262596 Workforce and Impact of Naturopathic Doctors in the US and Canada

Monday, October 29, 2012

Carlo Calabrese, ND, MPH , Executive Director, Naturopathic Physicians Research Institute, Portland, OR
Kris Ritchey, ND, MPA:HA , Workforce Project, Naturopathic Physicians Research Institute, Portland, OR
Little descriptive information has been published on licensed naturopathic practice. Naturopathic physicians are a growing profession poised to contribute in the workforce shortage in primary care. The profession has been expanding and evolving its practice, educational and regulatory standards for four decades such that its survival seems assured in any economic and policy environment to come. With licensing in 17 US states and territories, laws or regulation in 7 states describe the practice as “primary care.” It is practiced often as a complement but sometimes as an alternative to conventional medicine and is increasingly integrated with it. Its approach to diagnosis, prevention and health promotion is grounded in the basic sciences and inter-professional health care exchanges are frequent and fluent. Its therapeutic attention to nutrition, exercise, stress management and evidence-based natural products provides novel and apparently effective approaches to the management of our chronic disease epidemics in a cost-efficient manner. As a significant variant of healthcare practice encompassing a broad range of complementary and alternative medical (CAM) practices and perspectives, it is a valuable laboratory for study of the character and outcomes of common unorthodox medical approaches. At this conference, we will present the number, trends and distribution of naturopathic doctors in the US and Canada which share similar standards for accredited training and licensing. We will discuss the profession's potential impact in primary care and as a data source on CAM practices, effectiveness, safety and cost.

Learning Areas:
Clinical medicine applied in public health
Diversity and culture
Other professions or practice related to public health
Provision of health care to the public
Public health or related laws, regulations, standards, or guidelines

Learning Objectives:
1. Identify the size and growth trends of the accreditably trained and licensed naturopathic profession in the US and Canada. 2. Evaluate the potential impact of increased integration of the profession in the national health care system.

Keywords: Workforce, Primary Care

Presenting author's disclosure statement:

Qualified on the content I am responsible for because: I'm Exec Dir of the Naturopathic Physicians Research Institute, Senior Research Scientist at Bastyr Univ, Adj Assoc Prof at OHSU; working in CAM and naturopathic research since 1987. At NPRI, we are closing fundamental data gaps for naturopathic practice and its integration into the health system. This data is one of our projects.
Any relevant financial relationships? No

I agree to comply with the American Public Health Association Conflict of Interest and Commercial Support Guidelines, and to disclose to the participants any off-label or experimental uses of a commercial product or service discussed in my presentation.