Is it important to you that herbal medicine exists? The Department of Health is running a Consultation to ask people whether medical herbalists should be regulated, or not. This will have important consequences in determining whether (or not) you and your family can access herbal medicine in the future! Act Now as the deadline is 2^nd November. For the full story click here, but, in a nutshell, most herbalists want to be regulated and:

If all herbalists have to be regulated they will:

• be professional practitioners with an agreed level of training
• have a Degree in Herbal Medicine (like all those at NIMH)
• regulated by a professional body
• undergo Continuous Professional Development
• adhere to a code of ethics and be insured to practice
• be more accessible to G.P.s and other healthcare practitioners
• have access to a wide range of herbal medicines (of controlled quality)

If herbalists are NOT regulated as is the case now:

• anyone could practice, calling themselves a medical herbalist – even if not qualified!
• there will be widely varying standards of professionalism and qualifications
• they’ll have little ability to hold dialogue with G.P.s or other healthcare practitioners
• not be able to supply a full range of herbal medicines to patients

PLEASE ACT NOW

The consultation closes on 2^nd November this year. Please do one of or all of the following

• Write to your M.P. in your own words or download a template of Sample MP Letter on the right.
• Copy this to your M.E.P. or M.S.P.
• You can find your M.P.’s address here
• Fill in the Department of Health’s Consultation Paper (download here) or
• Write to the DH Consultation Team, in your own words or using Sample DoH Letter 1 or Sample DoH Letter 2 on the right, to request they register your opinion

THANK YOU

This is so important. People have used herbal medicines for at least 25,000 years and we want to retain our right of choice to do so in the future. Post-2011, in order for you to have the most choice in herbal medicine, it is vitally important that herbalists are regulated. This way you will have access to both a small range over-the-counter licensed herbal remedies and to a wide range of prescription herbal formulas. And, you will also know your practitioner is properly trained, up-to-date and operating from a strict code of ethics. It is important to remember that herbalists themselves want to be regulated. Only by acting now can we influence the Government’s decision.

It is almost ironic  that at first time  I am  entering  unchartered waters of cyberspace, I  am starting with a May Day call:  Your help is needed : Heavy clouds are gathering over the future of herbal medicine in this country.

Consultation period is coming to end which will decide whether the herbal profession will be regulated, i.e. given protection by law. The prime purpose of professional regulation is public protection.  Whilst there will also be considerable benefits for the professionals in the production of visible standards, the professionals themselves are not the main focus of regulation – the focus lies with the consumer.

In line with the European legislation the Government is looking to repel provision in Medicine Act 1968 which allows the herbalists to supply third party unlicensed herbal medicine to public to own specification.  This to be implemented by 2011. The impact will be thus that the patient’s choice of treatment and treatment options will be severely restricted. Those few, who will still remain in practice will be very restricted or practising illegally. There is however provision that right to prescribe will remain for authorised medical professionals – statutory regulated.

If the statutory  regulation are not implemented and licensing or other route is chosen the impact on  wider public will be significant.  It will have an obvious impact on  the herbalists and their suppliers, majority of whom are self employed (the former) or   small cottage industry type manufacturers (the later) who will be forced out of business and lose their work .  Further decreased consumer choice and safety issues with illegal black market medicine which will ensue are the just the tip of the iceberg.

Please help save the herbal medicine – Living tradition of this land that should continue to serve to its people.

How can you help ?

Respond to consultation document and support statutory regulation http://www.dh.gov.uk/en/consultations/liveconsultations/dh_103567 

Invite all your friends to join the Facebook page enter “Save your right to choose safe Herbal Medicine” in the Facebook search box this should take you to the Group page  You can then click ‘Join this Group’ Once a member you can then click ‘Share’ to pass the group information on to other contacts

Visit pages of the National Institute of Medical Herbalists (NIMH) for further Information on regulations :  http://actnow.nimh.org.uk/?dm_i=4ZO,27DB,H577L,733Q,1

Write to your MP   http://findyourmp.parliament.uk/

Your choice your voice. Please help, you helping to save your right to have a safe medical treatment of your choice.

 

 

Monika.