My ex-husband says that chiropractors are not real doctors.
I argue that they have to go to college and earn a degree and have earned the title doctor.
In order to be accepted into any chiropractic college, students must take the same pre-requisites as any future medical student.
This includes 1 year of math, English, physics, and 2 years of chemistry (all with accompanying lab classes).
Chiropractic students receive a very similar education as medical students, with emphasis on diagnosis of many different medical conditions, lab work (blood or urine analysis), and basic sciences (physiology, pathology, basic anatomy, and neuroanatomy).
In addition, chiropractic students receive over 100 hours in palpation and technique courses, much more thoroughly than any Physical therapist or even MD attempting to 'manipulate' the spine.
Over 100 hours are also dedicated to learning radiology - how to take x-ray and interpret them - again, much more thoroughly than any medical student (those that are not specializing in radiology, of course).
So, yes, chiropractors are real doctors, and can recognize many different medical conditions and refer out appropriately.
Several studies have also shown that chiropractors are superior in dealing with musculoskeletal conditions (ie - neck pain and back pain), as well as other complaints than many MDs may ignore or cannot do anything about.