Can alternative healing become integrative medicine?
Ashley Alton is a registered traditional Chinese medical practitioner from Toronto, Ont., and she called in to share her perspective on the public's misinformation of so-called "alternative healing." She says she prefers the term "integrative medicine" and that regulatory colleges should do a better job of informing the public of the specializations of different health practitioners.
Ashley spoke with Checkup guest host Duncan McCue:
On the responsibility for safe health care
I think that the public needs to be more educated on the different types of practitioners, their training and scope of practice. It's important that everyone starts to take more responsibility for their health. But it's just as important that all the various health-care professionals are adequately trained, and it's the practitioner's responsibility to ensure that they are making safe recommendations for their clients.
On practitioner training
As a Chinese medicine practitioner and acupuncturist, I have over four years of training in Chinese and herbal medicine. My training included Western patho-physiology, Western understanding of the body, differential diagnosis, and microbiology, in order to ensure that I am able identify red flags in my patients. This allows me to know when there is an emergency situation outside of my scope of practice. In order to practice safely, I have to have a solid understanding of Western scientific medicine. Without that knowledge, I wouldn't be able to notice red flags and make the proper recommendations to go to a medical doctor, or if need be, to go to the emergency, or a walk-in clinic.
On the term "alternative medicine"
I always encourage my clients to be working with their medical doctor. Part of the problem in referring to this medicine as "alternative medicine" is it implies that it has to be one modality or the other. I prefer the term "integrative medicine" because we should take the strength of all these different medicines. I encourage my clients to check in with their medical doctors, and to be open with them about any herbal medicines I'm prescribing.
On regulatory colleges and public misinformation
I don't see that the regulatory colleges are really educating the public about the different types of practitioners. There's a lot of confusion around what is the difference between a "naturopath" and a "Chinese medicine practitioner", and an "herbalist", and so on. Our training is very different.
When acupuncture was regulated in Ontario in 2013, they made an allowance for several different types of practitioners. I believe seven other colleges allowed their members to practice acupuncture. If you compare the training that a chiropractor gets in acupuncture, which is usually around two or three months, and that of a registered acupuncturist, which is closer to three years, there's a big difference in the familiarity with that tool that they're using. The public really doesn't know that. I think the regulatory colleges could be doing a lot more to educate the public on the difference.
Ashley's comments have been edited and condensed. This online segment was prepared by Champagne Choquer.