Better 'Evidence Base' Needed for CAM

A damning report released by the House of Lords last week suggests CAM needs better regulation if it is to work alongside the NHS.

The report by the Select Committee on Science and Technology was commissioned to look at how complementary practitioners could work alongside the NHS in future. It concluded that "only those CAM therapies which are statutorily regulated or have robust mechanisms of voluntary self-regulation should be available through public funding". It comes at a time when, even amongst practitioners there is currently much debate over the effectiveness of the current regulatory system.

The committee found that training standards across different organisations and different therapies are diverse and cast doubt on the effectiveness of some therapies. "Many CAM therapies are based on theories about their modes of action that are not congruent with current scientific knowledge", although "That is not to say that new scientific knowledge may not emerge in the future".

The report singled out Osteopathy, Chiropractic and Herbal Medicine as therapies that had established a firm basis of evidence to their effectiveness in the treatment of some ailments. It also claimed that very little research had been carried out in this field due to a lack of private sector funding which is more readily available in the lucrative drugs and medicines markets.

Conventional healthcare practitioners, GPs and hospital staff should also become more familiar with CAM therapies, their uses and any associated weaknesses and dangers, according to the report.

Earlier this year, a report from the British Medical Association found that 82% of GPs had "little or no knowledge" of alternative and complementary therapies. Conversely, more than half the GPs surveyed had referred patients to a complementary practitioner and many believed in the benefits of complementary treatments.

For more details on the training and standards within Complementary healthcare, visit the Guild of Complemetary Practitioners at www.gcpnet.com or contact Edith Maskell at Bromley Health Management.

Sunday, 3 December 2000