East Meets West....trying to find a common ground

I just came from a meeting last night of an Integrative Health Professionals Alliance (coalition, association, whatever…we have not come up with a name yet) that I started forming with some friends late last year. It was both encouraging and depressing. We had some grat ideas float in but we had one member who was at his second meeting and who was SO pessimistic and created so much negativity that it was really hard to make progress…the air got so charged from his attitude at one point that Ihad to interject and ask him to bring his energy down . He has been a chiropractor for over 20 years and has met with so much resistance from Dr's and insurance that he has really put a wall around himself. Funny thing was that he offered his office for that meeting…so I expect that he must have some small hope that it will work.. ;-)

Usually I have a Facillitator with me but she didn't show up…made a mental note last night to make sure she will be there in the future until this gets going!

So - putting a few things out here….

Has anyone out there created an Alliance in their area first among the Integrative practitioners in their area?

If so, have you integrated the Western doctors too or is there so much resistance that it seems (is?) futile?

My vision for the group was to get us all rowing in the same direction. The Pharmaceuticals are all in one big boat, pulling in the same direction (even with the very competitive nature of their business), Western Dr's have another boat and are generally pulling together. Then you have us lot outhere in the center of the stream in our little rowboats….some of us are battling the current, some are heading for shore, others lost their paddles, still others are beating each other over the head with their paddles. Some are going in circles. Some are drifting downstream. Get the picture????????

How on EARTH can we make any progress with the public, with doctors, with insurance companies (I know this will be a source of great debate!), with researchers, whatever, if we insist on “doing our own thing” out here???

So my vision for this Alliance and perhaps this pod, will be to eventually have an organization of health PROFESSIONALS (I am very clear that this has to be people who have some sort of extensive formal training - even if it is an apprenticeship - or perhaps having been in practice for some reasonable amount of time for those who realized a natural “gift” -  and that they spend a reasonable amount of their time plying their skills - so that we will be able to be credible toDr's and the general public…) who can meet, support, network, and educate each other and the Dr's and public about what wonderful things we can do.

I want to discuss this more - and I expect some interesting debates between those of us who are more grounded in western training and those who are on what is considered the fringe of the health industry. But that's what I want! I want to meet all of you and experience and learn from you.

So - if you would like to join me in my Ark - grab a paddle and lets get rowing!!!

Re: East Meets West....trying to find a common ground

My ark has a regular MD, A MD who is also a lisenced acupuncturist, a massage therapist, a Native shaman, a dentist, a couple of psychologists and a wise old priest. These people are my health care team. I can't IMAGINE any one of them doing the whole job, no way. But BlueCross Blue Shield only pays well for the MD and the dentist.

Sigh…
Love,
CalmEagle
http://pods.zaadz.com/soups_on

Re: East Meets West....trying to find a common ground

It is unfortunate AND fortunate that the insurance does not cover everything….

The downside is that we have to sometimes make choices about where our funds will go for our healthcare….

BUT

We get to choose who we go to, how many times, etc. when we pay for it ourselves.

I accept a few insurances and they are a blessing and a curse. It gets me a few clients that I would not get but they pay pathetically  - <2/3 my normal rate in the case of Workmans Comp.  The upside is that I see that person 3x/wk. Most people could not afford that frequency. But, for me, it also means filling out more paperwork, chasing up late payments, and other headaches. And when I am treating the person, I have to be more disciplined about the time I take with them (I tend to go over the allotted hour much of the time…)

I don't like that constraint, but I also want people to be able to get the theraputic touch that is missing in most therapies. So I run a tightrope with the insurance cases where I try to give them a great healing experience whilst ensuring that I don't overextend myself.

Perhaps the best mix IS having what you have - an MD who can care for the acute/emergency issues and who are covered by insurance, and a group of supportive healers who are there to keep you out of the Dr's office whenever possible.

Re: East Meets West....trying to find a common ground

I joined the group.

I clicked reply

and then I sat here wondering where to start…

My history with topic started two decades as well. THis year I celebrate twenty years cancer free and it has been a journey of learning, watching and growing in the 'alternative' health care movememnt.

I've worked in hosptials, on herb farms, with chiropractors, around complimentary caregivers, studied healing practices in China, Nepal, Mexico and India. I've facilitated support groups for women living with cancer using all forms of health care practices.

My observation is that the movement in the acceptance of 'complimentary/alternative/traditional/non-allopathic' health care practices has grown. When I went through chemotherapy and radiation my oncologist wanted to know nothing of the herbs I used, the visualizations tthat helped me make it through the long nights or how I had changed my diet to sustain myself through the toxic medical treatments. yes, it could be better by our having more acceptance in some arenas. However, I know of doctors now recording the 'other things' folks do to heal while facing a physical ailment. THere are medical facilities that have opened up entire units dedicated just to these practices and/or have woven them into the offerings of the hospital.

I am optimistic that as more and more people discover that Western/allopathich medicine doesn't have all the answers they will come to 'the others.' ANd it won't matter if insurance covers it or not. People really do want to feel good.

Right now I work as an Integrative Health Coach (and consultant). I assist folks in maintaining health through: fitness, nourishment, flexibility of the body and mind, and life coaching. I am certified in all of these on top of my master's degree in Integrative Health Education. You can check out more at www.ihcoach.com.

I am with you in that it is possible to find a common ground and move forward to create a path of wellness that is wholistic in scope. ONe organization I have belonged to is the American Holistic Health Association and there are others, though my sense is you are looking for something a little bit different than that.

I have my paddle in hand and I'm in the boat with you ready to dip into the water and make some motion.

Re: East Meets West....trying to find a common ground

Hi, I just joined your Pod and thought this the best place to wet my beak…

I've been an internal arts teacher / oriental medicine practitioner for about 35 years now, along with all those other little “hobbies” that you probably partake of - lecturing, writing, schmoozing…LOL

I went the whole route of acceptiing insurance for several years, but in the end, the stress levels, the complexity of the system, and the apathy of the administrators of that system left me with a very bad taste in my mouth.

I got out of the insurance game.

Do I miss it? Not really. The time I spent looking up codes and filling out endless forms is now spent actively marketing my wares, thus more than making up for the loss of income.

Now, I have contracts with the local Blue Cross / Blue Shield to teach their employees. A rather lucrative contract, I should add. All because I took a different approach, albeit one that scared me half to death at the time. 

Dancer, you asked how we could expect to get anywhere if we're all rowing around on our own - I appreciate the analogy, believe me - but who's to say that we should be modeling ourselves after the Big Guys? Yes, it's gotten them a hefty profit - but that isn't why I'm doing what I do. I don't think any of you are, either.

Ever hear of the “barefoot doctors” of China? They made their rounds on foot, in small villages, plying their craft with a scheduled list of patients. It was often more of a wellness check-up - they'd prescribe herbs and perform some energy work or acupuncture as a tune-up for the body.

These practitioners were held in high esteem by both their clients and the prevailing society at large. They worked as holistic healers, long before the West ever imagined the concept.

Yet - they had no insurance, no lobbies, no societies, no associations. Just their knowledge and their reputation. But they made a comfortable living at it.

That's a model I'd MUCH prefer to pursue, even as I realize that we don't have that type of culture here. My few students and patients are loyal to me to a fault; so much so, that if they're having difficult financial times, I gladly forget my fees for them, for however long it takes.

Even beyond the “what goes around” ideology, it's my creed that I'm doing this to heal and to educate, not to become wealthy. Yes, I have to support myself - and many is the time I took trade jobs to pay my bills.

But I wouldn't have it any other way.