More on the Regulation of Holistic Therapies

Further to last January’s announcement regarding the national regulation of complementary therapies such as Reiki, aromatherapy, massage and so on, the BBC reports on the launch of the Complementary and Natural Healthcare Council (CNHC).

Here’s a copy of the BBC News article in full. My thoughts follow — so please scroll down if you’ve already read it.

Alternative therapy ‘crackdown’
by Nick Triggle, Health reporter, BBC News

The head of the UK’s first regulator for complementary medicine has promised to get tough with the industry and drive out cowboy therapists.

Maggie Dunn, co-chairman of the Complementary and Natural Healthcare Council (CNHC), said it was time customers were given proper assurances. She said the regulator, which is being launched on Monday, would clean up the industry used by one in five people. And she estimated thousands of clinics may go out of business in the process.

The main plank of the council’s work will be to operate a register of practitioners. It will not judge clinics on whether therapies are effective, but rather on whether they operate a professional and safe business.

To get on to the government-backed register, therapists will have to show they have the right training and experience, abide by a code of conduct and ensure they have insurance in place.

Ms Dunn told the BBC News website: “I think most of the profession is operating to good standards, but we know not everyone will be able to register. If that means that people who are not up to scratch are driven out of business, I will not cry for them.”

There are over 150,000 complementary medicine therapists working in the UK.

Ms Dunn said she suspected between half and two thirds of them would make it on to the register which would allow them to use the regulator logo on literature and display in shops. Of the rest, some would just need a little extra training to make the grade, but that would still leave many thousands who were not good enough.

Regulator’s standards
As applying to the register is voluntary, Ms Dunn accepted that some therapists might not put themselves forward. But she said they would be found out in the end as “within a year or so” customers will be looking to only use therapists who have met the regulator’s standards. Ms Dunn said: “It won’t take long for customers to starting asking whether a practitioner is registered or searching on our website for ones that are. They will then vote with their feet.”

At first the register will be open to massage and nutritional therapists, but in the coming months it will be rolled out to areas such as aromatherapy, reflexology and homeopathy.

“It is easy to think these are all low-risk specialities, but I know someone who had a rib broken by a masseur so it is important we have proper regulation.”

Edzard Ernst, professor of complementary medicine at the University of Exeter’s Peninsula Medical School, said: “There does need to be more rigour in the regulation of complementary medicine as there will certainly be cowboys out there. However, I have concerns that the regulator does not have mandatory powers and is not looking at the efficacy of these therapies.”

Health minister Ben Bradshaw welcomed the establishment of the CNHC.

“Members of the public who use these therapies will be able to check whether the practitioner they’re seeing is registered with the CNHC,” he said. “If they are, they have the reassurance of knowing that they have had to meet minimum standards of qualification and that they have signed up to a rigorous code of conduct. Practitioners too will benefit by increased public confidence.”

Therapists will have to pay £45 a year to join the register.

As a member of the Federation of Holistic Therapists (FHT), I have been kept up to date with the development of the CNHC throughout the year and have been waiting for its launch. I hope that the creation of this Council will enable therapists and clients alike to have more faith and flexibility in the various therapies available today, and less opportunities for wannabes, cowboys or con artists to make their mark. I also hope that the guidelines and procedures offered by the Council will offer greater safety — again, both for therapists and for clients.

My main concern with organisations such as this is whether they will get caught up in politics, governmental ideals, or misunderstand/misrepresent the therapies in question. A lot of decent, qualified and honest therapists may lose out if any of this become the case, which would be a shame. Holistic therapies needs more good publicity — we’ve had too much bad press in the past, so something positive and authoratative would be good for all concerned.

The other worrying thing is that there does already seem to be some fragmentation as to the regulation of holistic therapies in the UK — for as well as the CNHC, there is also the General Regulatory Council for Complementary Therapies (GRCCT). Again, I have been watching and reading about this Council via the FHT news, and find it interesting considering that this has grown out of a Federal Working Group (FWG), set up in January 2007 as recommended by the House of Lords and supported by the Prince’s Foundation for Integrated Health. In contrast, the CNHC is supported and funded by the Department of Health.

However, it does mean that there are currently two competing voluntary self-regulating bodies for holistic therapies — the GRCCT (which was launched in late 2007) and the CNHC, which launches today.

As the FHT has pointed out, “…there should be a clear separation between the regulatory body that is responsible for protecting the public and the leading therapy body that is providing profession specific advice” (FHT News Regulation Update to Members, retrieved 19th January 2008). At present, neither organisation seems to offer that precise distinction — but maybe things will improve. It seems stupid to have to register on both bodies, but it could be that this is the best way forward for therapists at this time, in order to achieve the greatest exposure to potential clients and to “prove” the belief of the therapist in self-regulation and appropriate registration of holistic therapies.

However, it is also interesting to bear in mind that all this currently covers only twelve therapies —

– Alexander Technique
– Aromatherapy
– Bowen Technique
– Cranial Therapy
– Homeopathy
– Massage
– Nutritional Therapy
– Naturopathy
– Reflexology
– Reiki
– Shiatsu
– Yoga Therapy

… which leaves a whole heap of other therapies (e.g. Crystal Healing, Essence Therapy, Muscle Energy Technique… et cetera) currently without any guidance or information on becoming self-regulated. It could be that, in time, either the CNHC or GRCCT (or whomever they merge to become — maybe — or even a third body to compete against them both) will expand to offer registration and regulation to as many therapies as possible, in order to provide both therapists and clients the best possible support and service available.

Of course, this means increased cost to the therapist — which will have to be passed on to the client. *sighs*

I am thinking about the GRCCT registration process, and while I am not currently registered there I am considering it. Fully insured, and as well as being a member of the FHT, I already hold memberships in the British Flower and Vibrational Essences Assocation (BFVEA), the Flower Essence Society (FES), and the UK Reiki Federation (UKRF). Many of these bodies are members of, or are interested in joining, regulatory councils such as the GRCCT and the CNHC. However, I think I will wait to see what the CNHC requirements are, and how they fully compare to the GRCCT, once they have been up and running for a while — and then make a decision as to who to register with for the purposes of self-regulation.

To this end, I have already emailed the CNHC to request that they inform me once the Reiki register is open for applications. At present, that’s the only therapy that I practice which is affected by all this — however, future plans for my continued personal and professional development (CPPD) in this field may require me to register in other therapies later in time. We shall see what happens there. In any case, I should hear via the FHT regarding the opening of the Reiki register — but it doesn’t hurt to register my interest directly with the CNHC and cover one’s bases, so to speak.

For the moment, there’s nothing more I can do in terms of becoming registered and undergoing voluntary regulation. I think what I will do, though, is sit down at some point and sort out my professional portfolio. I need to ensure all the certificates for my qualifications and CPPD work are in there, along with any other documentation and my insurance details. If I can get that sorted out over the next few months, then it means that I should have everything on-hand once the register does open and I make my decision regarding registration.

I just hope that all this works, and does what it is supposed to — without further damaging the image of holistic therapies and the therapists who practice them.

Popularity: 48% [?]