Naturopathic Medicine and Its Place in Modern Healthcare

Complementary and alternative medicine is a distinct system of traditional and natural medicine that seeks to obtain optimal health. Naturopathy is one of the primary providers of care in rural communities and provides care that bridges the gap between contemporary healthcare and traditional cures.  

Nearly half of all primary care roles in rural and regional Australia were fulfilled by naturopaths, and a 2010 study identified reasons why customers made this choice including; practitioners’ affinity with rural patients’ values, open-mindedness, education and prevention measures, as well as longer consultation times, and therapies relating to “old cures like grandma”.

Holistic and naturopathic medicine emphasises the participation of the individual in health outcomes centring on patient-based care, and this relationship is valued by patients who tend to be self-reliant.

If chronic disease “is a condition (…) which has progressed to such an extent that nature’s (…) healing forces are no longer able to react against disease”, it should then come as no surprise that motivation for uptake of natural medicine in rural and regional Australia aligns has increased.

 

 

 

Reference List

Grace, S. (2012). CAM practitioners in the Australian health workforce: an underutilized resource. BMC Complementary and Alternative Medicine, 12(1). https://doi.org/ 10.1186/1472-6882-12-205

Lindlahr, H. (1914). Nature Cure. Miami, FL: Hardpress Publishing.

Martin, K. (2021, July 26). Session 12: Naturopathic Medicine and Contemporary Healthcare [Slides]. Retrieved from https://learn.endeavour.edu.au/mod/scorm/ view.php?id=691187Oxford, C. (2015, April 30). Trish Greenhalgh - ‘Real v Rubbish EBM’ [Video file]. Retrieved from https://www.youtube.com/watch? v=qYvdhA697jI&feature=youtu.be

Reid, R., Steel, A., Wardle, J., Trubody, A., & Adams, J. (2016). Complementary medicine use by the Australian population: a critical mixed studies systematic review of utilisation, perceptions and factors associated with use. BMC Complementary and Alternative Medicine, 16(1). https://doi.org/10.1186/s12906-016-1143-8

Steel, A., Foley, H., Bradley, R., van de Venter, C., Lloyd, I., Schloss, J., . . . Reid, R. (2020). Overview of international naturopathic practice and patient characteristics: results from a cross-sectional study in 14 countries. BMC Complementary Medicine and Therapies, 20(1). https://doi.org/10.1186/s12906-020-2851-7

Steel, A., Tiveron, S., Reid, R., Wardle, J., Cramer, H., Adams, J., . . . Lauche, R. (2020). Do women who consult with naturopaths or herbalists have a healthy lifestyle?: a secondary analysis of the Australian longitudinal study on women’s health. BMC Complementary Medicine and Therapies, 20(1). https://doi.org/10.1186/ s12906-020-03153-6

Stefano, D. V. (2006). Holism and Complementary Medicine: Origins and principles (1st ed.). Abingdon, OX: Routledge.

Wardle, J. L., Adams, J., & Lui, C. W. (2010). A qualitative study of naturopathy in rural practice: A focus upon naturopaths’ experiences and perceptions of rural patients and demands for their services. BMC Health Services Research, 10(1). 

https://doi.org/10.1186/1472-6963-10-185

Wardle, J. L., Sibbritt, D. W., & Adams, J. (2014). The interface with naturopathy in rural primary health care: a survey of referral practices of general practitioners in rural and regional New South Wales, Australia. BMC Complementary and Alternative Medicine, 14(1). https://doi.org/10.1186/1472-6882-14-238

Zeff, J. L. (1997). The process of healing: A unifying theory of naturopathic medicine. Journal of Naturopathic Medicine, 7(1), 122–125. Retrieved from https://ecnh.sharepoint.com/teams/EdTech/NatPDF/ NATP121_SN05_Reading_ProcessOfHealing_S1.pdf