Current Events

Macquarie University Chiropractic Student Association
2008 at Macquarie started with the birth of a fantastic partnership between COCA & MUCSA. The prizes generously donated by COCA to the student body well all received. We were also fortunate enough to have COCA sponsor our website space (site under construction) which has some great capabilities which we hope to use to spread our passion for chiropractic through the web.

Our year opened with the famous harbour cruise night which was themed “Way back When.” There, over two hundred chiropractic students turned out fully dressed and enjoyed a night to be remembered. The turnout and costumes were truly fantastic and fun was had by all.

One of the new focuses of the students association is to try to incorporate more health conscious social activities. In light of that aim, we have held a rock climbing night as well as a day of paintballing both of which proved to be a hilarious. Next semester we hope to get a bridge run team together as well as enter a team for the City to Surf race in Sydney. A touch footy tournament and soccer tourney are also in the works.

This semester, MUCSA has been blessed with having speakers such as Dr. James Cater, Dr. Michael Schiel, Dr. Anthony Nicholson & Dr. Matthew Long, Dr. Daniel Kolder all impart their knowledge in their various areas of interest. It is our hope that such quality thought provoking talks as these will continue to be offered next semester by practitioners such as these who see value in donating their valuable time to further our learning.

It seems surreal that things are now winding down so soon with June exams only 4 weeks away. This time also indicates the changing of tides within our organization, as our Annual General Meeting, where our new President and Vice President will be elected will take place following the exam period.

Next semester is sure to continue to be success with new leadership in addition to the launching of our new webspace and our continued commitment to providing chiropractic related extracurricular social activities to our members. We are truly thankful for the support and services that COCA has made available to our student body and look forward to continuing that partnership into the next semester!

World Congress of Chiropractic Students - Mexico City 2008
The WCCS is an international forum representing the chiropractic profession and an annual conference to discuss issues pertinent to the chiropractic profession. More than 30 chiropractic colleges comprising of more than 20,000 students from five continents are part of the WCCS. Macquarie University is proud to send to be sending two students, whom are currently raising money to cover the costs of attending this event. Fundraising events include selling “Chiro Hoodies” and holding a Chiro Trivia Night.

If you are interested in donating funds to help the students attend the WCCS, please email mqwccs@gmail.com.

We thank you for your interest and support in this event.

Macquarie Chiropractic Graduation a special success!
By Larissa McGlade & Anthony O’Reilly, The Chiropractic Alumni

77 new faces were adopted into the Chiropractic profession at the Class of 2007 Macquarie University Graduation and Ball held on April 24. Families, friends and academic faculty were proud of these young people at a formal ceremony presided over by the University Chancellor Michael Egan while another 103 were admitted to the degree of Bachelor of Chiropractic Science.

Academic gowns and caps were swapped for ball gowns and black ties several hours and kilometres later. Sydney’s nightlife headquarters - Darling Harbour, was the venue for the Graduation Ball for the profession, graduates, families and friends to celebrate. The venue was beautiful, with great views over the city, but not quite as beautiful as the girls and boys in attendance. Even though a preview of formal wear happened at the review ball, it was nice to see every one dressed nicely and so relaxed for a change. The Class of 2007 was introduced to the profession at their traditional Graduation Ball organised by The Chiropractic Alumni. The connection with the profession was established as the new graduates swore the Chiropractic Oath and were introduced to COCA Executive member Dr. Peter Tuchin, members of the NSW Registration Board and members of The Sydney College of Chiropractic. The University Head of Department of Health and Chiropractic – Dr. Sharyn Eaton, exhorted them to excellence with an address. Dr. Eaton urged the graduates to pursue the highest standards while seeking success and to maintain critical thinking when presented with new concepts.

Highlights of this gala evening included presentation of the Academic awards. These included: The CAA National Award - won by Dr. Brooke Powell The NSW CAA X-Ray Excellence Award won by Dr. Benjamin Humphries, The ASRF Research Prize won by Dr. Reidar Lystad, The Gary Stavrou Award for Adjustive Skills won by Dr. Aleksander Chaiabi, and Dr Erich Gubier was awarded The Chiropractic Alumni Award and The Ed Devereaux Award was won by Dr. Leah Dundas. A new award - The CAA Queensland - Ellie Fernie Award for outstanding contribution in community projects was presented to Ellie’s mother Janet.

Master of Ceremonies Dr. Angelo Angelopoulos conducted a very entertaining evening and helped to deliver a very successful event for the Ball organisers, The Chiropractic Alumni and The Sydney College of Chiropractic. It was a joy to see that so many people from the chiropractic community and from the University came to support the graduates and offer their congratulations. It is obvious that all had a great time. The night is a memory that will all cherish. The Class of 2007 are wished every success in their careers in chiropractic as they spread their wings nationally and globally.

Soon on the horizon for The Chiropractic Alumni is a Reunion Dinner and Seminar for graduates from the Classes of 1968, 73, 78, 83, …. 2003 that will be held on August 16 this year. A multi-topic seminar – Topics in Contemporary Chiropractic with a focus on head and TMJ pain. Drawcard speakers is organised in conjunction with a memorable dinner. The venue is the Mercure Hotel in central Sydney. Make this a date not to miss. Click here for further details.

KIDNEY DISEAS: No warning signs!
Kidney disease is a silent killer - you often won’t feel sick until 90% of kidney function has been lost, and by then it’s too late. But caught early, the progression of kidney disease can be significantly slowed. Be aware of the risks and take the right steps to prevent kidney damage.

Your kidneys are amazing! They remove waste and excess water from your body, make red blood cells, control blood pressure and make strong and healthy bones. They are a vital player in your body’s daily function and your overall health. So look after your kidneys.

There are often no warning signs for kidney disease - you can lose up to 90% of kidney function before even feeling sick. Up to 2 million Australians could have some form of kidney disease and not even know it.

Are you at risk?

Anyone can get kidney disease. But one in three Australians is at increased risk.

So, what are the risks? Being over 50 is a risk factor, so as some people age they will experience a reduction in kidney function. Lifestyle diseases such as diabetes and high blood pressure are both major risk factors.

You are also at increased risk if you smoke, have a family history of kidney disease, are obese or are of Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islander descent.

If you, or a member of your family, fall into these groups, you should talk to your local doctor about being tested for kidney disease. Early detection and treatment can help prevent kidney failure and the need for dialysis or transplant treatment.

Cut your risk

Be aware of the risks and take the right steps to prevent kidney damage. You can reduce your risk of kidney disease by:

• Being a non-smoker,
• Controlling your blood pressure,
• Increase your physical activity. Do at least 30 minutes of physical activity on most days of the week,
• Maintain a healthy weight. Men are at increased risk of heart disease if their waistlines are greater than 94cm and at high risk if it is over 102cm. Women are at increased risk of heart disease if their waistlines are greater than 80cm and at high risk over 88cm,
• Eating a healthy diet,
• Make water your drink of choice
• Drinking alcohol only moderately. No more than two standard drinks a day for men and one for women, and
• Making sure your blood glucose is well controlled if you have diabetes.

For more information on kidney and urinary health contact Kidney Health Australia:

Kidney Health Information Service freecall 1800 4 KIDNEY (1800 4 543 639), TTY 1800 005 881 or visit www.kidney.org.au If you wish to receive a copy of the One in Three Health Book with tips about kidney disease prevention simply, send your postal address to healthbookoffer@kidney.org.au

RMIT University Chiropractic Clinical Education program
The RMIT University Chiropractic Clinical Education program is looking for chiropractors who may be interested in taking on a field placement student in semester 2 this year.

The placement would begin as of the 21st of July and would continue until the 24th of October. There is scope to have this date extended if the Chiropractor and student are interested in doing so.

The placement would require the students to be in attendance for approximately 8 hours per week, in which the student would be afforded the opportunity to observe and, in certain circumstances, participate in aspects of practice and patient management.

The chiropractor would be required to oversee and mentor the students participation in the practice, and to conduct a baseline and follow up assessment of the students performance via assessment protocols provided by the University.

This program has proved very successful in the past affording students the opportunity to be involved in a supervised manner, in practice and patient management prior to graduation, and allows interested chiropractors the opportunity to mentor a student during the penultimate stages of their education.

As the current academic program does require students to be in attendance at University on some mornings each week, we are looking for metropolitan and regional Victorian placements as preference.

If you are interested in participating in this program could you please phone or email: Adrian Repka, Coordinator Chiropractic Clinical Education, RMIT University, Bundoora: (03) 9925 7688 or adrian.repka@rmit.edu.au and leave your details to receive further information.

Attention All Australian University Osteopathic Graduates!
Are you interested in providing current and prospective students with information about career satisfaction and job longevity in the Osteopathic profession and what they have to look forward to in actual practice?

If yes, you are invited to participate in a 10 minute survey conducted by final year Osteopathic students.

AN EXPLORATORY STUDY OF OSTEOPATHIC GRADUATES FROM AUSTRALIAN UNIVERSITIES

The research we are conducting involves gathering information on past and present practicing Osteopaths that have graduated from recognised Australian Tertiary Osteopathic programs.We are inviting eligible participants to complete a 5-10 min online survey. This survey will be stored electronically on a secure server. No personal information will be collected and all information will be de-identified.

Interested? Eligible? If so, please follow this link: https://www.surveymonkey.com/s.aspx?sm=ePydDOs_2b7e2_2bgPC4tqrUOw_3d_3d

If you require any further information, please contact supervisor: Dr Kirstie Fernandes, Senior Lecturer in the School of Health Science Phone (03) 9925 7647 or e-mail kirstie.fernandes@rmit.edu.au

Your time and effort is greatly appreciated!
RMIT Osteopathic students:
Jon Marshall, Matthew Hassett, Michael Fleischmann, Mariem Kaldas, Kate Spurling.

Mending baseball injured
Reprinted from Southern Gazette 20/05/2008 MURDOCH University chiropractic student Abbey Chilcott of Como recently returned from completing an internship with US baseball team Seattle Mariners. Using her chiropractic skills on the Seattle Mariner rookie team and players from various leagues in Arizona and the major league team in Seattle, Ms Chilcott worked daily with players willing to assist in their own injury and injury prevention and care.

“Although I was following a particular rehabilitation protocol with these players, I was given the opportunity to implement many of the techniques and ideas I’d learnt at Murdoch to assist in their recovery,” Ms Chilcott said. “I worked alongside a physiotherapist and athletic trainer doing treatments aimed at injury management and prevention for players prone to injuries.” Ms Chilcott said she learnt new techniques and methods of treating different injuries - broadening her knowledge in rehabilitation.

Her internship was organised by Murdoch Senior Lecturer, Dr Mark Hecimovich, who is from the United States. “I worked as a certified athletic trainer in the US and through my contacts with the Professional Baseball Athletic Trainers’ Society I was able to secure this internship,” Dr Hecimovich said. “This is the third time the Seattle Mariners have offered an internship to a Murdoch chiropractic student and it looks like it will be a regular annual opportunity we can offer to other students.” Murdoch’s School of Chiropractic clinic is open from Monday to Saturday. For bookings call 9360 1202.