Chiropractic was established in Singapore in 1978 by an American, *Dr. Carol S.Elder-Birnbaum, when she received the first employment pass issued to a chiropractor in Singapore. During the period 1983-1987, additional D.C.s (*Doctors of Chiropractic) joined the practice. It was during this period that the association was formed, getting its registration as a society in January 1988.
*-not a medical or dental qualification
In 1989, The Chiropractic Association (Singapore) became the national constituent member of the World Federation of Chiropractic (https://www.wfc.org/membercountries/singapore/c176), which has non-governmental organization (NGO) status with the World Health Organization. Additional chiropractic clinics were established throughout the 1990’s and membership grew. As The Chiropractic Association (Singapore) matured, the focus of the association became to continue improving the level of professionalism and standards of the chiropractic profession in Singapore.
In 2000, meetings with Ministry of Health (MOH) Singapore were held and the Director of Medical Services advised the association to develop self-regulation along the lines of the profession in the UK and Hong Kong. Through a consultative process, a self-regulation document (SRD) was developed, ratified by membership and adopted in 2002.
The association now maintains a professional register, in the absence of a government register, which serves the public interest, as well as establishing greater professional credibility, by ensuring internationally recognised standards of chiropractic training, adherence to a strict code of professional ethics and a high standard of professional practice.
The association has also been able to organize continuing education seminars on an annual basis since 2004, when we were fortunate to have Prof. Thomas Bergmann, Northwestern Health Sciences University – Northwestern College of Chiropractic noted author and lecturer here to present a Chiropractic Technique seminar in conjunction with the World Federation of Chiropractic Annual Council meetings held in Singapore that year.
Subsequently we have organized seminars
and achieved milestones with stakeholders
We have been able to organise several continuing education seminars with world-class speakers since 2004, when further growth of the profession and the introduction of some controversial business practice models from USA and Australia led the association to begin a process of revision of the SRD in 2005.
This was done consultatively, however, there were some points that all parties could not agree upon, so that in 2006, a consultant from UK, *Dr. Richard Brown, who has expertise in standards of practice, was engaged to assist in the revamp through a one-week series of workshops.
Based on *Dr. Brown’s recommendations and through a series of meetings of the association membership over a one-year period, a revision of the 2002 self-regulation document (SRD) was ratified by membership in December 2007. Also ratified in December 2007 was the requirement for Continuing Professional Development (Continuing Education) that has to be satisfied for renewal of membership.
The new association regulations have strict rules for the sale of prepaid visit packages and public spinal screenings. As a consequence, because of their individual business practices, several qualified chiropractors were not eligible or chose not to renew their memberships. The remaining core of chiropractors in The Chiropractic Association (Singapore) remain committed to the principle that the interest of the patient is paramount.
Over the years, TCA(S) has continued to engage with key stakeholders on various matters, regularly communicating with them on matters like regulation and public safety. We also usually hold biannual physical meetings with Singapore’s Ministry of Health such as in 2019, 2022, and 2024, with these last two meetings particularly significant as we engaged in meaningful dialogues both times with Minister Mr. Ong Ye Kung, the first times our association has held talks with a sitting Singapore Health Minister. We also work closely alongside other healthcare agencies, for example TCM (Traditional Chinese Medicine) Practitioners Board who sent an official notice in 2022 to all registered TCM Practitioners reminding them not to advertise services related to “chiropractic” or “chiropractor”. TCA(S) also did a landmark collaboration with Singapore’s Health Promotion Board in 2024 for a social media post to promote spinal health in celebration of World Spine Day. We will continue to work alongside other agencies to advocate for public safety, as well as increase professionalism and ethics in the chiropractic profession in Singapore.
