Page 14 - BackSpace October 2017

Research
Doing that extra bit for chiropractic research excellence
What is the connection between acquiring new knowledge and information through tutoring, workshops and inspiring talks, and Zumba, floor hockey, football and social nights out for dinner? It was all part of the team-building designed to create a strong group of young researchers at the 2017 inaugural CARL summit, held at the University of Southern Denmark in Odense from 24 to 28 April.
CARL, SHORT for Chiropractic and Academic Research Leadership, brings together the best young academics in chiropractic in a network that meets annually at one of the three home institutions of the three mentors: Professor Jan Hartvigsen, University of Southern Denmark and NIKKB, Professor Greg Kawchuk, University of Alberta and Professor Jon Adams, University of Technology Sydney in Australia. Between meetings they will communicate online and work on collaborative research projects in an effort to enhance evidence-based research.
Jan Hartvigsen said: “CARL is
a great initiative and we hope to create a future global elite in the research of chiropractic through this network of young researchers.”
The 13 CARL Fellows came to Denmark from many parts of the world, bringing diverse disciplinary backgrounds and research
interests that span the fields of biomechanics, gerontology, health
services research, epidemiology, occupational health, qualitative research methods, clinical research and psychology.
So, what do you do, when you want to turn 13 individuals with such varied backgrounds into a team in a very short space of time? Well, you try to get them to step out of their comfort zone and take part in exercises designed to break down any barriers that may have existed between them. This broke the ice and dealt with some of the initial shyness so common when people come face-to-face for the first time.
The programme for the summit was ambitious. For five days,
the CARL Fellows sweated over their notebooks and computers, working hard at acquiring relevant new knowledge and information through tutoring, workshops
and inspiring talks by eminent researchers from the University of Southern Denmark and the Nordic Institute of Chiropractic and Clinical Biomechanics (NIKKB).
The workshops gave the Fellows
an opportunity to exchange points of view as they worked on tasks set by the mentors and there was no holding back in the ensuing discussions. Each individual researcher is a strong character
in his or her own right, and they understand how to get their views across, while at the same time listening to each other and processing other opinions on a given subject.
In the academic work, the CARL Fellows were on home ground, and it showed. As one
of the researchers remarked afterwards: “It was so nice to give a talk to somebody who listened very attentively, understood, and asked intelligent questions.”
Zumba, floor hockey, football, social nights out for dinner – they were all included in the programme to help form the group into a tight unit. Even
the transport to and from the university and the hotel in the city centre was designed to contribute to the togetherness of the group: each of the Fellows was provided with a rented bicycle for the week. Most had never been to Odense before, so they needed to give each other help and support to find their way around in their new and unknown surroundings. Another form of team-building. You could tell there was a lot of thought behind the choices the mentors made when they designed the programme for this summit.
By the end of the week, the CARL Fellows were rapidly becoming a unit, ensuring that chiropractic research has a high standard now and in the future. They finished the week with a
list of research projects that they will develop and deliver over the coming year.
Australian CARL Fellow Katie de Luca commented on the summit: “The intensive week resulted in unanimous agreement among the group that a truly international research collaborative had now been established. Being part of CARL will provide us
with a much-valued support network for our research career development, and will nurture
our leadership capabilities for the chiropractic profession. I wish to profoundly thank Jon Adams, Jan Hartvigsen and Greg Kawchuk for taking time from their professional and personal lives to mentor us; their guidance and leadership
was outstanding. Thank you also to the Fellows for their support and friendship throughout the week. The greatest outcome will be the engaged and collaborative relationships we have made as we pursue our careers in research together.”
The summit in Odense accomplished its objectives and set high standards for the coming summits in Edmonton in 2018 and Sydney in 2019. The results augur well for the future and the coming summits promise to be pretty exciting affairs.
The CARL-programme is co-funded
by a grant from the European Centre
for Chiropractic Research Excellence (ECCRE). The 2017 summit in Odense, Denmark, received financial backing from the Department for Sports Science and Clinical Biomechanics at the University of Southern Denmark and the NIKKB.
Impact Spinal Health
A historic event with record attendance of 1200 chiropractors from around the world, hosted by World Federation of Chiropractic (WFC), Association of Chiropractic Colleges and the American Chiropractic Association. Well over 300 scientific abstracts were presented and a range of breakout sessions provided interesting knowledge updates for clinicians, researchers, educators and leaders of the profession.
14 BACKspace www.chiropractic-ecu.org October 2017
© O Haagensen