Dr. Henry West’s Son Remembers Father’s Legacy

Dr. Henry West, one of Pocatello’s favorite doctors of chiropractic medicine, died last Tuesday. But he wasn’t just a doctor for people in Idaho, he’s served patients from 48 states and countries around the world. Dr. Henry West west was a third generation chiropractor and an innovator in his field.

The sun was shining on the West Clinic on Saturday, despite the loss felt by the people inside.

“From the time I was a little boy, all I wanted to be was like my dad. I can remember, at 5 years old, getting a white lab coat and a pink stethoscope and following him around,” said Dr. Jason West, Dr. Henry West’s son and fellow chiropractor.

Dr. Jason West said his dad’s dedication inspired him to start his own career in medicine. And he follows a long tradition. Dr. Jason West’s great-grandfather started the first West chiropractic clinic in Old Town in 1916, and the craft has been passed down through four generations of men.

“And I felt like I had gotten knighted. It was so amazing to me that (my dad) started treating me like an equal after I put my dues in,” Dr. Jason West said.

Dr. Henry West was the president of the American Chiropractic Association, he spoke all over the globe on chiropractic medicine, he taught graduate classes and he was an innovator in treating lumbar discs and balancing body chemistry. He opened his office in 1961 and practiced until the week before his death.

“We never really have worked a day in our lives. It’s all been pleasurable. I mean we get to help people all day long. And it’s so addicting to come into the office and to help people get out of pain and improve their quality of life. And you just get drawn and it sucks you in and then that’s who you are,” said Dr. Jason West.

A map on the clinic wall shows where all of the clinic’s patients come from, and from Pocatello to Alaska to New York City, they’ve all come to see the West doctors. Dr. Jason West said he’s finally coming to grips with what to do with one of the biggest representations of his dad: His office.

“One of the things that I was telling one of my patients last night at the viewing was how hard it was for me to go into his office. What do I do with that? Do I shut the door and do I leave everything there? Do I change it into something else? And the patient said to me, ‘You have to have that office. Because that means your dad will always practice with you, he’ll always be there with you,'” Dr. Jason West said.

Dr. Henry West’s funeral was held on Saturday afternoon.