One of the most persistent myths about chiropractic is that chiropractors aren’t “real doctors” or don’t receive extensive medical and clinical education.
So, let’s clear this one up.
A chiropractor earns a Doctor of Chiropractic (DC) degree through years of intensive education focused on anatomy, physiology, diagnosis, neurology, orthopedics, biomechanics, diagnostic imaging, spinal function, and patient care.
No, a Doctor of Chiropractic and a medical doctor aren’t the same thing.
We aren’t supposed to be.
We are different healthcare professionals with different areas of expertise.
What Does It Take to Become a Chiropractor?
Becoming a chiropractor involves much more than learning how to perform an adjustment.
Before entering chiropractic college, students complete undergraduate prerequisites in the sciences and other required subjects. They then enter a professional Doctor of Chiropractic program.
The Council on Chiropractic Education establishes accreditation standards for Doctor of Chiropractic programs in the United States.
Current CCE standards require accredited programs to provide at least 4,200 instructional hours, or an approved competency-based equivalent.
Those thousands of hours include education in areas such as:
- Anatomy and physiology
- Biochemistry
- Microbiology and pathology
- Neurology
- Orthopedics
- Physical and clinical diagnosis
- Laboratory diagnosis
- Diagnostic imaging
- Biomechanics
- Spinal analysis
- Chiropractic adjustment and manipulation
- Extremity manipulation
- Rehabilitation
- Therapeutic procedures
- Nutrition
- Pharmacology and toxicology
- Patient management
That’s a significant amount of education.
And it should be.
We’re responsible for examining patients, recognizing when chiropractic care is appropriate, identifying when it isn’t, and knowing when someone needs additional testing or another healthcare professional involved.
Chiropractors and Medical Doctors Are Trained Differently
This is where comparisons between chiropractic school and medical school can become misleading.
A medical doctor receives extensive education in medicine, pharmacology, disease management, surgery, and other areas necessary for the practice of medicine. Depending on the specialty, physicians then complete residency and may pursue additional fellowship training.
Chiropractic education has a different emphasis.
We spend extensive time studying the musculoskeletal and nervous systems, including anatomy, spinal biomechanics, neurology, joint function, diagnostic imaging, orthopedic and neurological examination, and chiropractic adjusting techniques.
Those differences aren’t a weakness.
They’re the reason different healthcare professions exist.
If you need surgery, you want a surgeon.
If you have a medical condition requiring medication management, you want the appropriate medical provider.
If you want someone extensively educated in spinal function, joint movement, biomechanics, and the relationship between the spine and nervous system, that’s where a chiropractor brings a different area of expertise to the healthcare team.
We Do Much More Than “Crack Backs”
Another reason this myth persists is that many people don’t know what happens before an adjustment.
At Chandler Chiropractic and Chandler Chiropractic of Scottsdale, we don’t simply ask where it hurts and start adjusting.
We examine.
Depending on the patient, that examination may include posture, cervical or lumbar range of motion, muscle strength, joint movement, neurological and orthopedic testing, balance, and palpation of individual vertebral segments.
When clinically appropriate, we also use digital X-rays to evaluate alignment, degeneration, arthritis, previous injuries, and other structural findings.
Why?
Because the examination tells us what we should—and shouldn’t—do.
That’s an important part of being a doctor.
Our article on What Does a Chiropractor Do? takes a deeper look at what happens beyond the adjustment.
Chiropractors Are Trained to Recognize When Chiropractic Isn’t the Answer
This is one of the most important parts of our education.
A good chiropractor doesn’t believe every health problem needs a chiropractic adjustment.
We need to recognize warning signs.
We need to know when an X-ray is appropriate. We need to recognize when advanced imaging may be necessary. We also need to identify findings that require referral to an orthopedist, neurologist, primary-care physician, emergency department, or another healthcare professional.
We’ve discussed this extensively in our headache and concussion content.
For example, a patient coming into our office with a headache isn’t automatically adjusted. We first need to understand the headache, examine the patient, and determine whether chiropractic care is appropriate.
You can see that philosophy in our article on chiropractic care and headaches.
You can also learn more about the evaluation process in Why Do I Keep Getting Headaches?, where we explain why understanding the cause matters before making recommendations.
Sometimes chiropractic is the answer. Sometimes it’s one part of the answer. Sometimes the answer is a referral.
Knowing the difference matters.
The Nervous System Is Central to Chiropractic Education
The spine gets most of the attention when people think about chiropractic.
However, there’s a reason we’re so interested in it.
The spine protects the spinal cord, while nerves branch from the spinal cord and communicate throughout the body.
That’s why we often call the nervous system the motherboard of the body.
Chiropractors study anatomy, physiology, neurology, biomechanics, and spinal function because understanding how the body communicates and moves is fundamental to what we do.
This also connects directly to our first chiropractic myth: chiropractic isn’t just for back pain.
Back and neck pain may bring many people through our doors. However, our focus is much broader—spinal function, joint movement, mobility, biomechanics, and nervous system health.
You can learn more about that broader role in our article on conditions chiropractors can help with beyond back pain.
Education Doesn’t Stop at Graduation
Earning a Doctor of Chiropractic degree is only the beginning.
Chiropractors must meet the licensing requirements of the state where they practice. Here in Arizona, licensed chiropractors are also required to complete continuing education as part of maintaining their licenses.
The Arizona State Board of Chiropractic Examiners currently requires Arizona chiropractors to complete 12 hours of continuing education for each annual renewal period.
Those courses must have a significant relationship to professional competence and the clinical care chiropractors provide.
For me personally, education certainly didn’t end when I graduated.
After more than 22 years in practice, I’m still learning.
Healthcare evolves. Research evolves. Technology changes. Our understanding of concussion, sports performance, rehabilitation, imaging, the nervous system, and many other areas continues to develop.
That’s why continuing education matters.
So, Are Chiropractors Real Doctors?
Yes. Chiropractors are Doctors of Chiropractic.
That doesn’t mean we’re medical doctors, and we shouldn’t pretend the professions are interchangeable.
They’re not.
We have a different area of expertise and a different role within healthcare.
A chiropractor’s education prepares us to examine patients, diagnose conditions within our scope, evaluate the musculoskeletal and nervous systems, interpret appropriate diagnostic information, determine whether chiropractic care is indicated, provide chiropractic adjustments and related care, and refer patients when necessary.
At Chandler Chiropractic and Chandler Chiropractic of Scottsdale, we take that responsibility seriously.
You aren’t walking into our office simply to “get your back cracked.”
You’re walking into a healthcare office where a Doctor of Chiropractic will listen to your history, examine you, determine what’s happening, and decide what should happen next.
That’s a much better description of modern chiropractic.
