Pitt’s School of Health and Rehabilitation Sciences launches Doctor of Chiropractic program

Dean of the School of Health and Rehabilitation Sciences Anthony Delitto said Pitt’s new Doctor of Chiropractic program marks a big advancement in academic medicine.

“Opening a Doctor of Chiropractic education program in a research-intensive university is a bold and innovative step toward advancing health care education, fostering interdisciplinary collaboration and improving patient outcomes,” Delitto said.

SHRS announced its new Doctor of Chiropractic program Feb. 19, and Pitt will open applications in fall of 2024.  This program is the first at a research-intensive public university in the U.S., as well as the first program in Pennsylvania. 

Practicing chiropractors from around the area will act as adjunct faculty, according to SHRS’s website. Michael Schneider, a professor and researcher in SHRS’s Department of Physical Therapy, will act as the program’s director. Schneider said he believes the program’s approval is a sign of change regarding how Chiropractic is viewed by the medical community. He said Pitt sourced data to back up this decision to launch the program. 

“National survey data showing that the use of Chiropractic by Americans has gone up every decade,” Schneider said. “Out of all the integrative health procedures that are out there, Chiropractic is utilized the most.”

The National Institutes of Health groups types of medical practitioners together in their 27 institutes. 10 years ago, the NIH changed the category’s name from the Complementary and Alternative Health institute to the Complementary and Integrative Health institute. Schneider argues this change shows that chiropractors are becoming more mainstream.

“The NIH looked at these interventions and said they’re not alternatives to medicine anymore,” said Schneider. “It’s bad terminology. And I think that’s very profound.” 

In preparation for approving the program, the University paid for a formal market analysis on whether or not the program is financially viable. The analysis found that many pre-med graduate students thought the Pitt name held respect. And, if a Chiropractic program were to be offered by Pitt, they would be interested. Along with University faculty, Schneider oversaw the data collection as well. 

Junior natural sciences major Olivia Garzone holds similar sentiments. She said Pitt is specifically prepared to house this program. 

“Pitt is an incredible organization for the health fields,” Garzone said. “The opportunities that UPMC and other providers in the city have to offer are incredible. People who go to Pitt are often better prepared because of their ability to shadow and experience so many unique topics.”

This program will branch out Pitt’s doctoral programs into varying areas of medicine. Garzone thinks this will diversify Pitt medicine. 

“It is definitely a new area for Pitt medicine as they dive more into holistic and pain management, which is wildly untapped and becoming more popular,” said Garzone.

The program has already gained interest from both hopeful students and hopeful adjunct faculty. Garzone said she is one of the interested students. She said the program, which is eight terms long, is different from others.

“I am definitely interested in the program,” said Garzone. “The setup is unique from the others I have looked at.” 

With the growing interest in Chiropractic, Schneider thinks the typical medical mindset is shifting. He said respect is growing for other kinds of practitioners. 

“The hierarchy of medicine is starting to break down,” Schneider said. “The doctor was thought of as sort of the god and everybody else was sort of below them — that mentality is changing.”

Schneider also notes the change to a more collaborative approach to healthcare.

“Team based healthcare is becoming more of the norm now, rather than silos of care,” Schneider said. “It’s really important.”

The SHRS’s program will focus on evidence-based spine and musculoskeletal care and will integrate hands-on learning from day one. 

Those interested in the program can visit the admissions page to check requirements before the applications open officially. Interviews will take place for top applicants after the initial round of applying.