Bengal switches to ayurvedic and homeopathy

[Tom Morris]

As I've reported on Quackblog (http://www.bbcity.co.uk/user/quackblog), the Bengal government are currently planning to have practitioners of ayurvedic and homeopathic 'medicine' to replace the proper doctors as guardians of primary health.
Up to 322 primary health practices (http://www.telegraphindia.com/1040607/asp/frontpage/story_3341238.asp) will be run by homeopaths within the next two months.

My reaction is simple: this is completely irresponsible and insane.

[The Don]

Well, being completely heartless and detatched at least it gives some kind of indication that "conventional" medicine has over homoepathy/placebo. It may be that these homoeopaths may have decent diagnosis skills and bedside manner so that he placebo effect can be optimised.

If it goes diagnosed by homoeopath, treated by conventional medicine, empathy by homoeppath then maybe it won't be so bad ;)

[Tom Morris]

Maybe, but how many people will be fobbed off with homeopathy/ayurvedic when they should be getting high-quality scientific medicine?

[The Don]

Like I said, for the detatched observer this will be "interesting". Maybe that they're being seen at all will be a help (well we can hope)

[garys_2k]

Right, from a chillingly detached POV this may be simply an experiment to once again prove (or not) the worthiness of homeopathy. Look for future statistacal graphs of various markers (lifespan, morbidity of various illnesses, LOTS) with a big arrow saying "Homeopathic treatments begun here."

I suspect most all of those curves will show very bad news for the people there.

[The Don]

Unless it's the difference between homoeopathy and nothing (if that's effectively what they have at the moment with the shortage of staff) in which case things might not get worse and could conceiveably get better if people are comforted by the "healer"

[Benguin]

I can see the aid agencies that paid for a lot of those health care centres getting right narked about that one!