Whaaaaaat? This was my response as I read this summary article in BlackBag, a free medical app that has dozens of medical news articles delivered daily to your smartphone or ipod. The title of the summary article was exactly as I typed it above, and the author’s conclusions were based...
I strongly believe that prevention is the answer to our current healthcare crisis. I have heard a lot of discussion in the media lately saying preventive services are too expensive and significantly add to the enormous cost of healthcare in this country. As I’ve mentioned in a previous post, the concept...
We are in the age of passive medicine. Our current medical model reimburses physicians for investigating/making a diagnosis, and managing treatment of that particular diagnosis. Physicians get paid for the diagnosis or treatment, not for the amount of time spent with patients (with some exceptions). This leads to short patient visits...
I love the philosophical principles of naturopathic medicine: Treat the Whole, Treat the Cause, Prevention, First Do No Harm, and Doctor as Teacher. I find these concepts easy to discuss with patients, colleagues and my peers in the medical profession. Then we get to The Vix Medicatrix Naturae, translated The Healing...
Another philosophical principle that guides naturopathic physicians is called Tolle Totem or "Treat the Whole". Naturopathic physicians have long been advocates of treating the whole person, including mind, body and spirit. Addressing the emotional, mental, and physical problems simultaneously is often the key to uncovering the true cause of a disease...
One of the 6 prinicples of naturopathic medicine is Tolle Causem, or Treat the Cause. The ultimate goal of a naturopathic physician is to identify and treat the cause of the patient's disease or symptoms. Conventional physicians will often claim to do the same thing. I recently saw an advertisement for...
What is prevention? The standard of care for preventive medicine specialists in conventional medicine is determined by the USPSTF (The US preventive services task force), which is an independent panel of experts in primary care (like internists, pediatricians, gynecologists, etc). The USPSTF determines when screening exams are necessary, which medications...
I had a great question about naturopathic medicine and science: You say that your medicine is evidence-based. Would you define "evidence" in the same way that the traditional medical model would (peer-reviewed journals, RCTs, meta-analyses, etc.)? Are all of your treatments supported by research? Thanks Anonymous! I'll do my best to answer...