Homeopathy Plus!

Homeopathy - Tutorial Thirteen

Finding a Good Homeopath

One of the most common questions I am asked is, "How do I find a good homeopath?" This can be a surprisingly difficult question to answer - read on and you will see why.

In Australia, as in many other parts of the world, homeopathy is regarded as a "low risk" system of medicine yet in a perverse way, this low risk status works against it. Because homeopathy is so safe, governments have little desire to legislate who can and who cannot practice it. For this reason, anyone can set up as a homeopath - whether they have completed four years of undergraduate study or have read just one book. In the same way, practitioners of other therapies, and even doctors, may dispense homeopathic remedies to an ignorant public when they may have had little or no training. In the light of this reality, how does one find a good homeopath?

If living in Australia, first check that your practitioner is registered with the Australian Register of Homeopaths (AROH). AROH acts as the watchdog that protects the public from under-qualified people who claim they are fully trained professionals. It registers only those homeopaths who have trained to government endorsed standards. If the therapist, practitioner, or doctor you are seeing for your homeopathic treatment is not a member of AROH, be aware that they have not met these minimum standards.

The Australian Homeopathic Association (AHA) is the largest and only national homeopathic association. It is also an association member of AROH. Homeopaths belonging to AHA must also have AROH registration. You can search the AHA website (www.homeopathyoz.org) for a homeopath near you knowing they have trained to the minimum standard considered acceptable for practice.

To help you further identify those who can actually apply what they have learnt, I have drawn up a comparison of good and bad practises. These practises mainly concern how a homeopath should or should not manage a chronic problem with homeopathy - there will be minor variations for acute treatments. Please use these practises as a guide to help you find someone who really deserves to wear the title of homeopath. You be the judge!

Good Practise	Poor Practise
Consultations are of an adequate length First consultations for a chronic or constitutional prescription should be at least 1 - 1 1/2 hours (babies may only need 1/2 - 1 hour). Follow-up consultations do not have to be as long and may only be 1/2 hour duration.	Does not allow enough time for consultations Short consultations make it impossible for your practitioner to collect all the information needed to make a good homeopathic prescription or analyse how well you responded to the remedy.
Treats only by homeopathy and general "naturopathic" concepts Homeopaths understand that health is sustained by nutritious food, sunshine, exercise, harmonious relationships, clean air and water, but when these natural necessities are no longer enough, they will use homeopathy to correct the underlying bioenergetic imbalance that led to the failure in health. Homeopaths use remedies to mimic an unwell person's symptoms. These remedies stimulate rather than suppress the body's healing efforts and help it return to health. In contrast other therapies, including modern medicine, relieve symptoms by palliation or suppression, neither of which promotes long-term health. For this reason, good homeopaths do not mix other therapies into your treatment.	Uses homeopathy as one of many modalities for treatment Poor practitioners have no awareness of which therapies stimulate and which suppress. For this reason they will happily combine anything "natural" with homeopathic treatment as long as it provides short-term symptom relief. If your practitioner is mixing homeopathy, herbs, supplements, bodywork therapies or even pharmaceuticals into your treatment, a confusing array of messages is being sent to your body. This can be counterproductive. Your practitioner may be a "jack of all trades" but is certainly master of none.
Listens carefully to your story and symptoms without judgement A good homeopath will enjoy what they are doing, be interested in your wellbeing, happily answer your questions, and listen to your story impartially and objectively. Rather than being shocked by your "strange" symptoms or unusual behaviours, a good homeopath will see them as fascinating part of the imbalance you would like them to correct.	Is arrogant, judgemental or seems bored A practitioner who behaves in this manner is obviously in the wrong job. They would do a lot better by themselves and you if they referred you to someone else and looked for different employment.
Conducts basic observations and refers for other investigations when necessary Your homeopath should conduct basic observations and examinations as needed such as blood pressure, temperature, pulse, listening to your chest with a stethoscope, and ear and throat examinations. They should also recognise when your symptoms may indicate the presence of a more serious condition and refer you so further diagnostic tests can be performed.	Never assesses you physically or refers for other investigations when needed This practitioner either lacks the skills to carry out basic physical assessments or is failing to collect adequate information for the homeopathic prescription. Important information may be missed that could have implications for how your case should be managed.
Prescribes according to your "symptom totality" Your homeopath should be interested in all the mental, emotional and physical reactions you experience in your state of ill health. This cross-section of symptoms, past and present, will reveal which remedy is best for your complaint.	Focuses on only one or two obvious symptoms If your practitioner only focuses on only one or two immediate symptoms they may be saving time but will not be collecting enough information to find the correct remedy for your health complaint. Likewise, if your practitioner is only interested in your mental and emotional symptoms because "all disease arises from the mind", they are failing to prescribe on all available information. Collecting the "symptom totality" takes more time but still provides the most reliable information for making a prescription and follow-up case management.
Prescribes according to your symptoms rather than a disease name In homeopathy we treat diseased people rather than diseases. Homeopathy works best when prescribed according to the person's unique response to, and experience of their illness rather than prescribing on the common symptoms of the disease itself. For this reason different people with the same complaint may each need a different remedy.	Prescribes according to a disease name rather than your symptoms A practitioner who gives you a remedy "for pneumonia" or "for arthritis" rather than for the unique symptoms you experience with these problems, does not know what they are doing. This method of prescribing is like taking a stab in the dark that will more often miss than hit. Find yourself another practitioner.
Does not rely on "energy" machines for making the prescription Good homeopathic prescribing still relies on the human skills of collecting symptoms, grading their importance, choosing the closest matching remedy according to this grading, interpreting the person's response to the remedy, and adjusting the prescription as necessary. Machines that "measure energy" cannot accurately replace these skills. A good homeopath may use a computer for case notes or analysis but they will not attach you to a machine to make a prescription.	Diagnoses and prescribes according to the readout from a machine Alarm bells should ring if a practitioner uses a "bioresonance" type machine to make a homeopathic prescription. Once again, this very act indicates that they are untrained in homeopathy and do not know how to find the remedy that would be most helpful. These machines detect superficial changes in the bioelectrical energy across the body and in a superficial and suppressive way, make a prescription for them. While short-term improvements can be obtained, these machines lack the ability to prescribe for lasting and deep-seated change.
Prescribes one remedy at a time It is often said in homeopathy that the first prescription is the easiest to make, and that the measure of a homeopath is in their follow-up case management. Your homeopath should collect your symptoms, prescribe a single remedy that matches them, assess the changes this prescription has made at the next appointment, and then re-prescribe a better matching remedy if need be. This cyclic method of case analysis and prescribing is the best way to maintain clarity of progress during treatment to systematically move you towards better health.	Prescribes combined remedies (complexes) or multiple remedies to be taken on the one day Practitioners only prescribe in complexes if they do not know how to match your symptoms to the single correct remedy. This "shotgun" method of treatment is a sure sign they know little more about homeopathy than you. Multiple remedies, whether given in complexes or rotated rapidly over a short period of time, confuse your "symptom picture" and make future prescribing difficult. It can be like looking into a muddied pool rather than at clear, clean water.
Prescribes more often in liquids than in pilules or tablets Using liquid remedies is the most advanced way to prescribe homeopathic remedies. Prescribing in liquid means that the dose can be easily adjusted to suit the needs of the patient. More or less dilution of the remedy will make it energetically stronger or weaker and varying the number of succussions (vigorous shakes) it receives before each dose will alter its energetic intensity. Neither of these things can be done with pilules or tablets. Liquid dosing also allows the remedy to be repeated more rapidly than would be possible with pilules or tablets. More frequent repetition in liquids reduces the risk of aggravations (a temporary intensification of your symptoms) and speeds the rate of cure.	Only prescribes in pilules or tablets Because there is no easy way to alter the energetic intensity of pilules or tablets homeopathic aggravations (short-term intensifications of symptoms) are more likely to occur if the remedy is repeated too frequently. Also, pilules and tablets cannot be repeated as frequently as liquid remedies and so produce a slower rate of improvement, especially in chronic disease. While pilule and tablet prescribing is still effective it is probably best thought of as "good" homeopathy rather than "best".
Prescribes a test dose to assess your sensitivity to the remedy Patient sensitivity can vary to homeopathic remedies. Some people are quite sensitive and respond strongly to the remedy while others display gradual improvement with long-term dosing. Sensitive individuals are more likely to experience an aggravation with repeated doses or doses that are too strong. For this reason a good homeopath will give you a test dose of the prescribed remedy to assess how strongly you respond before deciding how often you should take it.	Prescribes a pre-determined number of doses without assessing your sensitivity Routine dosing in a "one size fits all" manner is certainly easier for the practitioner but does not meet the needs of their sensitive patients - aggravations are more than likely. Practitioners who prescribe regular doses without first checking for sensitivity are either poorly trained or do not have their patient's best interests at heart. You would be wise to invest your money elsewhere.
Tries to avoid aggravations While they are non-toxic and usually mild, well-trained homeopaths try to avoid aggravations for the comfort of their patients. They understand that aggravations occur when the dose is too large or the remedy has been repeated too frequently for that person's sensitivity to it. They also know that that the body's healing response will be halted during an aggravation, extending the time it takes for the person to improve.	Tries to produce an aggravation Some practitioners believe that aggravations are positive effects that show the correct remedy has been chosen. For this reason they dose repeatedly and aggressively until an aggravation has been achieved and then call them "healing crises". While aggravations are generally short-lived and mild, this behaviour shows a little concern for the comfort of the patient and an ignorance of foundational homeopathic principles. Aggravations, while occasionally unavoidable, are unnecessary and should not be sought.
Avoids making changes at the beginning of treatment As a general rule, good homeopaths advise their patients not to make any changes to diet, supplements, and lifestyle at the beginning of treatment. They want to keep everything the same to clearly see what changes take place when the remedy is introduced. Once the effect of the remedy has been established, changes may be made.	Introduces changes at the beginning of treatment Practitioners who make changes to diet, lifestyle, and supplements at the beginning of treatment risk not being able to clearly see what is happening in relation to their prescription. Unnecessary changes at the beginning of treatment can confuse the symptom picture and make overall case management difficult.
Continues your prescription medicines While all homeopaths would prefer you came to them before your health problems required prescription medicines, and while some of these medicines may make it more difficult for the homeopath to manage your case, a good homeopath is still able to commence homeopathic treatment in spite of them. When you have conditions such as high blood pressure or diabetes, a good homeopath will also monitor things such as blood sugar levels and blood pressure readings during your treatment so adjustments can be made to your medications if needed. As improvement takes place, your homeopath will also encourage you to talk to your prescribing doctor about reducing some of your medicines or stopping them altogether if they are no longer needed.	Encourages you to stop prescription medicines A poorly trained practitioner may expect you to alter your medications without first consulting with your doctor. They may also refuse to treat you homeopathically on the basis that treatment would be impossible unless some or all of your prescription medications are stopped. It goes without saying that you should find another practitioner as soon as possible in either of these two instances.
Able to be contacted between appointments Adjustments to your treatment may be needed as you respond to the remedy during the course of your treatment. A good homeopath will advise you of this probability and provide a way for you to contact him or her so this can be done should the need arise.	Not contactable between appointments Your practitioner cannot be contacted between appointments and does not advise you on what to do in the meantime. If you have any concerns you just have to "wait it out".
Happy to work with your doctor or specialist At your request, your homeopath will be happy to work with your local doctor or specialist and to share information with them on the homeopathic management of your health problem.	Reluctant to work your doctor or specialist Your practitioner is reluctant to share information with your doctor or specialist and is inclined to make derogatory comments about them or other practitioners in general.

You can search the AHA website (www.homeopathyoz.org) for a homeopath near you.
If you have difficulty finding a homeopath, an appointment can be made with either
Mary Crammond or Fran Sheffield at the Homeopathy Plus! Clinic.

Consultations can take place over the phone (landline at Clinic expense - local or international) or face to face.

For more information please phone the Clinic on (61 2) 4388 9262