Some examples of complementary therapy are…
- Art therapy,
- Music therapy,
- Massage,
- Acupuncture,
- Aromatherapy,
- Chiropractic,
- Colour therapy,
- Diet therapy,
- Exercise,
- Imagery therapy,
- Herbal medicine,
- Meditation,
- Pet therapy,
- Pilates,
- Reiki,
- Shiatsu,
- Sound therapy,
- Spiritual healing,
- Yoga.
Complementary therapies are more spiritual compared to the scientific method of conventional medicine and originally originated from the ancient history of the Chinese, Indian, Egyptian and many other originated medicines.
The medicine of ancient peoples was a combination of faith, blind luck, smoke, heat, and reliance on what nature provided, such as leaves, herbs, and roots. The ancients knew about healing, preventing diseases, and potions that could cure, kill, make one sick, or ease the pains of snakebites, rheumatism, or child birth.
In accordance to this complementary therapies and conventional medicines are no better than the other in a sense of modern procedures is more predictable than ancient therapies. Although some ancient therapeutic methods were dangerous due to a lack of knowledge when at the time these methods were practiced and developed.
I will now explain why treatments are used in early year’s settings. As I have already mentioned complementary therapy is used in combination with conventional medicine methods to supplement one another. I will now explain why this may be used for the treatment of illnesses in children.
If a child has a common and well known illness of children called asthma and is receiving conventional medicine methods for example inhalers such as bricynol or turbohaler, peakflow, etc complementary therapy can be combined such as hypnotherapy, breathing exercises and even yoga.
This supplements what has been prescribed by the child’s doctor who is treating the symptoms of the child’s asthma and also helps the parents of the child and even the child themselves to gain even more knowledge on the subject at their level and grasp an understanding of the illness itself. This is due to the therapist taking a holistic approach to the treatment of illness by identifying and treating the underlying cause of the illness rather than simply treating the symptoms. I will now use other examples to show this progression of the use of complementary therapy in child health care.
If a child has a skin condition such as eczema or acne and is receiving medication to treat the condition ad crèmes to help soothe or calm the condition then complementary therapy can be used to also supplement the conventional method treatment. Acupuncture is a therapy that would complement the conventional medicine method. Acupuncturists believe energy flows through the body and if this flow is disturbed illness will occur. To cure this block the acupuncturist will use long thin needles to tap into particular points of the body to rebalance the body’s normal energy flow. According to the “Working in complementary therapy” case studies leaflet acupuncture can help with all sorts of problems including arthritis, skin problems and high blood pressure. It is also used for pain control.
If a child is prone to headaches or even migraines and is receiving medication to relieve the painful symptoms of this illness complementary therapy can also be used in accordance to conventional medicine. Osteopathy can be used in conjunction to complement the child’s method of treatment. Osteopathy focuses on abnormalities in the body’s structure and functionality which in turn cause the said illness. According to the “Working in complementary therapy” case studies leaflet osteopaths treat people of all ages, from tiny babies to the elderly. Osteopathy can help with all kinds of problems including back pain, arthritis, migraine, repetitive strain injury and sports injury.
These both also supplement what has been prescribed by the child’s doctor who is treating the symptoms of the child’s skin conditions, headaches and migraines and also helps the parents of the child and even the child themselves to gain even more knowledge on the subject at their level and grasp an understanding of the illness itself.
Another reason as to why complementary therapies are being used in child health care is that of the overuse of antibiotics which causes infections not to be eliminated and the infection becomes builds up a barrier and becomes immune to the antibiotic.
Over prescribing them has resulted in the development of bacteria that don't respond to antibiotics that may have worked in the past. A child who takes antibiotics when it isn't necessary runs the unnecessary risk of adverse reactions such as stomach upset and diarrhoea (kidshealth.org). Because antibiotics were such a revolutionary advance in the treatment of infectious diseases doctors slipped into the habit of prescribing them for , even those known to be , just to be on the safe side. They also thought they might help the child get better a bit faster. Although it is now known that this is not the case and can do more harm than what was actually intended.
In conclusion to this complementary therapy can be used to supplement child health care the conventional way that may be working as prescribed or to even find an alternative to the conventional medicine that could be doing more harm that what is thought it should do.
Now I am going to outline the legislation, training and registration requirements for complementary therapists. I am going to discuss registration requirements for therapists, legal implications for example the need for appropriate qualifications, litigation and malpractice and finally the Medicines Act 1968.
I will first discuss the Medicine Act 1968. The Medicines Act 1968 is an of the . It governs the manufacture and supply of medicine. The act introduces three categories of medicine…
- prescription only drugs, which are available only from a pharmacist if prescribed by a doctor;
- pharmacy medicines, available only from a pharmacist but without a prescription; and
- general sales medicine which may be bought from any shop without a prescription. It makes possession of prescription drugs without a prescription an offence.
The legal implications of the Medicines Act 1968 indicate that products with a medical claim can only be marketed under licence, the granting of which depends upon the supply of data on safety, quality and efficacy of that product for its claimed indications. (alternativevet.org). this means that all medicines must be tested to be proven they actually work as what they are intended and are also safe to use and will not cause harm to the person obtaining the medicine. It assures total safety for that person.
Now that I have looked at the medicines act I will now discuss the etry and training requirements to become a complementary therapist.
Until single therapy registers have been established and the criteria for registration identified, education and training requirements have not yet been defined.
There are currently no statutory registration requirements for the practitioners of complementary medicine in Ireland. Practitioners of this care are now generally refered to a complementary therapists. (citizensinformation.ie). the only two careers as a complementary therapist that are expected by law to obtain particular registration requirements by law is osteopathy and chiropractors.
Some therapists have degrees and postgraduate qualifications, some jobs and training courses have no formal entry requirements.
Litigation is a legal proceeding in a court. It is a judicial contest to determine and enforce legal rights
it is the process of carrying on a lawsuit. A civil action in which a controversy is brought before the court (courts.mo.gov). It is a legal dispute between parties argued in a court.
In the United Kingdom the common law right to choose one's own treatment for illness has been barely constrained by law. It is thus legal for practitioners to set themselves up in a wide variety of healthcare professions, as long as they do not claim to be registered medical practitioners and do not practise protected disciplines such as dentistry, midwifery, and veterinary medicine or supply medicines limited to prescription.
Acupuncturists, herbalists, osteopaths, and naturopaths have been prosecuted for practising without medical qualifications, and the technical illegality of much complementary practice has meant that it has been pursued informally and disparately, with less opportunity for professional organisations to develop.
In the United Kingdom, the lack of proscription has meant that there are few formal obligations to meet any particular standard and individual practitioners have been able to pursue their own path without sanction. They do not have to submit to authority, building their base on their ability to please their market and their patients.
The natural instinct for self enhancement of professional status has led most practitioners to subscribe to organisations overtly raising standards.
Two complementary therapy career paths, osteopathy and chiropractic, have moved along the path of self regulation and now have acts of parliament that protect their titles and provide additional external and orthodox regulation of their activities. Both the General Osteopathic Council and the General Chiropractic Council have opened their statutory registers. Once the process of registering existing practitioners is complete, it will be a criminal offence to practice as an osteopath or chiropractor unless you are registered with the appropriate council. Osteopathy focuses on abnormalities in the body’s structure and functionality which in turn cause the said illness. According to the “Working in complementary therapy” case studies leaflet osteopaths treat people of all ages, from tiny babies to the elderly. Osteopathy can help with all kinds of problems including back pain, arthritis, migraine, repetitive strain injury and sports injury.
The GOsC is responsible for taking action against any osteopath who is found guilty of unacceptable conduct or professional misconduct, anyone who has been convicted of a criminal offence and anyone whose health problems prevent them from practising properly.
Its code of practice lays down the standards expected of all osteopaths on the register.
Over the years other osteopathic governing bodies were formed, though the GCRO remained the largest in Britain. Osteopaths Act received royal assent on 1st July 1993. The Act could not be implemented immediately as the General Osteopathic Council had not been formed at that point and so it has taken until 9th May 2000 before the register of osteopaths has been drawn up. It is now an offence in law for anybody to describe themselves as an osteopath if they are not on this register (registered-osteopath.org)
Chiropractors specialises in the diagnosis, treatment and management of the nervous system and hence the overall health of the patient. Not just the diagnosis of symptoms that your general practitioner would diagnose and treat.
Chiropractors working in the UK must train for four years full-time as well as completing one supervised year after graduation before becoming a fully registered practitioner. Chiropractors at Creative Chiropractic are registered by law under the Chiropractors Act 1994 and with the General Chiropractic Council (GCC). The title 'Chiropractor' is protected under this legislation.
The GCC was established under 1994 legislation and is responsible for regulating chiropractors in the UK. In 1999, it established a register of chiropractors and by 2001 anyone who describes themselves by that term must be on the register (news.bbc.co.uk).
Now that I have discussed the entry and legal requirements for complementary therapy I will now discuss why it is important for complementary therapists to have appropriate training and qualifications.
The increasing demand for alternative health care across the developed world has, therefore, sometimes been met by practitioners outside the law and without recognisable training qualifications, professional standards, or insurance.
Complementary and alternative medicine is in need of stricter controls on practitioners, more research into safety and efficacy
The lack of regulation causes unacceptable risk. Complementary therapies may be unsafe in a number of ways: products may be unsafe because they are impure, contaminated, adulterated or non-authentic. Products may be unsafe if they are used by certain patients for example pregnant women or patients with renal and hepatic diseases
As I have already mentioned the legal implications of the Medicines Act 1968 indicate that products with a medical claim can only be marketed under licence, the granting of which depends upon the supply of data on safety, quality and efficacy of that product for its claimed indications although many herbal medicies are being marketed with implied claims in literature, upon the label or in the name (alternativevet.org)
This in turn is deteriorating the medicine act 1968 as it states that no medical drug will be authorised unless it is known to be safe and does actually do what it intends to do although herbal remedies are unbeknown as to wether they really work so this is contradicting the act and putting the public at risk as the herbal medicine could create harmful side effects and do more damage than what it intends to do.
There is need for the protection of the public from bogus claims, more objective and impartial advice, high quality clinical trials, practice research and health economics research, adequate training for all complementary medicine practitioners, regulation to protect the public from risks associated with complementary therapies, a licensing system that would regulate all herbal medicines for appropriate evidence of efficacy as well as safety and quality and greater integration of complementary medicine into health care.
Although a patient may think a condition has improved following complementary therapy, the condition may be no better or may be masked, and the patient may delay seeking advice from a health care professional. Patients therefore need ready access to professional help (“the pharmaceutical journal”)
Patients may replace there conventional medicine practitioner for complementary therapy as they may feel it is the “natural” way to good health allow a complementary therapist can easily miss serious illnesses such as cancer which can be fatal for the patient as a the conventional method would spot the disease instantly and begin treatment.
And finally a complementary practitioner’s patient may not let their general practitioner know they are using herbal remedies as well as their conventional medicine prescription although this can interact with it and prevent it from working.
If a general practitioner does not have the appropriate training and qualifications they can be doing more harm than what they originally intended to do.
In conclusion I have defined the term complementary therapy and explained why treatments are used in the early year’s settings. I have also outlined the legislation, training and registration requirements for complementary therapists and finally explained why it is important for the complementary therapists to have appropriate training and qualifications.
