Disability and Rehabilitation Committee

Download the Joint Statement - World Health Day - Rehabilitation PDF

Chair

Dr Katie DE LUCA BAppSc, MChiro, PhD (Australia)

Chiropractor, Academic, CQUniversity, Brisbane.

Associate Professor de Luca is the Chair of the WFC’s Disability and Rehabilitation Committee and represents the WFC on the World Rehabilitation Alliance, research workstream. She was awarded her PhD in Medicine and Public Health in 2016. Katie has more than 70 peer-reviewed publications and speaks frequently at national and international scientific conferences. Her research interests lie in the epidemiology and management of musculoskeletal conditions, particularly in the elderly, however she has broad interests across chiropractic, sports medicine, public health and rural health. A/Prof de Luca has >$5 million in research funding, including two Australian government MRFF grants and led the Australian Back Complaints in the Elderly: Chiropractic study. Her contribution to research includes the 2021 Global Burden of Disease low back pain, and musculoskeletal estimates, published in Lancet Rheumatology, which have informed international health policy. Her teaching at CQUniversity is focused on research literacy for health professionals, social perspectives of health and musculoskeletal conditions across the lifespan. She embeds a love for research in her teaching, to empower chiropractors of the future to be critical thinkers.

Dr Afua ADJEI-KWAYISI, MD, DC (Ghana)

Medical doctor and chiropractor working at the Ridge Hospital, Accra, Ghana.

Dr Adjei-Kwayisi leads a multidisciplinary rehabilitative team in the department of physical therapy and rehabilitation at the Greater Accra regional hospital. She was also responsible for the creation of a spinal clinic this public regional hospital and works in collaboration with the World Spine Care non-profit organization, offering evidence-based spine care services to underserved individuals in her community. Dr Adjei-Kwayisi also works part-time in private practice, leading a team offering integrated rehabilitation services utilizing chiropractic, physiotherapy, aquatherapy and massage.

Dr Nooralhuda BAKAA, DC, MSc, PhD (c) (Canada)

Chiropractor and researcher based in Hamilton, Ontario, Canada.

Dr Bakaa graduated from the Canadian Memorial Chiropractic College (CMCC) in 2018 and have been in clinical practice for 6 years. In 2023, she opened her own clinical practice and works there part-time. After graduating from CMCC, she was awarded a masters degree in rehabilitation sciences from McMaster University, during which she focused on knee osteoarthritis. She is currently in the last year of her PhD at McMaster, where her research focus is on the management of lumbar spinal stenosis as well as diversity, equity, and inclusion within rehabilitation.

Dr Amy BOWZAYLO, DC (Bahrain)

Chiropractor, clinician, hospital department lead, Bahrain.

Dr Bowzaylo graduated from Palmer West Chiropractic College in 1996. Since qualifying, she has worked in the United States, Australia, Saudi Arabia and Bahrain, where she currently resides. In Saudi Arabia, Dr Bowzaylo served as the Deputy Director of Allied Health and the Director of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation (PMR) at a 550-bed triple-accredited, private hospital in Al Khobar, Saad Specialist Hospital. This department had a staff of 134, which included chiropractors, physical therapists, occupational therapists, speech therapists and prosthetics and orthotics. We were triple accredited from JCI, Accreditation Canada and the Australian accreditation. Within the PMR department, staff oversaw both Inpatient and outpatient care in with dedicated wards for stroke, traumatic brain injury and spinal cord injuries.

Dr Bowzaylo moved to Bahrain in 2011 and spent 3½ years ensuring that chiropractic was licensed as an independent health profession. In 2014, she opened the first Integrated rehabilitation clinic in Bahrain. This was also the first rehabilitation facility to be accredited by NHRA (the local regulatory authority). She currently oversees a team of 34 staff, including chiropractors, physical therapists, exercise rehabilitation specialists, sports scientists, manual therapists and a clinical psychologist. The care model is fully integrated within the clinic as well as being closely connected to external practitioners. Dr Bowzaylo works with the Bahrain Royal Medical Services as a consultant to improve their physical medicine and rehabilitation provision in 4 hospitals across the Kingdom, focusing on integration, quality assurance, standardization of care, and implementation of Integrated care models with clinical pathways. She and her team are currently working on establishing a national stroke center at one of the hospitals and a cardiac rehabilitation center at another. Dr Bowzaylo also serves as the medical director of the Bahrain Rugby Football Club, which has chiropractors, physical therapists and athletic trainers looking after five different sports.

Dr Raul CARILLO, DC (Mexico)

Chiropractor, National Medical Director, Ministry of Sport, Government of Mexico.

Dr Carrillo is a 1996 graduate of Northwestern Health Sciences University. He also undertook a postgraduate program of study in sports and neurological rehabilitation from the International Center for Neurological Restoration Hospital in Havana, Cuba. Dr Carrillo served as advisor to the Monterrey Institute of Technology (Monterrey Tech) Medical School from 2008-2011 and as a public health advisor to the Coahuila State Governor (2002-2006). Dr Carrillo is the co-owner and co- founder of Integra Health, REBIOGER, Centra Hospital and RDI imaging centers in Monterrey, Mexico, a group of multidisciplinary practices where orthopaedic surgery, neurosurgery radiology, physical medicine and rehabilitation, sports medicine, physiotherapy and chiropractic services are provided. Dr Carrillo’s current research interests are focused on the efficacy of chiropractic care in spinal disorders, sleep, performance and cervicogenic vertigo after concussion-TBI.

Dr Patricia ESTRADA, DC (United States)

Chiropractor, Assistant Professor, educator, Logan University, St Louis, Missouri.

Originally from El Salvador, Dr Estrada is an Assistant Professor and chiropractic clinician. She has been a practising chiropractor for almost 25 years, twelve of which she has served concurrently as a faculty member and supervising clinician at Logan University. She has practiced as a chiropractor in Costa Rica and owned and ran a private practice in St. Louis. Her current role involves supervising student clinicians at the interdisciplinary Stephen A. Orthwein Center in St. Louis, Missouri, a facility for people living with conditions related to a previous history of stroke, traumatic brain injury, spinal cord injury, and other neurological conditions.

Dr Jean-Luc GAUTHIER, DC, MSc (Canada)

Chiropractor, educator, PhD candidate, Montréal, Québec.

Dr Gauthier has 20 years of experience as a chiropractor and is a lecturer at UQTR in Quebec, where he teaches biomechanics, exercise physiology, pathomechanics, and functional rehabilitation within the chiropractic department. He has a master’s degree in kinesiology and works as a clinician with professional athletes. Dr Gauthier has completed a postgraduate certificate aiming to improve rehabilitation processes within the curriculum. As part of his PhD studies, which focus on the human fascias, he has taught manual therapists from Tunisia and Belgium.

Dr Jordan GLIEDT, DC (United States)

Chiropractor, Assistant Professor, Medical College of Wisconsin, Milwaukee.

Dr Gliedt’s academic appointment is allocated to 90% clinical care within the Medical College of Wisconsin’s (MCW) partner teaching hospital system. He consults with patients 36 hours / week within an interdisciplinary ambulatory spine clinic (chiropractors, physical therapists, occupational therapists, pain psychologists, interventional pain physicians, physical medicine & rehabilitation physicians, neurosurgeons, orthopedic surgeons). The remaining 10% of his appointment is dedicated to scholarship, education, and research. He is the associate director of a chiropractic postgraduate clinical fellowship at the MCW and is a supervisor for chiropractic students completing clinical preceptorships at MCW. Dr Gliedt has worked on multiple national and international committees focusing on spine-related healthcare.

Dr Brett GUIST, BHSc, MSc, DC, CSCS (Canada)

Chiropractor, clinician, educator, Canadian Memorial Chiropractic College, Toronto.

Dr Guist splits his time between private practice and teaching at the Canadian Memorial Chiropractic College (CMCC). His practice is interdisciplinary (chiropractors, physiotherapists, massage therapists, kinesiologists, a psychotherapist, and a network of various exercise professionals), located in mid-town Toronto, with a heavy rehabilitation focus. His teaching is also focused on rehabilitation; he serves as the course co-ordinator for the rehabilitation curriculum at CMCC. Dr Guest is also connected to the Canadian Chiropractic Guideline Initiative (CCGI) and was involved in the development of systematic reviews that helped inform the recent WHO guideline on the treatment of chronic primary low back pain in adults.

Dr Jakob LOTHE, DC (Norway)

Chiropractor, clinician, researcher, Norway.

Dr. Jakob Lothe, DC, has represented the WFC European Region on the WFC Board since 2022. A 1988 graduate of AECC, he has practiced in Oslo for over 35 years. He served as President of the Norwegian Chiropractors’ Association (NKF) from 2010–2018 and was a member of the ECU General Council. Dr. Lothe has championed interprofessional collaboration and musculoskeletal health, notably chairing the Norwegian Council for Musculoskeletal Health (2009–2021). He is a member of the Global Alliance for Musculoskeletal Health’s ICC and represents GMUSC in the WHO World Rehabilitation Alliance, advocating for disability prevention and research advancement.

Dr Peter TUCHIN BSc, GradDipChiro, PhD (Australia)

Chiropractor, researcher, mental health expert, Sydney, Australia.

Dr Tuchin has been qualified as a chiropractor for almost 40 years. He worked at Macquarie University in Sydney in the field of chiropractic education and research for over 30 years. His areas of research are headache, migraine, vertebral artery dissection stroke, and chronic pain. He continues to be active in research and professional development for the chiropractic profession and in mental health. Dr Tuchin is a past president of the Chiropractic and Osteopathic College of Australasia and was awarded Life membership in 2017. Ihe serves on the Board of Directors of a national charity (Lifeline) which provides support for people with mental health problems. He also also volunteers on the Lifeline 24hr suicide crisis line and have a strong interest in mental health, having lost his wife to suicide in 2017. Dr Tuchin has worked as a workplace health and safety consultant to companies for over 25 years.

Professor Arnold WONG, BSc, PT, MPhil, PhD (Hong Kong SAR)

Physiotherapist, educator, researcher, Hong Kong.

Professor Wong worked as a physiotherapist in clinical practice in an acute hospital in Hong Kong before completing his PhD studies at the University of Alberta. He is currently an Associate Professor and Program Leader of the undergraduate physiotherapy program at the Hong Kong Polytechnic University. In his role, he teaches courses on exercise science, electrophysical modalities, and muscle physiology. He is actively involved in research with interests focusing on spinal pathologies, treatments related to low back pain, scoliosis, and lumbar spinal stenosis. He has over 14 years’ experience of collaborating with chiropractic and physiotherapy colleagues nationally and internationally. He is a committee member in the Hong Kong Physiotherapy Association, and at the International Society for the Studies of the Lumbar Spine.

Professor Bradley BEIRA, MTechC, ICSSD, AHLF, BComLaw, LLM (South Africa)

Chiropractor, Secretary-General, World Federation of Chiropractic.

Brad Beira is Secretary General of the World Federation of Chiropractic and Director of World Spine Care Africa. A clinician, educator, and medico-legal advisor, he lectures globally on public health, digital health ecosystems, and universal healthcare strategies aligned with WHO initiatives. With over 25 years of experience, Brad has held senior roles in global health, risk management, and governance. He serves on several boards and has published on health economics, ethics, and data privacy. Passionate about value-based care in underserved areas, he is also an avid trail runner, drawing inspiration from nature for his professional work.