2013 NZCC CONGRESS DELEGATION
Between 5-13 April this year, 125 chiropractic students representing 22 chiropractic colleges from across the globe came together for the 34thannual World Congress of Chiropractic Students (WCCS) AGM. This congress was unlike any other with the majority of business holding breakout and discussion formats. Huge achievements were reached and milestones hit that see the WCCS moving forward towards its goal of “advancing and uniting the global chiropractic profession.”
Every year, the NZCC-WCCS is acknowledged as one of the most organised and hard working delegations. This year was no different. Our presence did not go un-noticed and the team was awarded the “Best Delegation Award” at the gala evening; an award we are honoured to receive.
Ali Schwarz (3rd year) Bronwyn Hunt (2nd year), Caroline Jackson (1st year), Dipal Patel (3rd Year), Emma Matthews (1st year) Jagoda Janik (1st year) and Shira Michaeli (4th year) were selected to represent the NZCC at this life and chiropractic changing event.
The four days of congress sessions began the voting in of five new member colleges to the WCCS. This was followed by presentations from various committees formed over the past 3 years and presentations by the Board of Directors on WCCS’s presence at various international meetings including; the National Board of Chiropractic Examiners (NBCE) leadership forum, the World Federation of Chiropractic (WFC) Educational Conference 2012, the Spinal Research Foundation and the British Association of Chiropractic Students. What was clear from these presentations was that the WCCS has taken great strides in recent years to ensure the organisation is moving forward and growing from strength to strength. The following days saw Robert’s Rules of Order on hold while Congress entered regional and inter-regional discussions and breakout sessions. This provided a heightened sense of unanimity where by all 125 voices present were heard and understood. We retuned our focus remembering our strength is in our communication and our understanding of each other as a global student body.
This year, we presented two proposals to Congress. The first focused around improving the WCCS’s online presence with the creation of a WCCS Wikipedia page in over 10 languages. This proposal was well received by congress and passed unanimously. The second proposal focused around forming a committee to research the New Zealand Chiropractic Board’s (NZCB) changes to the privacy policy in the Chiropractic Code of Ethic. This is a committee chaired by Ali Schwarz.
Shira Michaeli was appointed the chair of the website committee and was re-appointed web master of wccsworldwide.org in collaboration with Derek Cardenas of Life College of Chiropractic West. Shira is also serving on the Standard Operating Procedures and Policies committee (SOPPs); the only WCCS committee that is selected by an election. Bronwyn Hunt and Caroline Jackson are serving on the External Collaboration Committee; a committee aimed and seeking external opportunities for the WCCS to work with other organisations to further the chiropractic profession. Emma Matthews is part of the International Media Day Committee; a committee tasked with improving the public awareness of chiropractic and chiropractic related issues. Dipal Patel was appointed the Western Pacific representative on WCCS’s Research Council. Jagoda Janik has joined the International Mobility Committee, along with Ali Schwarz. This is perhaps the WCCS’s most successful committee. It was formed in 2009 and aims to help make Chiropractic international mobility easier by streamlining all resources and information through a single source.
Another resounding fact noted from other regions of the world was how much of a powerhouse the Western Pacific Region is. The region consisted of NZCC, Macquarie University (Sydney), Murdoch University (Perth), Central Queensland University of Australia (MacKay) and the International Medical University (Malaysia). This was the International Medical University’s first attendance at the WCCS. Much of this can be attributed Dr Sharni Meyer (Macquarie University) who has been re-elected as the Western Pacific Regional Representative of the current Board of Directors. Dr Meyer has also been chosen as the current President of the WCCS.
Finally, the Congress elected a convenor to host in 2015. Congress 2015 will be hosted by Life University in the USA.
The future of the WCCS and Chiropractic is in great hands. The NZCC Chapter is looking forward to the 35th Annual WCCS AGM in March next year in Malaga, Spain and for America in 2015. We are excited about continuing our legacy as one of the hardest working and most inspirational delegations at Congress.