years of undergraduate education.
Years I & II are largely focused on building the foundation of knowledge necessary. While the focus for chiropractic is obviously on musculoskeletal anatomy, we also receive hundreds of hours of training on biomechanics, diagnosis, neurology, and diagnostic imaging interpretation (being able to read X-rays, Ultrasounds, MRIs etc). These are really the “big focuses” of the first two years, but there are also a lot of additional courses required. The purpose of these is to really round out our knowledge base. They include and are not limited to (as I’ve definitely forgotten some):
Biochemistry, histology, embryology, diagnostic imaging fundamentals (aka taking imaging), pediatrics, geriatrics, women’s health, physical rehabilitation, clinical psychology, emergency care, research methods, pathoimmunology, toxopharmacology, system pathology, nutrition, orthopaedics & public health
As the years progress, the focus shifts from lecture-hall based learnings (like undergrad) into a more clinical application/case-work approach. This ultimately results in a year-long clinical placement during our fourth year. During this placement, we are working on real patients.
In addition to the academic component of a chiropractic degree, we are consistently working on our manual skills. We begin working on these in our first year via practicing on each other. It’s very important that by the time we reach our fourth year, we have solid adjusting as well as Myofascial Release Technique (MRT – a form of massage) skills available to use on our patients. Also worth noting is that all of the manual skills are always supervised by somebody who actually does know how to do them. CMCC makes a very solid point to make sure that students aren't practicing these skills without that supervision.
The first 3 years are consistent of 12 modules which are similar to quarters, however we get a summer (so not quite 3 months in length). The courses we take vary between modules, with formal written examinations happening at the ends of them and practical physical examinations happening at any time during. The number of exams can vary greatly between the mods. Some mods, such as the first, you will only have 3. Other mods you’ll have upwards of 13. All in all, from the start of your chiropractic degree to becoming fully licensed, a chiropractic student will be completing upwards of 100 written & physical exams in combination (pretty sure the actual number is 104? I’ve repressed it, it seems…)
There are distinctly different levels of energy in the CMCC hallways depending if you are in the exam on season of the exam off season. The exam off season typically sees a lot of bustling activity – the hallways are full, the energy is lively, there is a bakesale every week for whatever reason. The exam on-season sees a drop in student presence as more & more opt to stay home to study directly from their own resources. This is made possible by CMCC’s lecture-recording software, which are all posted online for students to view from home as well as the Students’ Council’s “Note Service”. Note-takers are hired on to take notes for each course, and those notes are then shared with everybody else who opts into the program.
During the examination periods, you will likely find yourself studying for longer than 8 hours a day, up to 12. This is NOT an exaggeration. There is an enormous amount of content that must be absorbed – a lot like drinking from a firehose. Like other professional degrees or PhD programs, burnout is a very real thing that can happen to chiropractic students. Therefore, it is important to always take care of yourself.
Now, are CMCC graduates (and #chiropractors for that matter) “real” #doctors? This is a spicy question.
Since graduating, I’ve been hit with the comment “You’re not like a ‘real’ #doctor though” – more often than I really care to admit. I’ve gotten it both from well-meaning but poorly-articulate friends, as well as people trying to undermine me for whatever reason. I’m also willing to bet a down-payment on a house that my graduate friends have experienced the same.
The word “#doctor” originates from the Latin word meaning “Teacher”. Over the years, it has shifted to become a term referencing academic and educational achievements – “Learned person”. This is why undergraduate lecturers or professors are referred to as “#doctor”. They hold PhD degrees upon completing a 4-year post graduate level of study program. These programs, more often than not, actually have nothing to do with healthcare.
Chiropractic school graduates complete a comparable level of 4 years of postgraduate study. This in turn earns them the “#doctor” title in a similar academic manner that professors have it.
The confusion stems in that #chiropractors are also healthcare practitioners. Our post-graduate studies are very focused on how to improve the quality of life of our patients in a non-invasive (“conservative”) manner.
Our education does have some overlap with medical #doctors – again, given that we are both healthcare professions. Nurse practitioners, physiotherapists, osteopaths, massage therapists, naturopaths - they all overlap with #chiropractors as well as MDs. And we overlap with them too! Everyone dabbles in each other’s scopes to varying degrees.
The differentiation is that some people have come to use the term “#doctor” to reference specifically medical #doctors. The correct term in referencing someone who has completed a medical degree is “Physician”. The term “Physician” refers to Medical #doctors in Canada, as well as Medical #doctors & DOs in the United States.
Any chiropractic #doctor who refers to themselves as a “Chiropractic Physician” is either very confused or, in my opinion, overcompensating. After all – can you imagine a musical theory professor referring to themselves as a “Musical Theory Physician”? No? Well, some concept applies.
Are #chiropractors “real” #doctors? Yes. Are #chiropractors physicians? No.
We are healthcare professionals who have received a lot of education, but we don’t practice medicine. We practice a different, non-pharmacological & non-surgical method. In no way should a #chiropractor ever take the full replacement of a physician, but we are here to help in ways that potentially others can not.
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