Palmer College of Chiropractic

Through a unique research project to study the effectiveness of chiropractic care in medically underserved populations, the Palmer Center for Chiropractic Research (PCCR) and Community Health Care, Inc. (CHC), headquartered in Davenport, have joined forces. The joint project is called “Back-to-Health in the QCA.”

In September 2010, the Palmer Center for Chiropractic Research (PCCR) received a grant from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services that they are using to fund a research-focused initiative placing a chiropractor into the Davenport-based Community Health Care, Inc., system of primary health care clinics. The grant is supporting a research program to study the effects of chiropractic care on low-income and underserved populations in the primary care setting. On Feb. 15, 2011, a doctor of chiropractic began providing care to patients as part of a collaborative team that also includes physicians, nurse practitioners and other medical providers at Community Health Care’s downtown Davenport clinic.

The main goal of “Back-to-Health in the QCA” is to form a multidisciplinary spine care team made up of doctors of chiropractic, medical doctors, nurse practitioners and other healthcare providers that will focus on providing the best possible care for patients with musculoskeletal conditions such as back and neck pain. “Palmer is committed to best practices in patient care as well as integration with other healthcare providers,” says Maria Hondras, D.C., M.P.H., a PCCR faculty member and principal investigator for the study. “This joint venture provides the exciting opportunity to establish a much-needed community-college partnership between Community Health Care and Palmer. While our organizations have cared for generations of Quad-Citians in facilities just six blocks apart, we now have the ability to initiate and evaluate a collaborative approach to patient care through this partnership.”

Through this project, a Palmer doctor of chiropractic from the Palmer Community Clinics will provide selected Community Health Care patients with back and spinal care. Patients experiencing chronic musculoskeletal pain will be referred to the doctor of chiropractic by a member of the collaborative team on-site at the Davenport clinic. The addition of chiropractic services will offer patients a new alternative for treating pain. “This project is a new and innovative way for health care providers to collaborate in our community,” said Tom Bowman, CEO of Community Health Care. “CHC welcomes this partnership and the opportunity to learn about new approaches to serving the health care needs of the community.”

The Palmer Center for Chiropractic Research is headquartered on the Palmer College of Chiropractic campus in Davenport, Iowa, and is the largest institutional chiropractic research effort in the world, promoting excellence and leadership in scientific research. The PCCR has the largest budget for research in a chiropractic college, receiving grants from the National Institutes of Health, National Center for Complementary and Alternative Medicine, and the U.S. Health Resources and Services Administration. Since 2000, these federal grant awards have totaled approximately $35 million.

The mission of Community Health Care, Inc. is to serve the Quad Cities with high-quality, affordable health care for all people in need. CHC offers a medical and dental home for patients of every age and every income by providing comprehensive care, coordination of services and a personal relationship with the providers. Preventive, acute and chronic medical and dental care are offered, as well as ancillary services including laboratory, X-ray, pharmacy, nutrition, health education and translation services. CHC is accredited by The Joint Commission and is the only primary care health provider in the area offering discounted services based on income.