Global 640 AM News
Interview with Kelly Cutrara and Dr. Luigi (Lou) Nalli
9:45 a.m., April 2, 2020
Interview (Audio file)
Interview Transcript
Kelly Cutrara:
The CDC reported that governing bodies across Canada have issued warnings to chiropractors all over claims that the chiropractic care can boost your immune system and prevent infection from the novel coronavirus that has caused the COVID-19 pandemic. Here to talk about it, Dr. Lu Nalli, host of the PinPoint Health Show on Global News Radio 640 Toronto. Now, it’s good to have you on Dr. Nalli. Welcome.
Dr. Luigi Nalli, DC:
Hi, Kelly, thanks for having me on.
Kelly Cutrara:
There is no scientific evidence that chiropractic care can boost your immune system. One danger right now is that these claims are adding to an already chaotic information environment, and so it’s confusing people that are looking for good information. Are you getting questions from patients about this false claim?
Dr. Luigi Nalli, DC:
Yeah, and so I’ve been speaking about this even on my social media platforms quite a bit and speaking out against it. The one thing that I want to make clear is that all of the regulatory bodies for the chiropractic profession, the example in Ontario being the College of Chiropractors (CCO), along with our associations like the Ontario Chiropractic Association (OCA), the Canadian Chiropractic Association (CCA), even the American Chiropractic Association (ACA), and the World’s Federation of Chiropractic (WFC), which is the body that would correspond on our behalf with the World Health Organization, have all spoken out against this. In fact, the World Federation of Chiropractic released a rapid review of the literature to look for any scientific evidence. And you’re right, exactly like you said, there is no scientific evidence to make that claim. And so all chiropractors have been advised that this is not a claim that they should be making.
There is no evidence to substantiate it. And the thing that I’ll say more with my role as well, I’m also a faculty member at the Chiropractic College in Toronto at the Canadian Memorial Chiropractic College, 99.9 per cent of chiropractors know this and do not make this claim. But unfortunately there seems to be some rogue agents out there that are making that claim. And you’re right, that’s very, very dangerous in this environment, especially with the uncertainty of COVID-19. It’s new. People are trying to look for answers where answers don’t exist. But I think it’s a very dangerous thing to try to use things that are not based in scientific evidence, to try to do anything against this virus, whether it’s chiropractic things, claims like that or anything else.
Really it should be what the scientific evidence says in this case. And I think using credible sources like the World Health Organization, the Center for Disease Control, Health Canada. These bodies will definitely keep us up to date on any things that are scientifically sound and make sense for the treatment and prevention of COVID-19.
Kelly Cutrara:
Well, are chiropractors even open right now?
Dr. Luigi Nalli, DC:
Yes, chiropractors under the government mandate are seen as an essential service. It’s a regulated healthcare profession. They are essential for acute and emergency cases. So, this is very important: we’re not open for regular business but in some cases, they are open for these acute or emergency cases. And, there’s the frontline health care workers that are working at the hospitals doing an incredible job and I thank any one of them that’s listening. I have friends and family that have that role and it’s very painful. But there’s also a blight of health care workers in the background, like chiropractors, that are playing a critical role by making sure that when these types of emergency cases, the example being of someone all of a sudden wakes up and they’ve thrown out their back and they can’t even move, they have very little options.
And if they present to an emergency room, two things happen there. Number one, they’re putting themselves at risk of potentially being exposed to an area where there might be COVID-19, and secondly, they’re probably taking up an emergency room for the thing that would be most serious during this time, which is COVID-19, or other emergencies like say myocardial infarction or stroke and those things that can go nowhere else. But a chiropractor for emergency care provide a great alternative in this time. And I think that’s important to think about those health care workers in that back line. And that’s not just chiropractors, physiotherapists as well fall under that same category of essential (services) for acute and emergency care.
Kelly Cutrara:
Dr. Lu, I mean I have been to a chiro before and I’m sure other people have been to chiropractors. It’s an intimate practice let’s just say. There’s a lot of touching, there’s a lot of close contact. What are you doing to make sure that you and your patients when they’re in an emergency situation are actually taken care of and are not passing along possibly COVID-19?
Dr. Luigi Nalli, DC:
Sure. That’s a great question. So what we have done is number one, we are screening every call. The goal that we want is actually people not to come in. So if this is something that we can take care of through telemedicine or Virtual Care, we opt for that. A lot of things can also be dealt with just simple advice.
That example of someone who threw out their back, we might just have a discussion with them over the phone, give them positions of relief, those types of things to manage it. So the big goal is preventing them to not go anywhere. In the case that they would have to go somewhere, I can only speak for myself personally and my organization can point out, we’ve created an extensive level of protection to really minimize that.
And, it’s so long that the easier thing for me to tell you is, if anyone wants you visit pinpointhealth.ca, there’s a tab at the top of the screen that says COVID-19 PinPoint Health Safety Procedures, and it’s extensive.
I can give some examples, things like only one patient at any one time with one practitioner. So we have multiple clinics with multiple professionals that typically work at any one time, that is no longer the case. There’s no administrative staff. It’s all happening through correspondence. There’s no payments or transactions happening at the clinics. There’s an extensive cleaning procedure that has to happen. The other thing is, where we can, the goal is to not make … If in the very rare case we have to see you in the clinic, the goal is to make that treatment not intimate. So there’s options that we have.
The example is, maybe we can work with you through exercises where we can keep that social distance and guide you through some things, so that is the goal. The practitioners are wearing masks and the protective equipment that they require, so it’s extensive. I encourage anybody, please visit pinpointhealth.ca. You can see that. But I guess the overall message is the goal is really not to have people to come in and we’re trying to use every other option in virtual care and telemedicine to offset that. And we’ve done a very good job. I’d say 99.5 per cent of people do not need to come in right now.
Kelly Cutrara:
All right. Let’s go full circle if we can, just to wrap this up. I want to make sure this message is well-received. That the governing bodies, like the College of Chiropractors of Ontario (CCO) are taking these claims very seriously, claims that some chiropractors are making, that it can boost your immune system, an adjustment, and prevent infection from the novel coronavirus, which causes COVID-19 and causes the pandemic. They have sent out 54 cease and desist letters to practitioners since May the 2nd. Nationally, the Canadian Chiropractic Association (CCA) has also warn members about making unsubstantiated claims like this. Do you think they need to set an example of these people that are chiropractors that are spreading false information by actually pulling licenses?
Dr. Luigi Nalli, DC:
Yeah. So, the regulatory bodies, like the College of Chiropractors are taking these claims seriously. And, I’m not part of the college of … I’m a member of it, but I’m not part of their governing body. I’m not an elected member there. But the issue with most regulatory bodies in that sense is that the public is the one that really needs to file the complaint to get those things. Now they are taking it very seriously.
My understanding is that there has been public members that have filed complaints and they are going to take that very seriously and they probably will start to make an example. My personal opinion I guess is yeah, absolutely, And, it’s not just for chiropractors, it’s for anyone. We need to always in health care in every aspect, make sure that we are giving to the public what is the most scientifically evidence, informed treatments, procedures, whatever it may be. And that should be the role of any health care professional. So I think that anybody making false claims is, number one, doing a very unethical thing just on a human level. And secondly, they are going against what the profession is recommending and is going to be strict about.
Kelly Cutrara:
Dr Lu, I want to thank you for your time. The website to go to: pinpointhealth.ca. Stay well and stay safe.
Dr. Luigi Nalli, DC:
Thank you, Kelly, you as well.
Kelly Cutrara:
Cheers. As Dr. Lu Nalli, host of the PinPoint Health Show on Global News Radio 640 Toronto, leaves….
(Visit Dr. Nalli’s website at http://pinpointhealth.ca for more information on his work.)