Alternative Medicine; Persectives, Perception and Practice

[Guest guest]

Fellow NetRUMians,

I am very delighted to moderate this next topic titled " Alternative

Medicine: Perspectives, Perception and Practice. This topic is

coming on the heels of Anupama's well moderated discussion on the

irrational use of nutritional supplements is hoped to further

showcase the scholarship of NetRUMians and the commitment to the

provision of standard health care for us – the Southerners.

My name is Dr Fatai Fehintola, I lecture in the Department of

Pharmacology and Therapeutics, College of Medicine, University of

Ibadan, Ibadan, Nigeria. I was lucky to be part of Jaipur workshop

on Rational Drug Use some 2 years ago where I was fortunate to meet

Dr Vijay Thawani.

For the next one week I hope to share experiences from across the

Atlantic/Indian Ocean and I cannot wait to so do. The peculiar

situation with especial reference to alternative medicine has made it

more imperative with the advent of " cure-all " remedies and

practitioners who never spared a thought on the world been a global

village while making references to the Indian subcontinent to back up

their claims.

We will therefore need to consider what constitute alternative

medicine and why it thrives. The pros and cons of alternative

medicine systems and how to standard the practice including the

future direction. I challenge all of us not to merely ask questions

but proffer solutions while buttressing our points with practical

examples.

Please, note that Nigeria trails India by about 4.5 light years in

terms of all!