Statutory Regulation of Herbal Medicine Practitioners - the right decision at last!
The College of Practitioners of Phytotherapy (CPP) warmly welcomes the Government's decision, announced on Wednesday 16th February, that herbal medicine practitioners are to be statutorily regulated under the Health Professions Council (HPC). It is wonderful that, following 10 years of discussions, delays and consultations, this point has finally been reached It has been revealed today that 85% of the respondents to the 2008 consultation on herbal regulation were in favour of statutory regulation. This form of regulation is necessary since it will allow herbal practitioners to continue to prescribe high-quality herbal medicines after the implementation of the Traditional Herbal Medicinal Products Directive in April this year. The CPP commends the Government on taking this action since in so-doing they have safeguarded the right of patients to access the herbal products on which they rely. Statutory regulation will raise the standards of education and practice in herbal medicine and will mean that properly trained and regulated herbal practitioners are easier to identify and more accountable.
Peter Conway, President of the College of Practitioners of Phytotherapy, said: "Herbal practitioners have worked long and hard to achieve statutory regulation in order that patients can continue to exercise their right to choose the form of medicine that best suits their needs, and to raise the standards of the profession. Herbal medicine represents the origin of medicine but it also has a role to play in shaping medicine's future as the wide-ranging therapeutic capacities of herbs which are increasingly appreciated and validated by research. As an example: it is now recognised that inflammation is at the core of many serious chronic disorders and the herbal medicine chest is rich with anti-inflammatory agents such as turmeric. It is to be hoped that statutory regulation under the HPC will lead to closer collaboration between herbal and conventional medical practitioners - enabling more patients to benefit from safe herbal treatment."