Naturopathic Medicine is a distinct primary health care system that combines both scientific knowledge and the art of natural healing methods. Naturopathic medicine seeks to understand not only disease, but also the underlying processes that contribute to the development of disease. Therefore, the approach to treatment is multi-faceted, using clinical skill and insight to develop the most beneficial protocols, which draw from different bodies of knowledge.
A naturopathic doctor is often considered the gate keeper of the health care system, meaning the entry point to various other services related to the health of the patient, they may be the first to recognize and diagnose many systemic diseases that include cancer, diabetes, obesity, hypertension, and high cholesterol. Because of the unique ability of naturopathic doctors to spend more time with a patient and be detectives in identifying the root cause of imbalance of the whole body, they are able to identify what is truly happening in the patients’ body systems and determine why. If any serious or life-threatening conditions are identified then prompt referrals can be made. As more and more people are diagnosed with chronic diseases in our society, naturopathic doctors who offer expertise and skill in lifestyle changes, preventative measures and chronic management, are becoming crucially important in patient care.
Education of a Naturopathic Doctor
Accredited schools of naturopathic medicine offer more than 4500 hours of classroom training and 1500 hours of supervised, clinical experience, during a four year, full-time program after an undergraduate degree. The naturopathic program consists of coursework, comparable to conventional medical curricula. Following graduation from an accredited college of naturopathic medicine, a naturopathic doctor must write the North American Naturopathic Physicians Licensing Examination and provincial board exams before being granted licensure.
Our current practice is a general family practice with focus on allergies, asthma, autoimmune health, digestive health, pediatric obesity, women & men’s hormone health.