Nontraditional_Healthcare

Module Five Assignment Grand Canyon University HLT 324 March 14, 2010 I live in the state of Arizona so while researching nontraditional health care I discovered that Arizona not only has one of five naturopathic medical schools accredited by the Association of Accredited Naturopathic Medical Colleges (AANMC) in the United States but is also one of fifteen states that actually licenses naturopathic physicians as primary care doctors. Naturopathic medicine is often referred to as natural medicine. It is believed that you need to support one’s own body’s abilities to achieve optimal health and that disease is the body’s way of purifying itself. Naturopathic doctors believe that disease has to be treated by stimulating the body in order to heal itself not treat the symptoms like medical doctors. There are six principles that all naturopathic physicians follow by while helping to treat their patients. These principles play an important role in naturopathic medicine. In order to become a naturopathic physician one has to follow the same medical path as a medical doctor except instead of attending a traditional medical school they will attend a naturopathic medical school. I am a very scientific minded person so the idea of naturopathic medicine was in away a foreign concept to me. I knew it existed but I was unsure as to what it really consisted of. According to the Arizona Naturopathic Medical Association (AzNMA), “Naturopathic medicine accomplishes heath care sing holistic diagnosis in conjunction with the following therapies; clinical nutrition, botanical medicine, homeopathic medicine, physical medicine, lifestyle counseling, pharmaceutical medicine, and minor surgery.” (Arizona Naturopathic Medical Association (AzNMA), 2006). Those who practice naturopathic medicine treat and prevent disease, help the patient to maintain optimal health, and help the patient to achieve their inherent self-healing process. Naturopathic medicine combines the wonders of nature with modern science in order to help the body to maintain optimal health. According to the American Association of Naturopathic Physicians, “Naturopathic physicians base their practice on six timeless principles founded on medical tradition and scientific evidence; let nature heal, identify and treat causes, first do no harm, educate patients, treat the whole person, and prevent illness.” (Amerian Association of Naturopathic Physicians, 2009). The concept of let nature heal relies on the healing powers of nature to help the patient achieve complete health. Identify and treat is where the naturopathic physician treats the cause of the symptoms, if the cause is not addressed then the naturopathic physician believes that the symptoms will return. The third principle is first, do no harm. With this principle the goal is to accomplish no damage to the patients overall health. Next is to educate patients. Many believe this is one of the most important principles. It is important to help educate the patient so they can take and active role and take more respoinsibility for their own health. Another principle is to treat the whole person. Here the physician looks at the entire body not just the part of the body that’s displaying symptoms. The last is to prevent disease. This is the naturopathic physicians long term goal when helping their patients. By helping the patient to achieve overall wellness the patient will be less likely to get future illnesses. It is believed by those physicans whom practice naturopathic medicine that they take a philosophic approach towards helping their patients. Naturopathic physicians are concerned with finding the underlying cause of their patients disease they don’t treat the symptoms They work with the natural healing properties of the body rather than against them by applying treatments that work in an alliance with the body. This is why when you go to see a naturopathic physician they will spend a considerable amount of time with their patients in order to understand them as a whole. A naturopathic physician will use materials from nature, traditional chinese medicine, nutrition, physical medicine, as well as environmental medicine to help heal their patients. In order for someone to become a naturopathic doctor (ND) or a naturopathic medical doctor (NMD) you have to complete the same premedical undergraduate coursework that is required from other schools of medicine through out the united states. Next if you are accepted you will attend a four year naturopathic medical school While at a four year naturopathic medical school students will study basic and clinical sciences along with natural medicines and therapies. Some of these natural therapies include environmental medicine (the interaction between the human body and the environment), physical medicine (such as chiropractors), clinical nutrition (foods that the patient needs, a healthy balance of nutrition), botanical medicine (the use of plants and their healing abilities) , and traditional chinese medicine (such as acpuncture, herbal medicines, or massage). Graduates from a naturopathic school of medicine will then take a comprehensive examination given by the North American Board of Naturopathic Examiners in order to become a licensed naturopathic physician. They are also required to take continuing education course through out their career in order to stay up to date with their training. The state of Arizona is one of fifteen states that licences naturopathic physicians to treat and diagnose disease. In order to be licensed you have to graduate a four year naturopathic medical school, pass the comprehensive standardized examination, and adhere to the codes of conduct and ethics that is required with any kind of medical licensure. If you are looking for help with a particular illness and choose the path of naturopathic medicine then its always a good idea to look for a licensed naturopathic physician. This licensing ensures that you as the patient will receive care from a naturopathic physician that has met all the educational requirements to become a naturopathic physician. Naturopathic medicine uses the healing power of nature in order to treat diseases and illnesses and to promote the over all wellness of the human body. Those who practice naturopathic medicine help the patient to maintian optimal health and to treat and prevent disease. Naturopathic medicine combines nature with modern science to help patients with achieving optimal health. In order to become a naturopathic physician one has to complete premedical ciriculium, apply and be accepted to a federally mandated four year naturopathic medical school, once one graduates from the four year program then they have to pass the comprehensive examination at this point one can call themselves a licensed naturopathic doctor (ND). A naturopathic physicians follows six principles when helping their patients with their illness or disease. These six principles allow the naturopathic physician to treat the body as a whole instead of looking at the area of the body affect by the symptoms. References Arizona Naturopathic Medical Association (2006). Information retrieved on March 12, 2010 from: http://www.aznma.com American Association of Naturopathic Physicians. (2009). Information retrieved on March 12, 2010 from: http://www.natropathic.org