Complementary Therapy Essay

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Recommended: Herbal medicine also called botanical medicine s

“Is herbal medicine a complementary therapy?”
Discuss the ways in which herbal medicine is a complementary therapy, and draw your own conclusion.

Herbal medicine been used by humans for as long as we have walked on our planet - it is the oldest form of therapy practised by mankind (Griggs, 1997, p.1). In many remote areas of the world, herbal medicine is still practised as the sole form of medical treatment, however, despite the fact that it has been continually practised for centuries, herbal medicine has undergone many shifts in how it is perceived as a therapeutic tradition in the western world. This fluctuation in attitude is usually the result of factors such as developments in science, new discoveries in pharmaceuticals, political and …show more content…

As they are independent of the NHS (where time and money are constant factors in the allocation of time given to a patient), most CAM practitioners will offer a much lengthier appointment duration: a consultation with a medical herbalist could last an hour compared to five minutes with a GP. This aspect of feeling ‘heard’ is important to patients, and such one-to-one treatment could impact positively on outcomes, as well as offering a more supportive relationship between patient and practitioner. As stated in The Therapeutic Relationship in Complementary Healthcare (p.5), what complementary therapies all have in common, despite their diversity, is that “They all attempt, in varying degrees, to recruit the self-healing capacities of the body” (Fulder, 1996: p4).
Although herbal medicine is currently considered to fall under the CAM remit, its status should, in my view, be far higher than many of the therapies with which it is grouped. Herbal medicine has its roots firmly placed in the realm of science: those fully qualified in herbal medicine will have studied their subject to degree level, and be versed in both plant-based and orthodox treatment, and will have the same skills in diagnosis as a medically trained GP. The same level of education cannot usually be subscribed to those practising other

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