The Mercury Awards, part of MerComm, Inc., bills itself as the "premier competition for all public relations professionals." It is an annual international media recognition and awards program honoring the best for excellence in corporate communications, media relations, public affairs, and publicity.
In the 2000 Mercury Awards, four commercial TV spots of the British Columbia Chiropractic Association (BCCA) that aired over KVOS-TV12 in Vancouver were awarded gold. Only one gold, silver, bronze and honor award are given in each classification. Each of the gold awardees become candidates for the Grand Awards, and a "Best in Show" award. Some of the Grand Award winners for 2000 were General Mills, Inc., Lockheed Martin, American Express, and Consumers Energy.
Douglas Kronlund wrote, produced and directed the commercials. "I am thrilled with the announcement," said Mr. Kronlund. The commercials and video were projects that I truly became involved with. It consumed a few months of my life and the BC Chiropractic Association Board of Directors placed a lot of faith in my team and me. There was a lot of heart and soul in it, and I am incredibly pleased with the gold status."
Mr. Kronlund noted that chiropractic is an important part of health care. "I wanted to help get that message out. The BC Chiropractic Association believed in us as much as we believed in them."
The BCCA featured the four commercial spots in its public relations program from January through June 2000 and into 2001. Each of the spots concluded with a message for the viewer to call a toll-free number to obtain their personal copy of the BCCA's 30-minute informational video "Your Spine Your Health," which was produced as part of the television campaign.
The BCCA reports that the number of calls for the video have further emphasized the effectiveness of the commercials and video campaign.
The four TV spots were also adapted and utilized by the Newfoundland, Manitoba and New Brunswick Chiropractic Associations, a group of 50 DCs in Seattle, and an individual DC in Redwood, California.
"We are very thrilled to receive this award," said BCCA Executive Director Don Nixdorf. "These commercials were designed to educate the public about chiropractic health care and the impact it can have on their daily lives. The fact that the commercials have been recognized by the advertising industry for their composition is a bonus."
Editor's note: For information, please email BCCA Executive Director Dr. Don Nixdorf, at dnixdorf@attcanada.ca.
Many relevant diagnostic signs are not performed deliberately by the examiner or by the patient at the examiner’s direction. They are observed as the patient reacts to their condition. Fortin’s finger sign, Minor’s sign, and Vanzetti’s sign are three examples of this principle.
On Feb. 1, 2024, two more legislators – John R. Carter (R-Texas) and Robert “Bob” Good (R-Va.) – co-sponsored the Chiropractic Medicare Coverage Modernization Act of 2023, bringing the co-sponsor total to 155, two more than the total achieved over the entire two-year congressional cycle in which identical legislation last appeared (2021-22).
While working at the Lovelace Medical Center in Albuquerque, N.M., one of the primary care physicians stated that imaging every patient prior to receiving chiropractic was not medically necessary. It was at that point I reconsidered the need for the imaging of every patient to avoid malpractice.
