Complementary medicine
Canadians look to alternatives
A survey by the Fraser Institute revealed that 73% of Canadians have used at least one alternative therapy at some point in their life. Chiropractic was the most common therapy used, being cited by 36% of respondents. It was followed by relaxation techniques and massage at 23%. Prayer was cited by 21% of respondents. [CMAJ 1999;161(4):363]
Chiropractic college affiliates
The Canadian Memorial Chiropractic College, which has been seeking a relationship with a Canadian university since its creation in 1945, may finally have found a willing partner at York University in Toronto. Some faculty members are unimpressed. [CMAJ 1999;160(1):99-100]
Med schools open to new therapies
A large majority of Canadian medical schools now offer at least some lessons on alternative or complementary therapies. Researchers contacted all 16 Canadian medical schools in 1998 and found that only three provided no education on therapies considered outside of the traditional scope of Western medicine. These include: traditional Chinese medicine, homeopathic medicine, acupuncture, reflexology and many others. The findings contrast sharply with a 1997 British survey, which found that British medical schools are providing little if any teaching on complementary or alternative medicine. [CMAJ 1999;160(6):816-7]
New Office of Natural Health Products
The federal government is spending $7 million over the next three years to create a new regulatory organization to oversee herbal remedies and other natural health products. These products now exist in a regulatory void: labels are vague and consumers rely on friends and family to recommend products. Many pharmacists and physicians wonder whether scientific standards will be used to evaluate the products. [CMAJ 1999;160(9):1355-7]
Due to their concerns over the new office, four BC physicians formed Canadians for Rational Health Policy in late 1998. Their aim is to "promote science in the service of the public." They are worried about the lack of scientific scrutiny in the office's transition team and the implications for patient safety. [CMAJ 1999;161(5):583]
Traditional Chinese medicine gets nod
In the summer of 1999, the BC government formally recognized the growing popularity of traditional Chinese medicine by becoming the first in Canada to regulate the full range of TCM therapies. BC's then premier suggested that TCM practitioners might soon be brought into the province's Medical Services Plan. [CMAJ 1999;161(11):1435-6]
