Dr. Reed B. Phillips has been President of Southern California University of Health Sciences and its colleges (Los Angeles College of Chiropractic and the College of Acupuncture and Oriental Medicine) for the last 15 years. He is a past-president of the Council on Chiropractic Education, the Association of Chiropractic Colleges, the American Chiropractic College of Radiology Board and CCE International. As Chair of the Veteran’s Affairs Chiropractic Advisory Committee, he was instrumental in the development and implementation of the program that now provides chiropractic care to this nation’s veterans.
Q: What are your areas of greatest strength for the chiropractic student and the profession?
A: SCU/LACC has always been recognized for its strong emphasis on a scientifically founded program. Philosophy is also a strong suit, when one puts philosophy into a true scientific perspective, as opposed to a religious dogma. Our educational methodology, supported by SCU’s Standardized Patient Program, is one of only two programs in the profession totally committed to this form of interactive learning.
Q: What are your plans for the future of the school with regard to chiropractic?
A: First, we plan to grow our research agenda in the area of chiropractic, especially as it relates to clinical, epidemiological and social issues. We want to be on the edge of policy formulation backed by sound data. With the expansion of chiropractic into several federal health programs, we plan to expand our clinical training experience, utilizing these new opportunities along with other curriculum innovations that are a continuum of SCU’s ADVANTAGE academic program. While musculoskeletal conditions remain the center point of chiropractic practice, we intend to expand the DC’s opportunities in the area of wellness care. We also plan to grow our program by enrolling highly qualified students, committed to humanistic health care, and then provide them opportunities to mingle with other alternative health care providers so they may be more capable of managing patients.
Q: Where do you see the chiropractic profession headed?
A: From a patient care perspective, the future never looked so bright. Chiropractic has made inroads into major health organizations (Veterans Affairs & the Department of Defense) never thought possible just a decade ago. Research-wise, the future holds great promise as our critical mass of research-trained DC’s increases and the information accumulated grows. Politically, we continue to circle the wagons and shoot inward.