Health was one of the big issues in the election campaign. But although an unprecedented level of funding is going into the health service, there is little emphasis on preventative care. Alternative medicine can play an important part in such an approach, writes Sylvia Thompson

Health dominated the run-up to last week's general election: nurse shortages, insufficient cancer treatment centres, long waiting lists for consultant appointments and stressed-out GPs were issues which came up again and again on the doorsteps.

And while unprecedented funds are being poured into the Irish health service, there is still little emphasis on preventative medicine. There doesn't seem to be a comprehensive strategy to reduce the need for acute medical care through long-term health education. The Green Party was the only party to give real significance to preventative healthcare, suggesting a Junior Minister whose portfolio would include preventative medicine, alternative and complementary therapies.

Consider how many millions of euro could be saved - both through lower absenteeism from work and reduced medical bills - if we all had regular check-ups. We bring our cars for an annual service so why not our bodies?

Alternative practitioners have a valuable part to play in such a preventative approach. For instance, osteopaths and chiropractors could detect and correct minor musculo-skeletal problems before they become bad enough to require surgery. And how many thousands of seasonal colds, flus and chest infections could be prevented if we all learned what foods, herbal and homeopathic remedies to take to build up our immune systems in preparation for weather changes and seasonal pressures in our lives?

The Irish Society of Homeopaths claims that if homeopathy was integrated into the healthcare system - as it is in Britain, Norway and Switzerland - far fewer people would end up in accident and emergency

departments.

"Homeopathy is a preventative system of healthcare which effects a longer-term curative response so fewer people would also suffer from long-term chronic conditions and would be less likely to need costly treatment," says Sally Quinlan of the Irish Society of Homeopaths.

Dr Brendan Fitzpatrick, a conventionally trained medical doctor who also practises homeopathy, believes preventative medicine is grossly underfunded in this country.

"Western medicine virtually everywhere is led by acute situations, yet doctors fundamentally know that prevention is very important. The problem is we don't put the resources in line with our beliefs," he says.

"Everyone agrees that you have a better chance of avoiding many serious illnesses by following a healthy diet and exercising regularly, yet it is difficult for some people even to give up smoking, although they know that continuing to smoke will take eight years off their life expectancy. If you could really implement preventative healthcare education, it would be a much more efficient use of resources, but you are talking about trying to change the whole culture of the medical system which would require the acceptance of the medical profession and health insurance companies," says Dr Fitzpatrick.

Yet, despite the failure to prioritise the preventative healthcare message in mainstream medicine, there has been a groundswell of interest from the public to find better ways of dealing with their health problems - both acute and/or chronic.

In Britain, it is estimated one in three people uses complementary therapies. In France, 75 per cent of the population have used complementary medicine at least once, while in the US, reports suggest one in two use or has used complementary or alternative therapies. In Ireland, such statistics are not yet available, but the fact that the Department of Health has initiated a process of statutory regulation for complementary therapies is strong recognition of their widespread use.

These efforts to regulate the complementary healthcare sector are also reflected in a document published by the World Health Organisation last week. This presented a global plan to assist countries to regulate traditional or complementary/alternative medicine.

"Traditional or complementary medicine is victim to both uncritical enthusiasts and uninformed sceptics. This strategy is intended to tap into the real potential for people's health and well-being while minimising the risks of unproven or misused remedies," explains Dr Yasuhiro Suzuki, WHO executive director for health technology and pharmaceuticals.

In Ireland, the establishment of official registers of practitioners for each therapy (with minimum training standards and professional codes of conduct set down), is a crucial part of statutory regulation.

Publicly funded research into the efficacy of complementary therapies is also a priority. Only when research proves osteopathy is a genuine alternative treatment for, say, tennis elbow, or that Chinese herbal medicine can cure ulcerative colitis, or that homeopathy can offer alternative remedies to HRT for menopausal women, will orthodox medicine and its advocates give ground.

Only then will our policy-makers be willing to put funds into preventative medicine and arrive at the point that many Irish people have already arrived at - the need for the integration of staple complementary therapies into mainstream healthcare provisions.

Testing Times

A new book, Test-Driving Complementary Therapies, originated as a weekly column in this newspaper two years ago. Called the Alternative Agenda, it examined a different therapy each week and included accounts from those who tried out each therapy for the first time and those who advocated them. The medical view of the treatments was given by The Irish Times Medical Correspondent, Dr Muiris Houston.

Among those who tried various therapies are a teacher whose gynaecological problems were overcome with crystal therapy, a civil servant whose chronic back pain was eased with bio-energy, a child whose eczema was relieved by homeopathy and a health store consultant who overcame her fear of learning to drive with Bach Flower Remedies.

Irish people are embracing the philosophy and treatment approaches of many alternative and complementary therapies. The next step is for the medical profession and alternative/ complementary practitioners to come together and recognise the strengths and weaknesses of each other's discipline, only then can we develop healthcare in which preventative medicine, health maintenance and treatment of illness are held in equal esteem.

S.T.

Test-Driving Complementary Therapies by Sylvia Thompson is published by Newleaf this week. Price: €9.99