NGO slams traditional medicine

2004-08-11 14:06

Cape Town - The organisation Doctors For Life (DFL) has again spoken out against the formal recognition of South Africa's traditional healers, as proposed by the Traditional Health Practitioners Bill, saying it is irrational to regulate the use of medicines that are not scientifically validated.

In a statement this week - following a presentation on Tuesday to parliament's health portfolio committee, which is holding public hearings on the bill - the NGO said any medicine not based on empirical truth was "potentially (and ultimately) harmful to patients".

DFL, which represents about 1 000 medical doctors, specialists, dentists, veterinary surgeons, and medical academics from across South Africa and abroad, said traditional medical practices had not improved the survival of children, or mothers in birth, or patients.

Further, most of the medicines used by traditional practitioners had not been validated scientifically, and many people suffered because of the serious complications arising from the use of traditional medicines.

Citing a report by the World Health Organisation (WHO), it said most traditional healers made use of "intangible forces" or "spirits" in their healing practices, and local practitioners were "priests of the religious system of African traditional religion".

"To grant them the status of health professionals without doing the same to office bearers of other religions would be discriminatory against other religions."

DFL said occult powers were used in most of the therapeutic acts of traditional healers, and they made their diagnosis with the aid of "spirits", and under the control of these.

"We feel strongly that the Traditional Health Practitioners Bill is a mechanism that cannot regulate the spirit world; cannot control the communication between 'ancestral spirits' and the healers; and cannot ensure safety for the public against the detrimental affects of traditional medicines.

"It is irrational to allow the regulation of the use of medicines that have not been scientifically validated. This does not appear responsible, sensible or reasonable.

"... we fail to understand how the public will be protected (in terms of the bill) if the healers are still allowed to use medicines that have not been validated scientifically," DFL stated.

In a separate statement titled "Traditional healers are Bad for Health Care" on the organisation's website, DFL says primary health care in South Africa should be "quality", not "primitive" health care.

Many traditional medicines were of "unknown content".

It gives an example of traditional medicine prescribed for "poor marital relationships", which had been found to contain "pubic hair, dirt from under the armpits, the dirt between the toes of patients, sexual secretions (from both the traditional healer and his female patient) together with various herbs".

On Wednesday, the health portfolio committee, state law advisers and health department officials met at Parliament for deliberations on the bill, intended to finalise the measure.

Among other things, the bill aims to "ensure quality of health care in traditional health practice".

- SAPA