PREDSEDNIK LMHI POZVAL SKUPŠČINO ZZS K PREKINITVI DISKRIMINACIJE

Na 73. redni seji Skupščine Zdravniške zbornice Slovenije, ki bo 17. decembra 2014, so na dnevni red uvrstili tudi točko »Sistemska ureditev zdravnikov, ki se ukvarjajo s homeopatijo«. Gradivo z naslovom »Sistemska umestitev zdravnikov, ki se ukvarjajo s homeopatijo« je pripravila doc. dr. Danica Pavlič Rotar, dr. med., predsednica Odbora ZZS za pravno-etična vprašanja. Poslanke in poslanci bodo odločali, ali naj se zdravnikom z licenco, ki imajo dodatna znanja iz homeopatije in bi želeli zdraviti s homeopatijo, odvzame licenca, ali naj se jim dopusti, da zdravijo s homeopatsko medicino.

Poziv dr. Renza Galassija, predsednika Mednarodnega združenja zdravnikov homeopatov (LMHI), ki ga je naslovil na predsednika in poslance Skupščine Zdravniške zbornice, v nadaljevanju objavljamo v celoti:

Dear Prim. asist. mag. Završnik, dr. med., President of the Assembly of the Medical Chamber,
Dear members of the Assembly of the Medical Chamber,
Dear colleagues,
 
I am writing in connection with the situation of Homeopathy in Slovenia. It has come to my notice that strange and extremely discriminatory situation regarding medical practice of homeopathy exists in your country, namely that Medical Doctors Service Act of Slovenia strictly prohibits medical doctors from practicing homeopathy. As far as we know Slovenia is the only country where medical chamber withdraws doctors’ licenses if they practice homeopathy and prescribe homeopathic medicines.
 
I am writing on behalf of the Liga Medicorum Homeopathica Internationalis (LMHI) – the world’s largest homeopathic medical association founded in 1925, representing at this moment 76 countries worldwide and having as its active members medical physicians, veterinary surgeons, dental surgeons, and pharmacists with additional qualifications in homeopathy. The Slovenian Homeopathic Society is LMHI’s regular institutional member since 1998. The Slovenian Homeopathic Society, the Liga Medicorum Homoeopathica Internationalis (LMHI) and the European Committee for Homeopathy (ECH) jointly organized the International Symposium on Homeopathy in Ljubljana in 2010 to celebrate the International Homeopathy Day and promote public awareness of homeopathy in Slovenia. In Ljubljana we had constructive meetings with Dr. Trontelj, Dr. Poredoš, Dr. Čebašek Travnik and other high representatives of state and medical community.
 
Homeopathy is practised by hundred of thousands of medical doctors in ALL CONTINENTS. Since 200 years millions of patients are treated, all over the world, with a therapeutic system which has never changed in its fundamental statements in all these years, safe and effective treatment for acute and chronic diseases.
 
WHO considers Homeopathy as one of the most commonly used therapy of T&CM in the world. Therefore, many countries have made great efforts to advance Homeopathy in healthcare, and established or developed national and regional policies and regulations to promote the system and it has also been realized that the global distribution of Homeopathy is encouraging and the system is making new inroads in various countries with the support of medical fraternity.
 
Homeopathy as a distinct therapeutic system is recognized by law in several countries. In some countries where the government delegates the tasks of authorization, registration and supervision of health professionals to the national medical associations (medical councils, medical chambers) statutory regulation has been introduced by the national medical associations. Homeopathy is recognized as medical specialty, medical subspecialty or as additional qualification.
 
Also homeopathic medicines are regulated in national pharmacopeias and national laws. The Directive 2001/83/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council on the Community code relating to medicinal products for human use, which includes homeopathic medicines, was transposed into national laws of all EU Member States.
 
In India, Pakistan, Sri Lanka and Mexico, the legal standing of homeopathy is equivalent to that of conventional western (allopathic) medicine, many practitioners are certified in both homeopathy and allopathic medicine, and the primary care provider for many patients is a homeopathic doctor. In India alone there are over 180,000 homeopathic doctors working.
 
There are approximately 50,000 medical doctors in Europe who have taken training in homeopathy. The experience of these doctors that homeopathy can be effective in many medical conditions is increasingly supported by external evidence. By virtue of their training and education in both conventional medicine and homeopathy, homeopathic doctors know which treatment, conventional or homeopathic or a combination of the two, can help patients in the best possible way in specific medical conditions. Homeopathy has benefited from growing demand both from doctors and from the public in the majority of the countries in the world. According to a survey by European Commission order three Europeans out of four know about Homeopathy and of these about 30 % use it for their healthcare.
 
Homeopathy has also become more and more visible at universities and hospitals. Professorial chairs of Complementary and Alternative Medicine (CAM) including homeopathy exist in Germany, Hungary, Italy and Switzerland. Homeopathy as a part of familiarization courses on CAM are provided in the medical undergraduate curriculum at several universities in France, Germany, Hungary, Italy, the Netherlands, Romania, Spain and the United Kingdom; as a separate subject at some universities in Belgium, Bulgaria, Germany and Romania. Postgraduate training courses in homeopathy for doctors are provided at universities in Bulgaria, France, Germany, Greece, Italy, Lithuania, Poland, Romania and Spain. Several hospitals in Europe, in their out-patient departments, currently provide homeopathic treatment by medical doctors, i.e. in Austria, France, Germany, Spain, Italy and the United Kingdom.
 
One of the main reasons why homeopathy expands its influence more and more over the globe, playing already an important role in many national health systems, is the fact that homeopathy not only moves the patient in the centre of its attention, but also offers practical approaches and solutions for the totality of the patients disorders.
 
Homeopathy requires special knowledge and skills to be mastered. It takes considerable training and homeopathic doctors should be able to combine the knowledge and skills in homeopathic practice with the knowledge and skills in the practice of conventional medicine. Since homeopathic treatment often needs to be prescribed within a broader care plan including an awareness of the need for conventional medical diagnosis, prognosis and treatments, qualifications should be at the same high level as in conventional medicine. A full medical education ensures the necessary clinical competence required, especially if homeopathy is applied as an alternative to conventional treatment.
 
But what appears as contradiction for Homeopathy in Slovenia is that, although the law permits medical doctors with additional qualification in homeopathy to practise homeopathic medicine, the medical chamber withdraws doctors’ licenses if they actually practice it. This paradox in law is not only a challenge for the practitioners willing to prescribe Homeopathy along with allopathy, but also beyond the basic domains of medical ethics wherein the rights of both, the practitioner and the patient willing to use Homeopathy are compromised.
 
Members of LMHI Executive Committee are prepared to come to Slovenia to discuss and explain medical homeopathy to members of Medical Chamber, National Medical Ethics Committee and all interested parties. In addition, LMHI is happy to provide you with any document or expertise that may help in your decision making process.
 
Let me conclude my letter expressing the strong hope that LMHI will soon witness the end of discriminatory practice of revoking medical license in Slovenia just because medical doctor has an additional qualification in homeopathy and would like to treat his patients also with homeopathy.
 
I trust and express my gratitude to your able governance in anticipation,
 
Dr. Renzo Galassi
LMHI President
 
To:
Prim. asist. mag. Jernej Završnik, dr. med., spec., President of the Assembly of the Medical Chamber of Slovenia
Members of the Assembly of the Medical Chamber of Slovenia
 
CC:
Mr. Borut Pahor, President of the Republic of Slovenia
Dr. Miro Cerar, President of the Government of the Republic of Slovenia
Ms. Milojka Kolar, Minister of Health of the Republic of Slovenia
Ms. Vlasta Nussdorfer, Human Rights Ombudsman
Prim. Andrej Možina, President of the Medical Chamber of Slovenia
Prof. Dr. Franc Strle, President of Medical Council and Secretary of the Section six – Medical Sciences of the Slovenian Academy of Sciences and Arts
Prof. Dr. Dušan Šuput, Dean of the Faculty of Medicine Ljubljana
Prof. Dr. Ivan Krajnc, Dean of the Faculty of Medicine Maribor
Dr. Božidar Voljč, President of the National Medical Ethics Committee
Prof. Dr. Pavel Poredoš, President of the Slovenian Medical Association
Mr. Konrad Kuštrin, President of the FIDES
Mr. Igor Muževič, President of the PRAKTIK.UM
Ms. Helena Mole, President of the SZZZZS
Ms. Helena Lovinčič, RTVSLO
Ms. Diana Zajec, Delo
Ms. Nina Knavs, Dnevnik
STA
Slovensko homeopatsko društvo
LMHI
European Committee for Homeopathy