Media release

08 Aug 2013

The Chiropractic Board of Australia cracks down to protect the public.

The Chiropractic Board of Australia is cracking down on chiropractors who step outside their primary role as healthcare practitioners and provide treatment that puts the public at risk.

To protect public safety, the Board has:

• ordered practitioners to remove all anti-vaccination material from their websites and clinics 
• removed several courses from the list of approved CPD programs, and 
• introduced random audits of practitioner compliance with the Board’s registration standards.

Details of the Board’s initiatives are published in the report of its July Board meeting.

Board Chair, Dr Phillip Donato OAM, said the Board took its core role of protecting the public extremely seriously.

‘We know the vast majority of Australia’s 4,600 chiropractors work effectively to provide high quality care in the best interests of their patients,’ Dr Donato said.

’However, the Board takes a very strong view of any practitioner who makes unsubstantiated claims about treatment which is not supported within an evidence-based context,’ he said.

’We will not tolerate registered chiropractors giving misleading or unbalanced advice to patients, or providing advice or care that is not in the patient's best interests.’

The Board’s Code of Conduct details its expectations of the chiropractic profession.

‘We hold chiropractors to account against the standards set out in the code and anyone with any concerns about individual registered chiropractors should bring these to the Board,’ Dr Donato said.

Other codes and guidelines are published on the Board’s website, including position statements about:

• Statement on the provision of health information by the Chiropractic Board of Australia 
• Statement by the Chiropractic Board of Australia on paediatric care

The Board also cautioned chiropractors about marketing and promotional activities that breach the advertising requirements in the National Law. Section 133.1.e of the National Law specifically rules out directly or indirectly encouraging the ‘indiscriminate or unnecessary use of regulated health services’.

’The Board reminds chiropractors that they need to comply with the Law and the standards set by the Board. We take a very dim view of any practitioner who does not put the best interests of their patients first,’ Dr Donato said.

For more information

• Lodge an online enquiry form
• For registration enquiries: 1300 419 495 (within Australia) +61 3 8708 9001 (overseas callers)
• For media enquiries: (03) 8708 9200

Download a PDF of this Media release - 8 August 2013 (82.3 KB,PDF)