Leona Marie Fischer, D.C., a member of the World Chiropractic Alliance International Board of Governors (IBG), has been selected to serve on the Veterans Affairs Chiropractic Advisory Committee. The panel of health care experts will advise the Secretary of Veterans Affairs on protocols governing referral to doctors of chiropractic, direct access to chiropractic care, scope of chiropractic and other issues.

Dr. Fischer, a 1998 graduate of Life University, served as a medic in U.S. Navy Special Operations from 1988 to 1992. Assigned to the Explosive Ordnance Disposal unit, she was awarded two Navy Achievement Medals for rendering primary care and triage to five Special Ops members who suffered severe trauma during a parachute accident.

Her military service took her to assignments throughout the U.S., as well as Africa, Portugal, Spain, Italy and Bermuda.

"I was usually the only medical support in the rural places we traveled," she told The Chiropractic Journal. "While working with these guys, I was not satisfied with the quality of care we were limited to. They often had musculo-skeletal injuries and we kept giving them 'vitamin M' – Motrin – to fix it. That's when I began my quest for true health."

While still in the Navy, Fischer attended massage therapy school and discovered chiropractic.

"I had worked in the medical field for a long time and I knew medicine wasn't for me. I wanted to provide my patients with a high quality of life through my care. Chiropractic school was my only option," she explained.

In 1995, she enrolled in Life University and worked to reach her goal of becoming a doctor of chiropractic and bringing true health to people in her community. In the meantime, Fischer continued to use her massage therapy training, providing care for Olympic athletes during the Atlanta games. She graduated from Life in 1998 and ran an office in Georgia before relocating to her previous home town in Illinois.

Her strong convictions about the benefits of health care now apply to her children as well. "I am blessed to be the mother of two beautiful children, Alexis, 4, and Devan, 2 1/2. Thanks to chiropractic, they have never had to be on antibiotics or be vaccinated!"

As a subluxation-based doctor, it was natural for Fischer to join the WCA and be asked to become an IBG member. "I want to be able to ensure that all of our veterans – our nation's true heroes – are given the chance to receive subluxation correction," she stated. "It's important to me that they receive the best care possible, and that means adjustments from doctors of chiropractic."

Fischer was one of several WCA nominations to the committee. "Her unique qualifications and talents, coupled with her strong dedication to subluxation-based chiropractic, made Dr. Fischer an ideal choice for this position," stated WCA President Terry A. Rondberg, D.C. "We have the utmost confidence that her efforts will greatly benefit the veterans, and bring honor to the WCA and the profession."

At first, the decision by the WCA and the International Chiropractors Association (ICA) to submit their own nominations for the committee was met with resistance from the American Chiropractic Association (ACA). The ACA wanted the committee to be comprised of the same doctors who served on the Department of Defense (DOD) chiropractic demonstration program committee.

The WCA, however, felt it was imperative to have more representation of subluxation-based chiropractic.

"We think the selection of the same individuals for the VA Advisory Committee might easily be interpreted as the work of a 'good old boy network,'" Dr. Rondberg explained at the time. "The profession is filled with doctors who have the expertise, ability, and dedication to serve on the VA Advisory Committee and should be provided an opportunity to make their own contributions to the profession."

The ICA also objected to the ACA plan to move the DOD committee over intact to the VA.

"We at the ICA have determined that those individuals are far less likely to receive approval by Secretary Principi BECAUSE of their DOD service, having been appointed under President Clinton," Ronald M. Hendrickson, ICA executive director noted. " The partisan nature of the new Administration all but precludes recycling Clinton appointees for any position."

The decision to submit a list of well-qualified doctors from throughout the profession was a sound one.

"The entire profession is represented on the panel," Fischer commented. "No one should feel left out of the process. Because our work can be supported by all D.C.s, I know we'll accomplish great things together."

Fischer immediately began contacting other D.C.s, as well as political leaders, in order to prepare herself for the challenges that lie ahead. "There is no sense in me re-inventing the wheel," she said. "I'm going to draw upon the experience and wisdom of all those who have gone before me."