News

EC threat to therapies

There is mounting anxiety and confusion among complementary practitioners at the approach of 1992. The prospect of Europe-wide harmonisation of medical practice is generating widespread fears over the future of alternative therapies.

Though directives are already emanating from Brussels — most immediately to review all drugs and remedies, including herbal and homeopathic medicine, by the end of 1990 — nobody seems sure what the impact, if any, will be on complementary medicine in Britain.

Some practitioners feel little will change. ‘It’s not going to make much difference,’ says Dr. David Dowson of the Centre for the Study of Alternative Therapies. ‘Legislation will probably remain with the individual countries, though there may possibly be a problem for unqualified practitioners.’

Hubert Mitchell, vice-president of the British Herbal Medicine Association, takes a similar view. ‘It will mean more bureaucracy, but no real change in the quality of products, or in consumer protection,’ he says, adding that though there is likely to be stricter control of labelling and advertising ‘Europe still wants over the counter herbal medicine’.

Such confidence is not echoed by all, however. At the British Holistic Medical Association, Tania Dolley felt the future was still in doubt.

She would support moves to establish codes of practice and accreditation for therapists, she said — a move which would head-off the looming possibility that all therapies — orthodox and complementary — might be restricted to medically qualified doctors.

Anthony Baird, of the Institute of Complementary Medicine, is also totally against the ‘medicalisation’ of alternative medicine.

’There is an attempt by the French government — urged on by French doctors — to ban all except medical doctors from practising. ‘It would be frightful,’ he said.

But Mr. Baird is confident that the Dutch and British governments are on his side. ‘We have a lot of sympathisers,’ he told healthmatters, citing back bench support in both the Lords and the Commons. ‘We are going to win this.’