Traditional health treatment gets lift

By Lan Tian (China Daily)
Updated: 2008-11-10 07:43

The World Health Organization (WHO) issued a declaration in Beijing on Saturday calling for its member states to integrate traditional medicine (TM) into their national health systems.

A Chinese physician treats a patient for rheumatism in a community clinic in Xiangfan, Hubei province on November 9, 2008. [Gong Bo]

The organization summarized the role of traditional medicine in healthcare systems and highlighted the progress, challenges and future direction of its development in the "Beijing Declaration".

It also recognized traditional medicine as one of the resources of primary healthcare services to increase availability and affordability, as well its contributions in improving the health of those targeted in the UN's Millennium Development Goals.

"Governments should establish systems for the qualification, accreditation or licensing of TM practitioners. TM practitioners should upgrade their knowledge and skills based on national requirements," it said.

The declaration was issued at the first two-day WHO congress on traditional medicine that started in Beijing on Friday.

"For millions of people, often living in rural areas of developing countries, herbal medicines, traditional treatments, and traditional practitioners are the main - sometimes the only - source of healthcare," Margaret Chan, WHO's director-general, said.

"The two systems of traditional and Western medicine need not clash. Within the context of primary healthcare, they can blend together in harmony, using the best features of each system," she said. But she pointed that such harmony would not happen by itself unless government made genuine policy decisions.

"Many countries have brought the two systems together," she said. "Here in China, herbal therapy of proven utility in many disorders is provided in State hospitals throughout the country, alongside conventional medicine."