Читать книгу Start & Run a Medical Practice - Michael Clifford Fabian - Страница 13

Personally, I am a big believer in vitamins, natural remedies, and consultation with naturopathic doctors when the need arises. Besides personally utilizing these natural routes of care and supplementation, I incorporate it into my practice as much as possible. Naturopathic physicians practice in many ways just like their medical doctor colleagues, and some patients prefer to have a naturopath as their primary care physician.

One example of how I use non-medicated care for my patients as the first line of management is a relatively new type of nasal spray — seawater. Yes, it is from the ocean and prepared commercially for nasal application. I believe it works great for regular nasal hygiene as well as a sole, or adjunctive maintenance regime, for such problems as nasal bleeding, sinus disorders, and allergies. I have anecdotally heard of many people whose nose and sinus symptoms clear up when they swim in the sea. I know when I swim in the ocean my nose and sinuses seem to clear up, so I was not surprised when I saw seawater on the drugstore shelves for general use.

Obviously, naturopathic doctors are experts in many different conditions and can recommend naturopathic intervention for most disorders to some degree or another. I have referred many a patient to a naturopathic doctor for an opinion, one classic example being a consultation for ringing in the ears (otherwise known as tinnitus). Some naturopathic remedies have been known to be helpful with this condition. While there is often no medical treatment available for tinnitus, some patients have been helped with naturopathic remedies.

While naturopaths can take care of many things, they do not commonly prescribe medication or perform surgery. There are some countries and jurisdictions that permit naturopathic doctors to prescribe medicine, but that is not universal and very much of a dynamic change. They, too, examine patients as do medical doctors, and have a training program that is in many aspects very similar to medical school.

Although naturopaths try to avoid medications as much as possible, I have been referred many patients from naturopathic doctors as well, when they have seen the need for medical or surgical intervention.

Just to demonstrate the forever and rapidly changing scope of the allied health professions, in the area that I practice, very recently a new ruling has come to effect that naturopathic doctors are permitted to prescribe limited medications themselves.

In terms of the naturopathic office environment, things can run in a similar fashion to an office of a primary care medical doctor, and I know several naturopaths who practice in the same office as a medical doctor.