User talk:Dematt/Sandbox

Chiropractors obtain a first-professional degree in the field of Chiropractic medicine. Canada and the U.S. require a minimum 90 semester hours of undergraduate education as a prerequisite for chiropractic school. Matriculation through an accredited chiropractic program includes no less than 4200 instructional hours (or the equivalent) of full‐time chiropractic education. Internationally, the World Health Organization (WHO) guidelines suggest three major full-time educational paths culminating in either a DC, DCM, BSc, or MSc degree. Besides the full-time paths, they also suggest a conversion program for people with other health care education and limited training programs for regions where no legislation governs chiropractic.

The WHO also says that health care professionals with advanced clinical degrees can meet the educational and clinical requirements to practice as a chiropractor in 2200 hours. In both cases (4200/2200 hours) this includes a minimum of 1000 hours of supervised clinical training. Depending on the location, continuing education may be required to renew these licenses.

In the United States, chiropractic schools are accredited through the Council on Chiropractic Education (CCE). The CCE-USA has joined with CCEs in Australia, Canada, and Europe forming CCE - International (CCE-I) as a model of accreditation standards with the goal of having credentials portable internationally. Today, there are 18 accredited Doctor of Chiropractic programs in the USA, 2 in Canada, and 4 in Europe and the UK. All but one of the chiropractic colleges in the United States are privately funded, but in several other countries they are in government-sponsored universities and colleges.

Regulatory colleges and chiropractic boards in the U.S., Canada, Australia, Mexico and U.S. territories are responsible for protecting the public, standards of practice, disciplinary issues, quality assurance and maintenance of competency. In 2006, there were approximately 53,000 chiropractors in the United States and over 6500 chiropractors licensed in Canada.