Scope of Practice and Principles of Care of Naturopathic Medicine in North America: A Commentary

Naturopathic medicine is a growing profession in North America that provides expertise in complementary and alternative, or integrative care to pediatric patients. It is imperative that healthcare providers have an understanding of the training and scope of other health professionals in order to effectively make decisions regarding research, collaborative clinical care, and policy. Given the prevalence of use of complementary and alternative medicine by children and families in North America, and the growing interest in “integrative” medicine, we aim to offer an overview of naturopathic care for children. This document describes the principles, training, and scope of naturopathic medicine, including health promotion, disease prevention, and illness management. It describes the process by which naturopathic doctors create an integrative healthcare plan for children, evaluate and apply evidence, and integrate ethical issues in practice management, and speaks to the role naturopathic doctors have regarding advocacy for community and planetary health as it relates to pediatrics.

A Mixed Questionnaire Study on Prayer as Complementary and Alternative Medicine in Ghana

Background: Prayer is paramount in the spiritual welfare and development of an individual. Interestingly, prayer is also considered as a form of complementary alternative medicine and is employed in primary healthcare delivery. Aim: The purpose of this study is to investigate the impact of prayer in primary healthcare delivery as a form of complementary healthcare. This study also investigates why patients opt for prayer as an alternative to standard medical care and ultimately to review the scientific aspect of prayer in medicine. Methods: The study incorporates a mixed methods study with integrated data analysis. The respondents in this study were selected practitioners of Naturopathic Medicine with pastoral background, who belong to the Association of Naturopathic Medicine Practitioners in Ghana. Results: Patients and complementary and alternative medicine practitioners alike in Ghana believe that prayer is very important to aid recovery and hence, plays an integral role as complementary medicine in healthcare. Conclusion: This study demonstrates that there is a role of prayer as complementary alternative medicine in primary healthcare delivery. We therefore hold the view that, pastors at the prayer camps should be well educated in basic medical sciences to enable an effective referral pathway to the standard medical centers.

Transitioning to practice: a qualitative investigation of Australian graduate naturopath’s experiences of being in practice

Background The transition from student to practitioner can be challenging, resulting in stress, burnout and attrition. While there has been ample research examining graduate medical and allied health practitioner experiences of transitioning to practice, there is a paucity of research exploring such experiences in newly qualified naturopathic medicine practitioners. In light of this knowledge gap, the objective of this study was to ascertain the experiences of practicing as a naturopath in Australia within the first 5 years post-graduation. Methods Using a qualitative descriptive approach, recent graduates of an Australian Bachelor of Naturopathy (or equivalent) program were invited to participate in a semi-structured telephone interview to address the study objective. Data were analysed utilising a framework approach. Results A total of 19 new graduates (94.7% female; 57.9% aged 40–59 years) undertook an interview. Five inter-related themes emerged from the data: practitioner, practice, proprietorship, professions, and perceptions. Connected with these themes were contrasting feelings, multiplicity of duties, small business challenges, professional collaboration, and professional identity, respectively. Conclusions Participants were generally content with their decision to become a naturopath. However, most were confronted by a range of challenges as they transitioned from graduate to practitioner, for which many felt ill-prepared. In light of the complexity of the issue, and the potential impact on the sustainability of the profession, it is evident that a multi-pronged, multi-stakeholder approach would be needed to better support graduate naturopath transition to practice.

Naturopathic Medicine and Public Health Management in Ghana; A Mixed Questionnaire Study

Background: Naturopathic medicine is at its embryonic stage of development in Ghana and West Africa in entirety. In jurisdictions where Naturopathic medicine is well regulated, Naturopathic practitioners are well integrated into the primary healthcare delivery team. In Ghana, the case is quite different due to a myriad of issues. Objectives: This study examines the role of Naturopathic medicine in Public Health in Ghana and potential policy direction for adoption of Naturopathic protocols in global pandemic management, the challenges faced by Naturopathic Physicians in primary healthcare delivery, and the challenges of Naturopathic Medical Students on their clerkship at one of the designated government Hospitals. Methods: The study adopted a mixed questionnaires study engaged in integrated data analysis. The respondents in this study were selected Naturopathic Medical Students of the Nyarkotey College of Holistic Medicine, Ghana. Results: Out of a sample size of 28, 100% (28) believed that, there is a role of Naturopathic medicine in public health management. 95% asserted that very little naturopathic remedies have been employed in the fight against Covid-19 in Ghana. There was also a unanimous agreement (100%) that Ghana needs to adopt a National Policy on Naturopathic remedies in Public Health. Conclusion: Naturopathic medicine should be embraced fully into Ghanaian primary healthcare delivery. It is important to look at the best practices which exist in other jurisdictions such as China and India for adoption. It is time for the policy makers to speed up the passage of the Traditional and Alternative Medicine bill.

Global naturopathy research as reflected by Scopus during 2000-2019

Purpose The purpose of this study is to analyze research output in the naturopathy field at the global level and to examine the various trends in scientific literature available on naturopathy using bibliometric analysis. Design/methodology/approach The data was collected from the SciVerse Scopus database published from 2000 through 2019. The search was conducted using Medical Subject headings entry terms, i.e. “Naturopathy” OR “Naturopathic Medicine” using the “Document” search option. The search results comprised of documents that had these above search terms in their article title, abstract and keywords. The retrieved documents were then analyzed concerning different parameters like the growth of publications, authorship patterns, productive countries and institutions, highly cited papers, top prolific authors, funding agencies and document types. Findings The results of this study reveal that a total of 1,099 documents were published during 20-year time span. The most preferred publication type is research articles 683 (62.14%). Germany, USA, Australia, India and Canada were the most productive countries in terms of the number of scientific documents. The findings also show that the most preferred journal in the field of naturopathy is MMW Fortschritte der Medizin, with 115 documents followed by Journal of Alternative and Complementary Medicine with 58 documents. In contrast, the journal BMC Complementary and Alternative Medicine had the highest citations per paper (17.85). For the 20-year study period, the average value for the degree of collaboration was calculated as 0.57, indicating 54% of the total publications in naturopathy were multi-authored. The value of the collaboration coefficient (CC) signifies the levels of multi-authored papers. CC was highest in the year 2019 (0.55) indicating that the publications were contributed in collaboration rather than in isolation and the number of multi-authored/mega-authored papers outnumbered the single authors in the collection of all authors in the year 2019. Bastyr University, USA was the most productive Institution. Journal articles were the most preferred form of publication. Practical implications This study traces various trends in the research behavior and preferences of researchers in the field of naturopathy. It thus can be of immense help to identify strong areas in naturopathy research. Further, this study will help the librarians to identify the core/preferred journals in naturopathy. Originality/value This paper makes an endeavor to carry an extensive bibliometric study that provides an overview of emerging trends in naturopathy research.

The presence of honey triggers inhibition of pseudomonas aeruginosa virulence and metabolism

Honey is an ancient remedy with a high potency against drug-resistant bacteria, which has gained renewed interest in naturopathic medicine for its beneficial effect in treatment and prevention of wound infections. The exact antibacterial property and mode of action of honey is still unknown, however in recent years, there has been various studies focusing on the effect of honey on bacterial gene regulation. With the focus of current literature being at the molecular level, the first aim of this study was to examine the effect of honey at the cell level and its influence on the metabolism of P. aeruginosa biofilm. The second objective of this study was to test the influence of the combination of the iron chelating agent (EDTA) and honey on biofilm metabolism. P. aeruginosa metabolism in this study was analyzed through (i) siderophore excretion and (ii) monitoring of the biofilm CO2 respiration rate with a Carbon dioxide Evolution Measurement System (CEMS). The results obtained indicate that honey reduces biofilm metabolism and inhibits siderophore production, while the combination of honey and EDTA has a greater impact on biofilm metabolism, which influences P. aeruginosa iron homeostasis, inhibits siderophore production, and increases bacterial recovery time after exposure. However, when provided at concentrations lower than its inhibitory concentration, honey is used as a nutrient source for biofilm development. The results obtained illustrated the importance of the environmental conditions on biofilm metabolism, as the biofilm response varied with minor changes in the composition of their media. In summary, this study showed that biofilm cells shut down their metabolism in the presence of honey, which also inhibits bacterial siderophore production and can play an importance role on the virulence of P. aeruginosa.

The presence of honey triggers inhibition of pseudomonas aeruginosa virulence and metabolism

Honey is an ancient remedy with a high potency against drug-resistant bacteria, which has gained renewed interest in naturopathic medicine for its beneficial effect in treatment and prevention of wound infections. The exact antibacterial property and mode of action of honey is still unknown, however in recent years, there has been various studies focusing on the effect of honey on bacterial gene regulation. With the focus of current literature being at the molecular level, the first aim of this study was to examine the effect of honey at the cell level and its influence on the metabolism of P. aeruginosa biofilm. The second objective of this study was to test the influence of the combination of the iron chelating agent (EDTA) and honey on biofilm metabolism. P. aeruginosa metabolism in this study was analyzed through (i) siderophore excretion and (ii) monitoring of the biofilm CO2 respiration rate with a Carbon dioxide Evolution Measurement System (CEMS). The results obtained indicate that honey reduces biofilm metabolism and inhibits siderophore production, while the combination of honey and EDTA has a greater impact on biofilm metabolism, which influences P. aeruginosa iron homeostasis, inhibits siderophore production, and increases bacterial recovery time after exposure. However, when provided at concentrations lower than its inhibitory concentration, honey is used as a nutrient source for biofilm development. The results obtained illustrated the importance of the environmental conditions on biofilm metabolism, as the biofilm response varied with minor changes in the composition of their media. In summary, this study showed that biofilm cells shut down their metabolism in the presence of honey, which also inhibits bacterial siderophore production and can play an importance role on the virulence of P. aeruginosa.