Doctor of Naturopathy (ND, or in Arizona also Naturopathic Medical Doctor, or NMD) is an academic degree granted by a naturopathic medical school. However, how the term ND is applied varies between countries, and in North America between regions. In states and provinces where the profession is not licensed, anyone can legally refer to himself or herself as a "naturopath", without need for any qualifications whatsoever. In states that license primary care naturopathic physicians, the title is protected. It is a first professional degree in fifteen United States and four Canadian provinces, where NDs are licensed as primary care providers[1].* The physician as teacher. docere
Beyond an accurate diagnosis and appropriate prescription, the physician must work to create a healthy, sensitive interpersonal relationship with the patient. A cooperative doctor-patient relationship has inherent therapeutic value. The physician's major role is to educate and encourage the patient to take responsibility for health. The physician is a catalyst for healthful change, empowering and motivating the patient to assume responsibility. It is the patient, not the doctor, who ultimately creates/accomplishes healing. The physician must strive to inspire hope as well as understanding. The physician must also make a commitment to his/her personal and spiritual development in order to be a good teacher.Naturopaths are also prone to make grandiose claims about some herb or remedy that can enhance the immune system. Yet, only medical doctors are competent to do the tests necessary to determine if an individual's immune system is in any way depressed (Green). Naturopaths assume that many diseases, including cancer, are caused by faulty immune systems. (The immune system, in simple terms, is the body's own set of mechanisms that attacks anything that isn't "self." Although, in some cases rather than attack "foreign bodies" such as viruses, fungi, or bacteria, the immune response goes haywire and the body attacks it own cells, e.g., in lupus, multiple sclerosis, and rheumatoid arthritis.) Naturopaths also promote the idea that the mind can be used to enhance the immune system and thereby improve one's health. However Dr. Saul Green argues that
PHILOSOPHY
Naturopathic Medicine is a distinctively natural approach to health and healing that recognizes the integrity of the whole person. Naturopathic Medicine is heir to the vitalistic tradition of medicine in the Western world, emphasizing the treatment of disease through the stimulation, enhancement, and support of the inherent healing capacity of the person. Methods of treatments are chosen to work with the patient's vital force, respecting the intelligence of the natural healing process. The practice of Naturopathic Medicine emerges from six underlying principles of healing. These principles are based on the objective observation of the nature of health and disease, and are continually reexamined in light of scientific analysis. It is these principles that distinguish the profession from other medical approaches:
