Welcome to the URHP

Sources of Holism in Ancient Greek and Indian Medicine

New book published by URHP member Vicki Pitman

"The Nature of the Whole, Holism in Ancient Greek and Indian Medicine"

Quote from the foreward by Dr. Dominik Wujastyk and Dr. Kenneth Zysk.

"...Vicki Pitman dives deep into the Greek tradition of Hippocrates, the father of Western medicine, to discover whether the roots of holism can be found there. If such roots can be found, then perhpas we can say that Modern Establishment Medicine has lost something important that it once had...Pitman's thesis is distnguished by several features: orginality, scholarly integrity, and accessibility. Perhaps the most important is its historical probity. Pitman grapples with the original texts of Greek and Indian medicine, refusing to simplify, refusing to take anybody' elses word for their meaning. In doing so Pitman has produced a study which is factually trustworthy, serious and true to the traditions in explores."

Copies are available from the author, as well as Amazon and the publisher www.mlbd.com . For more information, please contact vickipitman@urhp.net

Please see product/supply part of forum for more info!

The Global Natural Healthcare Trust:

A small charity doing a big job in South Africa.
Web site: www.http://www.gnhct.org
Founded by Medical Herbalist Annette Montague-Thomas, the charity treats patients holistically with medical herbs which are both safe and organic.

There are more than 50 million known cases of HIV/AIDS in the world today. 5 million of these are in South Africa [published by South African Treatment Action Campaign 2005]. South Africa has a serious problem.

Our charity has been working since 2001 on the Orange Farm Settlement, situated just outside of Johannesburg. Orange Farm is home to hundreds of thousands of people living in extremely impoverished circumstances, many of whom are also afflicted with the HIV/AIDS virus. Our treatment is given free of charge.

For more information please see 'The Global National Healthcare Trust' and Donation' section in the General Discussion area of the Public Forum.

New Website Launched

As you can see, our new website has finally been launched. We now have both user and member forums, plus a password-protected Members Area (please contact us if you need the password).

Healing Roots

A Foundation Course in Shamanic Healing for Herbalists
with Andrew Johnson and Jane Dagger

A two part non-residential course created for herbal practitioners and others with an interest in the role of Celtic Shamanic Healing, Plant Spirit Medicine and Celtic Traditional Medicine.

At this time when the medical model is increasingly emphasised this course offers an opportunity to balance the benefits of this approach by reconnecting with the heart and soul of the western healing tradition. We will be drawing on the indigenous healing wisdom of Britain and Ireland and learning skills that help us to reclaim the power of our healing roots. This foundation course is for beginners, it teaches students shamanic journeying, how to gather spirit allies along with other Celtic and traditional folk healing methods.

The course includes talks, practical and experiential work, some of which will be in the garden and surrounding countryside. There will be individual, group and paired work. Supportive printed material is included. Shamanic tools and books will also be available to buy.

JANE DAGGER has been involved in many aspects of traditional folk magic, healing and shamanism for most of her life. She has a passionate working relationship with Britain and its myths and traditions. For the past 15 years she has taught workshops on Celtic Shamanism with Caitlin and John Matthews as part of the Faculty of Inspirational & Oracular Studies (FiOS). She works as a shamanic healer and maker of shamanic tools in Dorset. FFI: jane-dagger@tiscali.co.uk

ANDREW JOHNSON MAMH. MBANT. RIr. has been in clinical practice for 23 years, he has a background in social work; and a clinical practice that includes herbal medicine, nutritional therapy, iridology, kinesiology, healing and shamanic healing. FFI: www.glastonburynaturalhealth.co.uk


Course dates: May 17-18th and September 13-14th 2008. Venue: Moorlinch near Glastonbury, Somerset.

Course fee: £280 inclusive of the two weekends, printed material, lunches, light snacks and teas.
To secure a place at a reduced fee send a 50% deposit of £120 (£60 for each weekend) before 1st March 2008 = total fee £240.

Lunches, teas and snacks at the weekends will be from mostly organically grown sources with options for vegetarian/vegans, wheat and sugar free.

Staying in Glastonbury help available from www.glastonbury-pilgrim.co.uk

Herb Fest

Friday August 1st - Sunday 3rd

HerbFest is a herbal gathering combining informative lectures, practical workshops and plant walks with time to relax and enjoy each other's company. There is a choice of activities throughout the day, and entertainment around the central campfire in the evenings.

* Deepen your knowledge
* Share your skills
* Experience green living
* Recharge your batteries
* Catch up with old friends
* Make new friends
* Earn CPD points
* Have fun!

Setting: Green and Away are 4 miles from Worcester in a beautiful field on an organically run farm with a river and mature trees.

Green & Away is Britian's only eco-friendly tented conference centre. The centre is built anew every summer in a hay meadow on an organic smallholding. The centre is set up as a showcase of sustainable living, and the staff are volunteers who enjoy working to facilitate environmental and social change.

The atmosphere is friendly and relaxed. The marquees and yurts for lectures and workshops are arranged around a central meeting area and campfire. There is a licensed bar and there are hot showers, washing facilities and composting toilets. All electricity on site is sun or wind generated. Wireless internet access is available.

The food is vegetarian and mostly organic, grown on site or sourced from local suppliers. Local beer and cider, organic wine and soft drinks are available at the bar.
More detailed information is available on the Green & Away website: www.greenandaway.org

Programme
Friday 1st August
Lunch
Lectures
Entertainment in the evening

Saturday 2nd August
Breakfast
Lectures
Lunch
Lectures
Dinner
Entertainment in the evening

Sunday 3rd August
Breakfast
Lectures
Closing Ceremony
Lunch

Contact
Booking and general enquiries
Karin Haile: info@herbfestuk.co.uk, 01428 682005

General enquiries
Julie Bruton-Seal: herbalist@onetel.com, 01508 488295
Christine Herbert: c@christineherbert.co.uk, 01953 603056
Price £155/£180 - Includes a set of lecture notes

Bookings will be taken from 7th January 2008. Early bird discount rate of £155 available until April 14th.

The booking fee includes:

* All lectures, workshops & herbwalks
* All food and drink, except from the bar
* Campsite with hot showers
* Evening entertainment
* A set of lecture notes

In tune with the environmental ethos of the centre, participants are encouraged to come by public transport, or to carpool. A £10 surcharge is charged per car for parking.

There are a limited number of spaces for children available. There will be some activities for children, but parents will be expected to participate in supervision. Children will be charged a percentage of the fee according to age.
Please call for details: Karin Haile 01428 682 005

Cancellation: If we cannot fill your place, £75 of the booking fee is non-refundable. If we can fill your place, the full fee minus a £25 handling charge will be returned.

National Institute of Medical Herbalists

144th Annual Conference

April 11th 2008 Research into Practice

The National Institute of Medical Herbalists organises an annual conference for members and interested health professionals. The theme for conference 2008 is research, looking
specifically at how research can influence practice and how practice can lead to valid
research.
Conference aims to
• Give a flavour of what is possible and an insight into what is already being done in
research in Herbal Medicine practice.
• Help everyone develop better understanding of the research field, methods and jargon
• Help members to critique research papers and translate this into either a letter to a
journal or an explanation to a patient
• Inspire herbalists to do research in their own practices/careers, whether it is
publishing case studies or planning a trial.
• Help and inspire people to formulate a research question and have an idea how it
might be answered.
• Let people discuss their own ideas for research projects and get a handle on where to
take them next.
• Help aspiring researchers identify other people with expertise and where to go for
help.

The Hein Zeylstra Memorial Lecture 2008: Julia Green
Changing with herbs
Treatment of menopausal symptoms by qualified herbal practitioners: a prospective,
randomized controlled trial
Research into herbal medicine has concentrated almost exclusively on the plants themselves, and the phytochemicals within them, yet despite its long tradition, little attention has been paid to the practice of trained herbalists. “Changing with herbs” investigates the treatment of menopausal symptoms by qualified herbal practitioners. This pilot randomised controlled trial compares treatment of women with menopausal symptoms by one of 3 NIMH herbalists with a waiting list control over a 5-month period. The aim was not to ask “does this herb work?” but to ask “does this approach help in practice?” To this end the intervention by the herbalists is seen as an entire complex system, not to be fragmented, but investigated as a whole. A nested qualitative study within the trial explored the experiences of the women and herbalists taking part, and gathered data about the treatment. The trial also piloted the methodology of using a waiting list control in measuring herbal practice, and aimed to generate data on sample size needed for future trials.
Julia Green BSc PhD FNIMH is a herbalist, researcher and teacher. She has run a herbal
medicine practice in Bristol, U.K. for twenty years. Her love affair with plants began with a degree in botany and PhD in plant physiology. After successfully consulting a herbalist
herself, she trained for four years with the College of Phytotherapy and became a Member of the National Institute of Medical Herbalists in 1988.
Julia’s interests in research and herbal practice fused when she became coordinator of a
research project “Changing with herbs”. Instigated by NIMH, and the NIMH education fund, with support from the University of Central Lancashire and a local health care trust, this clinical trial investigates western herbal practice in the real world. A nested qualitative study within the trial has listened to the experiences of the participants. The study breaks new ground in being one of the first rigorous investigations of care from qualified herbalists.
“Changing with herbs” is a collaborative, team production, with dedicated hard work from
herbalists Sue Hawkey and Alison Denham, researchers Jenny Ingram and Rosemary
Greenwood, and from the herbal practitioners and women who took part in the study.
The whole team have been tireless in overcoming obstacles to the project, and raising awareness of holistic herbal practice in presenting at conferences in several countries.
The first paper was published in 2007:
Treatment of menopausal symptoms by qualified herbal practitioners: a prospective,
randomized controlled trial
Julia Green; Alison Denham; Jennifer Ingram; Sue Hawkey; Rosemary Greenwood
Family Practice 2007; doi: 10.1093/fampra/cmm048 and can be viewed at:
http://fampra.oxfordjournals.org/cgi/content/abstract/cmm048?
ijkey=MszLWD5I8EBM73b&keytype=ref

Keynote Lecture
Patient-centred Research: Dr Charlotte Paterson
The dominance of biomedicine, the power of pharmaceutical companies, and the rise of
‘evidence based medicine’ has led to the promotion of a very particular research agenda. This is the agenda where placebo-controlled randomised controlled trials are the ‘gold standard’ and explanations for all aspects of healing are sought within a materialistic and biomedical framework. But research doesn’t have to be like this! Practitioners and patients can work with researchers to carry out research that is meaningful to them, in terms of the theories and practices of alternative therapies and the experience of illness in the context of peoples’ everyday lives. My research has focused on the patient’s perspective and what we can learn by combining qualitative and quantitative research methods. Although most of my work has focused on acupuncture I believe that much of it is relevant to all holistic therapies. I hope that by sharing this research experience I can open a discussion about how we can enjoy research and apply it to improving patient care.
Dr Charlotte Paterson is a Senior Research Fellow at the Institute of Health & Social Care
Research at the Peninsula Medical School, Universities of Exeter & Plymouth. She has over twenty years experience as a general practitioner and was a co-founder of one of the early integrated practices; she has over ten years experience of research into complementary medicine, and has recently completed a MRC funded research programme entitled ‘Developing patient-centred research methods for complex interventions: acupuncture for people with chronic disease.’ She is experienced in both quantitative and qualitative research and has a particular interest in exploring and measuring outcomes from the patient’s perspective. She has developed an individualised questionnaire called Measure Yourself Medical Outcome Profile (MYMOP) and has used qualitative methods to evaluate this and other standardised questionnaires. Her focus on researching with patients rather than on them has also lead to research and practice in the area of consumer involvement in research. Yellow Card Reporting by Herbal Practitioners: a short presentation on safety and pharmacovigilance
The NIMH Yellow Card Scheme was implemented in 1994 to report suspected adverse
events specifically for prescribed herbal medicines.
Since the initiation of the scheme there have been 43 yellow card reports from practitioners.
This presentation will give an overview of the types of adverse events being reported.
Ally Broughton BSc (Hons) MNIMH
Ally Broughton is a practicing herbalist based in Edinburgh and teaches research methods in herbal medicine. She has been involved with the NIMH Research Group for the past 10
years, and as Director of Research for 7 of those years, and she has also been a member of NIMH Council. Her main area of activity is herb safety research as well as running the yellow card reporting scheme.

Workshop 1
"Research for Dummies or all you ever wanted to know about research but were afraid
to ask"
W hat's so great about the RCT? How would I write a review? What is the qualitative
approach for? How do I know I'm not being baffled by statistics? How do I formulate my
research question?
A panel of experts will answer all of these and any other burning questions you have
regarding research with the aim of taking the anxiety out of the subject and making it more accessible and relevant to you the practising herbalist. Whether you have just graduated and didn't really get to grips with research or have been in practice twenty years and research wasn't part of your training (though plenty of other things were), if you feel research is dull or difficult, or you just want to brush up your knowledge, then this workshop is for you.
The panel doesn't promise to cover all this in the time available but hopes to demystify, and answer questions on, research that is:
Anthropological, qualitative or explores the meaning of herbal treatment
A systematic review or meta-analysis
A conventional RCT
A pragmatic RCT
An observational study (that is, case control studies, systematic case study series,
epidemiological studies and the like)
Basic science and mechanistic research, its interpretation and limitations
Economic and service usage research (how herbal medicine fits with other health services, who uses it and what it costs or saves)
This workshop will help relieve your anxiety and provide an insightful and educational way
to help you understand what research might do for you as a practitioner, how you the
practitioner can contribute to research and what types of research are appropriate for herbal medicine.
So come along and find out how to give RCTs a good kicking. That is if they deserve a good kicking. Now, what was a RCT again?
The panel will comprise:
Dr. Olivia Corcoran, University of East London
Ally Broughton MNIMH
Kathryn Watt MNIMH
Jay MacKinnon MNIMH
Nina Nissen MNIMH
Dr Olivia Corcoran is Senior Lecturer, and Programme Leader in Forensics, the Research
Innovation Coordinator of the School of Health and Bioscience and Director of the Medicines Research Group at the University of East London.
Ally Broughton BSc (Hons)is a practicing herbalist based in Edinburgh and teaches research methods in herbal medicine. She has been involved with the NIMH Research Group for the past 10 years, and as Director of Research for 7 of those years, and she has also been a member of NIMH Council. Her main area of activity is herb safety research as well as running the yellow card reporting scheme.
Kathryn Watt BSc (Hons) worked in a variety of scientific research areas for 21 years as a senior laboratory technician. The scientific areas included microbiology, parasitology, and crops. Kathryn gained a 1st Class Honours Degree in Herbal Medicine in 2006, and joined the NIMH soon after. She has been practising CranioSacral Therapy for 2 years. These two disciplines allow her to combine her scientific knowledge and her intuition to provide her patients with the best possible care.
Jay MacKinnon BSc (Hons), MPhil, trained at Middlesex University and has been in private
practice in Scotland since 2004. Jay’s interests are in education, and research directly
applicable to clinical practice, and the dissemination of published research to achieve
maximum benefits for patients. Jay gained a Masters by research (MPhil) from St Andrews University medical school and is currently pondering future research topics in between being on Council and the Accreditation Board. She is looking for wealthy research benefactors and we can put you in touch if you are kind enough to oblige.
Nina Nissen, BSc(Hons), MA, PGCE is a herbalist and social anthropologist and joined the
NIMH in 1988. Nina has practised, taught and researched herbal medicine in the UK, Latin
America and the Caribbean and runs a clinic in North London. Her PhD research is an
ethnographic study of the practice and use of western herbal medicine in the UK. The study particularly focuses on practitioner and patient experiences and the processes emerging from consultations between women practitioners and their patients in addressing women’s health needs.

Workshop 2
Evidence Based Medicine – How to make it work for you.
This workshop will help you understand exactly what “evidence based medicine” is and what it isn’t, the benefits it can bring and the pitfalls to avoid. Advice and guidance will be given that can help us make the best of use of evidence based medicine in our practices.
We will look at
• The background to Evidence Based Medicine (EBM)
• Explaining some of the terms employed
• The resources available
• The close parallels between “real” evidence based practice and classical herbal
practice
• Evidence sources of many kinds, their strengths and weaknesses
• An introduction to appraising and integrating evidence
• Recording and evaluating, Critically Appraised Topics (CATs)
The workshop will introduce you to the skills you need to develop to sort the useful evidence from the rest, and how to assess its value to your practice.
Sally Owen Dip Herb MNIMH PGCE/Cert Ed practices in Mid Wales, where she has lived
for the past 34 years. She teaches EBM and the History and Philosophy of Herbal Medicine at UEL. She began studying Medicine at the University of Wales, left as a result of disillusionment with the available material medica and therapeutic model of the time, and continued her studies first at the School of Herbal Medicine with Fred Fletcher Hyde, and then at the College of Phytotherapy. She moderates the NIMH Members Forum and is interested in “grass roots” research.

Workshop 3
In Search of Sources: Early Traditions in Western Herbal Medicine
What do we really know of the medicine of the oft-quoted Hippocrates and the other founders of Western Herbal Medicine? Vicki Pitman asked the same questions and embarked on a research project to find out. Today she presents themes emerging from her research into the origins of Holism in the medicine of Hippocrates She will also touch on the continuity of the tradition to Dioscorides and Galen. In doing so she will explain her research methodology and consider how research into the past can contribute to modern profession and practice.
Vicki Pitman is Vice-president of the Unified Register of Herbal Practitioners and a member
of the American Herbalists Guild. She trained in Dr. Christopher's herbalism, and in East-
West Herbalism with Michael and Leslie Tierra. She also studied Ayurveda with Dr. Vasant
Lad, David Frawley and in Pune, and Kerala, India. In 1999 she gained an M.Phil. in
Complementary Health Studies at the University of Exeter with her dissertation: An
Investigation of Holism in the Hippocratic Corpus, published in 2006 as The Nature of the
Whole, Holism in Ancient Greek and Indian Medicine. She continues her studies in ancient
Western medicine. Vicki is author of: Herbal Medicine, the Use of Herbs for Health and
Healing (1995, 2000), and articles in HerbalGram and the European Journal of
Phytotherapy.

Workshop 4
Clinical Audit – another way to look at your practice
How quickly do you respond to patient enquiries? How effective is your practice information at recruiting patients or do you simply not know? How often do you carry out a physical examination of patients? Which Schedule III herbs do you use?
Carrying out a clinical audit fulfils the criteria for a CPD project in the personal section, so if you don’t know what it means or how to do it this workshop is for you. There will be an
initial presentation outlining the principles of clinical audit and its relevance to herbal
practitioners. In the second half of the workshop Alison will draw on her wide experience of teaching clinical audit to lead a practical group-work session with attendees planning a
clinical audit of practice literature. Herbalists attending therefore need to bring copies of their practice literature to work on. Alison will also explain how doing a clinical audit provides a means of evaluating your practice.
Alison Denham, FNIMH
Alison Denham is a past President of the NIMH, and before that the NIMH Director of
Research when she was involved in a clinical audit project within NIMH. Alison teaches at
the University of Central Lancashire, and has recently published a paper with Julia Green and Sue Hawkey on a randomised controlled trial of treatment by herbal practitioners of women during the menopause. Other major interests are prescribing in herbal medicine and quality, safety, cultivation and conservation of medicinal plants.

Workshop 5
Presentations:
A total of six presentations will be made, each lasting 20 minutes. There will be three before the tea break and three after. The presentations will not be repeated, but will be different in each half of the workshop. Full details of the presentations will be available following the receipt of papers.

Call for papers
Papers (in English) from all areas of herbal medicine research are welcome. Please submit an abstract of 200-300 words in length for a 20-minute presentation. Available space at the conference venue limits poster presentations to 1m in width by 80cm in height.
Abstracts should be submitted by31st January 2008 by email to: nimh.ptb@gmail.com
Please include: Title of Paper, Full name(s), Affiliation, Current position, and email address and at least 3 key words that best describe the subject of your submission.
Selected abstracts will be published in a special volume.

CONFERENCE REGISTRATION FORM

Please book via the NIMH office and not directly with the conference venue. Should any member book directly with the conference venue and subsequently cancel, they will be liable for the full cost of any charge made to the NIMH.

DELEGATE DETAILS

Name:.....................................................................................
Address:..................................................................................
Membership Number:............................................................
Phone:.....................................................................................
Any special dietary requirements:................................................................................................................................

AGM AND CONFERENCE RATES
Please tick relevant boxes:

Thursday 10th April 2008 – Evening Meal £ 19.50
Friday 11th April 2008 – conference (non-refundable) £ 80.00
Friday – Lunch £ 14.00
Friday – Evening Meal £ 19.50
Saturday 12th April 2008 – AGM £ No Fee
Saturday – Lunch £ 14.00


PLEASE NOTE: Accommodation fees Do Not Include the Friday conference fee.

All Accommodation is on a Bed & Breakfast basis. There are a limited amount of rooms available at the hotel so early booking is essential.

Please state below how many nights you will need accommodation for and the dates of your arrival and departure. (Note: Lunch & Evening meals are at an extra cost. Please mark if you wish to book for these meals above.)
Date of Arrival April 2008 Departure Date April 2008
I require Nights Bed & Breakfast in a En-suite room @ £52.00 per night Total : £


DINNER AND DANCE SATURDAY NIGHT
You must book dinner/dance tickets in advance. It is not automatically assumed you will want a ticket even though you are attending conference.

N.I.M.H. Member’s tickets £13.00 each
Tickets for non-member’s £27.00 each
One member’s ticket @ £13 (please tick)

Number of non-member’s ……… Total £.........................

Total cost (including non-refundable conference fee if attending) £.....................


NO BOOKINGS/CANCELLATIONS WILL BE TAKEN AFTER 28th MARCH 2008. NO REFUNDS FOR CANCELLATIONS AFTER THAT DATE
Please order all meals in advance, including the Dinner Dance. There will be no extra meals available on the day.
PLEASE MAKE CHEQUES PAYABLE TO “NIMH” and return to
NIMH (Conference Booking), Elm House, 54 Mary Arches Street, Exeter, Devon, EX4 3BA

Using Herbal Medicine in Acute Illness and First Aid

Continuing Professional Development Seminar Programme

A one-day seminar

Led by Dedj Leibbrandt, MNIMH, MRCHM

The PTB is delighted to be able to host a repeat of this popular seminar in advance of Herbal Medicine Awareness Week. It ties in with theme of this year’s event (Herbal First Aid). If you need to brush up your knowledge prior to Herbal Medicine Awareness Week – this is the place to do it.

Herbal training tends to focus on treating chronic illness. Most patients encountered during training present with chronic conditions. The scope for treating acute illness using herbal medicine is vast. Our practices are greatly enhanced through treating patients with acute ailments and by offering herbal first aid.

Dedj Leibbrandt has a background in nursing, then trained as a herbalist and became a Member of the NIMH 15 years ago. She is also trained in Chinese Herbal Medicine and has been a member of RCHM for 10 years. In conjunction with NIMH, Dedj established a training clinic for post and undergraduate students that focuses on acute herbal medicine and herbal first aid. This clinic runs at various festivals /camping events during the summer.

The content of this seminar will focus on insights learned and experience gained over the years of practising and teaching in this clinic and treating literally thousands of patients. Dedj prides herself on focusing her teaching on sharing clinically relevant experience. We are pleased to be able to offer this opportunity to learn hot tips from Dedj’s experience to use in our clinics.

Date: Saturday 26th April 2008 10.00 a.m. – 5.00 p.m. Registration from 9.30 a.m.
Venue: Room 1029 Owen Building, Sheffield Hallam University, Howard Street, Sheffield, S1 1WB

Some Interesting Forums

www.globalholisticnetwork.com
A centre uniting practioners from all around the world, forum, articles and information.

Discussion groups on prescribed drugs. These can be accessed at www.drgascoigne.com/learning.

Forum on Chinese Medicine can be accessed at:
www.chinesemedicinetimes.com.

The UK herbal list ac be accessed at:
http://health.groups.yahoo.com/group/ukherbal-list/