American Institute of Nap(a)rapathic Medicine??

Discussion in 'Nursing and medical-related degrees' started by Chip, Jul 5, 2001.

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  1. Chip

    Chip Administrator

    I just ran across a web site in which a woman with a degree from this institution is holding herself out as qualified to treat cancer. I've seen two spellings of naprapathic, so I don't know which is correct.
    http://www.edensinstitute.com/aboutus.html

    I don't have Bears' 14th in front of me, so can't check on the school, but I suspect it's a mailorder less-than-wonderful, and it doesn't appear to be in business any longer, based on a Google search.

    If anyone has any info on either the school or naprapathy (not to be confused with naturopathy), I'd like to know more about it.

    This woman is practicing in North Carolina, which doesn't license naturopaths, but certainly doesn't allow unlicensed practitioners to treat cancer. This is the kind of stuff that Westbrook and the Clayton schools cause... they claim to legislators that their graduates are not supposed to treat anything serious, and then the graduates go out and sell themselves as qualified to treat life-threatening illness.

    Not good.
     
  2. Chip,

    I've usually got BG14 open on the table next to me -- seems like I'm getting more and more questions about schools lately -- and I can't find anything in the index for "American Institute of Naprapathic Medicine" or "Institute of Naprapathic Medicine". Google and Metacrawler are failing me as well -- Google returns only a single page, the one you cite.

    And doesn't it seem odd that:

    "Dr. Lawrence is a Naparapathic Medical Doctor and Medical Missionary who practices healing in North Carolina" and "Dr. Lawrence is registered to practice in Washington, D.C."

    ------------------
    Kristin Evenson Hirst
    DistanceLearn.About.com
     
  3. PSalmon

    PSalmon New Member

  4. Chip

    Chip Administrator

    Chip,

    I've usually got BG14 open on the table next to me -- seems like I'm getting more and more questions about schools lately -- and I can't find anything in the index for "American Institute of Naprapathic Medicine" or "Institute of Naprapathic Medicine".


    Thanks for the attempt... I'll have to email Justin (BG14 editor) on this, since John is somewhere in Mongolia at the moment [​IMG] I can't believe it's a new one... but we'll see.


    And doesn't it seem odd that:

    "Dr. Lawrence is a Naparapathic Medical Doctor and Medical Missionary who practices healing in North Carolina" and "Dr. Lawrence is registered to practice in Washington, D.C."


    Actually, that's not quite as odd as you might think. Washington DC is the only state that licenses naturopathic practitioners and permits people with bogus credentials to qualify. They also have no residency requirement, so just about every unqualified practitioner in the country has a DC license. It's in many ways worse than having no licensure at all, because it confers legitimacy on these bogus degrees, and reduces the credibility of the folks with
    legitimate degrees.

    All of the other states (18 or 20 now, I think) require naturopathic physicians to graduate from a legit program -- of which there are only 4 in the US right now (Bastyr, National, the Moonie school in CT, and the one in Phoenix I can never remember) and, I believe they also have to pass the NMCLEX (or something like that), which is a pretty tough exam.
     
  5. Chip

    Chip Administrator

    Hmmmm. Thanks for the link. From what I see here, these folks look like a cross between massage therapists, physical therapists, and nutritionists. The scope of practice in Illinois seems to be pretty clear that they have no business treating cancer, especially since they aren't supposed to diagnose.

    Today has been one of those days when I've run into a bunch of health quackery. Some unlicensed nurse in Washington State is going on trial for manslaughter for killing a cancer patient by giving him an infusion of an unproven material designed for oral use. The stuff was contaminated and the patient went into septic shock, his heart stopped, and the nurse didn't want to call an ambulance because she was (rightly) concerned that the police would become involved. The patient's husband insisted, but the nurse neglected to tell the paramedics that she had another patient in the next room that was in almost the same situation. And she was charging 3 grand for the IV treatment. Amazing.

    This is of interest because the nurse in question is using the same quacky stuff that the "naprapath" in North Carolina is infusing her patients with.

    This kind of crap (and schools like Westbrook University, American Institute for Holistic Theology and Clayton College of Naturopathic Medicine) really angers me because it casts a really bad light on legitimate holistic and naturopathic medical practitioners.
     
  6. geoduck

    geoduck New Member

    Washington DC is the only state that licenses naturopathic practitioners and permits people with bogus credentials to qualify. They also have no residency requirement, so just about every unqualified practitioner in the country has a DC license. It's in many ways worse than having no licensure at all, because it confers legitimacy on these bogus degrees, and reduces the credibility of the folks with
    legitimate degrees.

    Washington DC used to license legitimately educated naturopaths. Now they have a lesser registration process (two steps below lisensure, one step below certification) and that is why any yahoo can practice there.

    All of the other states (18 or 20 now, I think) require naturopathic physicians to graduate from a legit program -- of which there are only 4 in the US right now (Bastyr, National, the Moonie school in CT, and the one in Phoenix I can never remember)

    Actually closer to 12 states license legit NDs. There has been a slowdown, mostly due to bigtime, effective lobbying by the zillions of diploma mill grads. Very sad and studid. A few other states allow anyone calling him/herself a "naturopath" to "practice" including N. Carolina, Idaho, and Kansas (I think). Weird.

    and, I believe they also have to pass the NMCLEX (or something like that), which is a pretty tough exam. [/B][/QUOTE]

    The exam is called the NPLEX and it occurs over a few days. Several states recognize this for licensure. In Washington state, at least, it can be taken consecutively with the state's basic sciences exam which is also not easy.
     
  7. Chip

    Chip Administrator

    Yes, this is extremely unfortunate. Actually, though, it's not really a zillion diploma mill grads. The impression I have from some well-placed sources is that pretty much, the whole no-licensure-for-naturopaths thing is funded by Lloyd Clayton, owner of the bogus naturopathic schools American Institute of Holistic Theology and the Clayton College of Natural Healing, probably with some help from the equally nonwonderful Westbrook University.

    Clayton has established a bogus naturopathic medical organization, masquerading as a "grassroots" thing, and has hired a full-time gun, Boyd Landry, who basically goes around to elected officials in various states, lying his ass off, claiming that grads from Clayton and other bogus naturopathic schools don't diagnose, treat, or prescribe, and therefore shouldn't be subject to licensure.

    Nothing could be further from the truth.

    I was asked by the offices of a Massachusetts state senator to provide some background on the situation, and a little research found lots of examples of people with Clayton and Westbrook degrees claiming to treat cancer and other serious illness, offering diagnostic tests (some of which were laughably unscientific), and, in general, doing everything that the Clayton people say they aren't doing.

    The problem is, the Clayton/Landry argument doesn't hold water if someone knowledgeable challenges it, but most of the legislators don't know any better, and for whatever reason, the legitimate naturopaths (the ones that have actually done a 4 year campus-based degree, an internship and clinical rotation, and undergrad basic sciences that actually have some scientific rigor) don't seem very organized in discrediting the Clayton contingent.

    And, of course, the only reason that Clayton gets away with this is that he's pulling in tons of money from his bogus programs, so he has lots of it to throw at the lobbying efforts.

    Nice.

    Keep in mind that these are the same fine folks that brought you American Institute for Computer Sciences, now known as ACCIS. That's one of the reasons I'm such a strong opponent of ACCIS. It's hard to believe that the less-than-ethical tactics at Clayton, AIHT, and Chadwick aren't in some ways also followed at ACCIS, but that's a different topic...
     
  8. HopeW

    HopeW New Member

    Regarding Boyd Landry, I've spoken with him regarding the experience I had with a Bastyr grad. I think the Health Freedom Act is far better than licensing grads of 4-year naturopathic schools. HFA would make all kinds of practitioners responsible for providing consumers with a curriculum vitae and if there was a problem, the consumer would also be provided with information on who and how to report the problem.

    As it is now, it's buyer beware. Unless a crime can be proven, i.e. practicing medicine without a license, there is not much that can be done. Many people do not know that there are distance learning naturopaths and 4-year naturopathic school grads practicing out there. The HFA would provide the information.

    Mr. Landry has encouraged me to get my story out because there are quacks practicing, but not all naturopaths are quacks. He's also against naturopaths claiming to be the equivalent of allopathic family doctors.
     
  9. believer

    believer New Member

    Please remember that ACCIS is approved by the DETC and Chadwick University is licensed by the Alabama Dept of Education.
    These are positive features about these educational institutions IMHO.
     
  10. Bruce

    Bruce Moderator

    Having DETC (or any other recognized) accreditation is certainly a positive thing for any school.

    State licensing, however, is a totally different animal. It can range from at least some academic oversight (California) to a meaningless business license (Wyoming).

    I've never reviewed Alabama's licensing regulations, so I can't offer an opinion if Chadwick is legitimate or not, but state licensing does not automatically make a school legitimate.


    Bruce
     
  11. DCross

    DCross New Member

    The exam is called the NPLEX and it occurs over a few days. Several states recognize this for licensure. In Washington state, at least, it can be taken consecutively with the state's basic sciences exam which is also not easy. [/B][/QUOTE]


    I happen to know a little bit about this one. Naprapathy, pronounced "nuh-PROP-puh-thee" is different from Naturopathy. In Illinois, one must posses a license in order to practice Naprapathy. The DN degree (Doctor of Naprapathy...) can only be earned in residence at the Chicago school. They don't claim to be able to diagnose or cure anything, but rather to be able to assess and treat. They claim that their founder disporoved the chiropractic theory of sublaxations. If you look at their basic science faculty, you'll find that they are well credentialed. Who knows? Maybe they are on to something...
     
  12. simon

    simon New Member


    I happen to know a little bit about this one. Naprapathy, pronounced "nuh-PROP-puh-thee" is different from Naturopathy. In Illinois, one must posses a license in order to practice Naprapathy. The DN degree (Doctor of Naprapathy...) can only be earned in residence at the Chicago school. They don't claim to be able to diagnose or cure anything, but rather to be able to assess and treat. They claim that their founder disporoved the chiropractic theory of sublaxations. If you look at their basic science faculty, you'll find that they are well credentialed. Who knows? Maybe they are on to something...


    Response:

    There is do doubt that the RA schools offering programs in these disciplines are fairly rigorous especially in the sciences and math. However, graduates from these programs are in no position, regardless of claims otherwise, to perform the intricate medical assessments, differential diagnosis and myriad modes of complex treatment offered by allopathic physicians.

    Yes, for certain minor medical conditions or to complement allopathic interventions, there may be some usefulness for these practitioners. In fact, a review of a number of state board of licensures' reveals the limited scope of practice for these professions in terms of their diagnostic and treatment capacity.
     
  13. Howard

    Howard New Member


    Chadwick is not even close to legimate.....It is in one room on 11th Avenue South with all of the other Clayton enterprises. Not sure how it is now, but a few years ago the school could not register students from Alabama. Just to look at their MBA program I called and asked for a catalog. When I gave my address as being in Alabama the operator simply hung up.....Liscensed, yes, legimate, NO WAY!!!!!
     
  14. Naprapath

    Naprapath New Member

    There is no American Institute of Naprapathic Medicine

    I just came across this site as I also Googled the American Institute of Naprapathic Medicine. I am currently the Vice President of the national association representing naprapaths in the United States - the American Naprapathic Association. To my best knowledge, there is not currently, nor has ever been, an American Institute of Naprapathic Medicine.

    However, the Illinois-based college, the National College of Naprapathic Medicine had changed its name several years ago from its former name: the Chicago National College of Naprapathy. It may be possible that the AINM was a name being considered before the college chose it's current name and it happened to get onto the website in question. I will need to check into that issue.

    The N.C.N.M college has a program accredited by the A.N.A. to teach the science of Naprapathy. Also, a college in New Mexico, the Southwest University of Naprapathic Medicine and Health Sciences should be opening sometime in 2011. Stay tuned!
     
  15. Naprapath

    Naprapath New Member

    Response to the Response:

    Yes, the program taught at the National College of Naprapathic Medicine is rigorous. The faculty is excellent as you suggest. However, there was never any implication from any naprapath claiming to be able perform the "intricate medical assessments" which allopathic physicians typically perform. Yet to imply that naprapathy treats only "minor medical conditions" may discount the experience of the patients who were successfully treated for the vast array of severely painful musculoskeletal conditions with conservative measures such as naprapathy, physical therapy and other licensed professions who do not perform such intricate medical assessments.

    It is well-known that treating back pain costs the U.S. about $26 billion annually! Recently the American College of Physicians and the American Pain Society went as far as "strongly" recommending that medical doctors "not obtain imaging or other diagnostic tests in patients with nonspecific low back pain." In too many cases, they felt those expensive tests proved worse than useless. Alternative measures, such as naprapathy, can successfully treat this type of pathology for less cost and often more effectively than simply giving pain medications, ice and/or rest - and far more cost-effective than surgery.

    Medicaid released data that suggests that spinal fusion costs Americans $16K for EACH surgery whereas conservative and CAM therapies, including naprapathy or other physical measures/disciplines, give relief in most cases of non-specific back pain for under $4K per patient without surgery. Though the success rate of single level spinal fusion surgery is relatively high - somewhere between 40% to 80% - it is only about 15 percent for multi-level fusions. With a failed spinal fusion surgery, pain persists even after the bone graft has been placed between vertebra! However, certain cases (eg - cauda equina) absolutely need the specialty of allopathic heroic efforts!

    So to sum up: YES! Naprapaths do not do "intricate medical assessments, differential diagnosis and myriad modes of complex treatment offered by allopathic physicians" but sometimes they do a pretty darn good job and often for less money. Manual medicine is the future -- at least when emergency medical procedures are NOT the best option in this arena.
     
  16. Alex Amith

    Alex Amith New Member

    Have you heard of North American College of Naprapathic Medicine ran by Gary Axley from about 1993-1998? Can’t find anything on it using Google search.
     
  17. Johann

    Johann Well-Known Member

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