Living Well: California finally recognizes alternative medicine

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Living Well: California finally recognizes alternative medicine

 

By BOB CONDOR

SPECIAL TO THE POST-INTELLIGENCER

Monday, October 25, 2004

 

http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/lifestyle/196417_condor25.html

 

SAN RAFAEL, CALIF. -- In 2000, Sally LaMont had a decision to make. She

was a licensed San Francisco acupuncturist with a thriving business,

vice president of the California Association of Naturopathic Physicians

and, no small thing, mother of a 1-year-old. Something had to give in

her busy schedule.

 

LaMont took an unconventional path. She quit her acupuncture practice to

become the first and only full-time employee of the naturopathic

physicians association.

 

" I realized that somebody needed to do it, " said LaMont, who moderated a

couple of " ecological medicine " panels at the 15th annual Bioneers

conference in this northern California town earlier this month. The

Bioneers gathering, 3,500 strong, focuses on how nature can solve the

world's ills, global and personal.

 

Trained as a naturopathic physician, LaMont could not legally perform a

Pap smear, prescribe the occasional antibiotic or carry out other

medical doctor's duties. That's why she turned to acupuncture,

completing the necessary courses and practice time to become licensed.

 

Here in Washington, naturopathic doctors (or N.D.s) are licensed to

practice and carry out medical duties. N.D.s, on the whole, offer the

unique quality of knowing more about plant medicine for patients than

any set of health practitioners. Oregon has a similar N.D. law, but

California has been a notable West Coast exception.

 

Passing the bill in California, which became law this year, doubles the

number of Americans with access to naturopathic physicians. Fourteen

states now license N.D.s, while another 14 have some legislative

activity in process.

 

An important point here: Naturopathic physicians are distinguished from

" naturopaths " in these state laws. Naturopath is shorthand among

patients for N.D.s, but naturopathic physicians themselves are quick to

define the difference.

 

" In California, we had to leave the term 'naturopath' in the public

domain, " explained LaMont, who has stepped down as executive director

and is contemplating her next full-time professional move. " There are

people who call themselves naturopaths but haven't attended the (five)

accredited naturopathic medicine schools.

 

" For example, after one of my talks (at Bioneers), a man approached me

about getting his N.D. license, but it turned out he had a divinity

degree. He didn't have the years of training required for the license. "

 

Bastyr is one of four accredited U.S. schools for naturopathic medicine;

another one is in Canada.

 

The California N.D. license also requires passing a written exam. The

license allows practitioners to call themselves N.D.s, doctors of

naturopathy, doctors of naturopathic medicine and licensed naturopathic

doctors. Any practitioner not licensed using these titles will be

breaking the law.

 

Some 150 naturopathic physicians in California are grateful for LaMont's

decision to forgo her acupuncture practice and immerse herself in

opposition to Big Medicine lobbyists. She played an integral role in the

successful enactment of the bill, which was signed into law by former

Gov. Gray Davis. His replacement, Arnold Schwarzenegger, recently named

the first five members to a nine-person state advisory council,

including Carl Hangee-Bauer, N.D. and Bastyr University alum. The law

was several years in the making.

 

" I felt confident when the bill made it through the first committee in

the state assembly, " said LaMont. " I knew then we would make it law. The

bill was eventually passed with 90 percent votes for it on the general

floor. "

 

LaMont credited Kenmore-based Bastyr officials with supporting the

cause, including the hosting of a visit from members of the California

Medical Association representing medical doctors or M.D.s. By all

accounts, the visit was a success.

 

" One of the huge challenges for naturopathic physicians is that the

typical M.D. opinion of us is about 50 years out of date, " said Joe

Pizzorno, N.D., and Bastyr president emeritus. " The members of the

California Medical Association that visited us arrived with polite

skepticism -- and they were polite -- but they came away impressed with

the quality of our facilities and faculty. They were equally impressed

with the depth of our subject matter and academic rigor. "

 

While those M.D.s were hesitant to completely flip on the licensure

issue, Pizzorno said " they went from hard opposition to soft opposition. "

 

" It is actually pretty rare for someone in the conventional medicine

field to visit us at Bastyr and not be impressed, " said Pizzorno, who

was closely involved in lobbying efforts on behalf of naturopathic

physicians in California.

 

What's more, Bastyr offered the expertise and man-hours of its senior

counsel, Sandi Cutler, a longtime Bastyr official who previously managed

political campaigns (about 80) in northern California. Both Cutler and

David Matteson, Bastyr director of governmental relations, received 2003

President's Awards from the American Association of Naturopathic

Physicians for their efforts.

 

Plus, the Seattle natural medical school contributed some funds to the

cause. " It is a huge sacrifice for N.D.s to take time away from their

practices, " said Pizzorno. " We wanted to support that. "

 

For its part, Bastyr is exploring partnership in integrative medicine

clinics in both northern and southern California. Pizzorno said the idea

is to build a patient flow before the subsequent step of starting a

naturopathic medicine school or campus in California. Bastyr is in talks

with several mainstream big-name medical schools to partner on the

academic front. The academic concept is to provide N.D. degrees and

continuing professional education for health practitioners.

 

" I would definitely attend classes if Bastyr has a campus in northern

California, " said Prashanti de Jager, a San Anselmo-based practitioner

of ayurvedic medicine and founder of an organic, socially responsible

medicinal herb company in India that has allowed hundreds of farmers to

stop using chemicals on their lands. In kind with its fascinating and

cutting-edge subject matter, it is not surprising that de Jager was

another presenter at the Bioneers conference (check out www.bioneers.org).

 

" There are lots of people in California excited about licensing for

N.D.s, " said LaMont, who will teach a course in naturopathic medicine at

San Francisco State's Institute for Holistic Studies in the spring. " It

certainly drew big cheers at my two sessions. "

Bob Condor writes every Monday about health and quality of life. He is

editor of the Seattle-based Evergreen Monthly, which covers health,

environment, food, social good, spirituality and personal growth (visit

www.evergreenmonthly.com). Send e-mails to bobcondor with any

questions or ideas for the Living Well column.