13-01-2018, 11:22 AM
INTRODUCTION
The integration of herbal and other forms of traditional medicine can be done in one of the following three ways: First, it can be incorporated as an integral part of a country’s formal health care system, with each being separately recognized as legitimate forms of health care within the same framework. Second, it can be practice integrated with modern medicine by individual health care practitioners. Third, traditional and modern practices can be integrated as two branches of medical science, with the ultimate incorporation of elements of both to form a new branch (World Health Organization 2000a). The incorporation of traditional and modern evidence-based medicine (EBM) as integral parts of a country’s formal health care system is most likely to be achieved and has been demonstrated to be practicable in many countries, particularly in Asian countries such as China, Japan, Korea, and India, among others (World Health Organization 2001). On the other hand, the incorporation of traditional medical modalities such as herbal medicine into modern or EBM by either the second or third method of health care integration is not easily achieved for a host of reasons, including scientific, cultural, educational, and legal.
The integration of herbal and other forms of traditional medicine can be done in one of the following three ways: First, it can be incorporated as an integral part of a country’s formal health care system, with each being separately recognized as legitimate forms of health care within the same framework. Second, it can be practice integrated with modern medicine by individual health care practitioners. Third, traditional and modern practices can be integrated as two branches of medical science, with the ultimate incorporation of elements of both to form a new branch (World Health Organization 2000a). The incorporation of traditional and modern evidence-based medicine (EBM) as integral parts of a country’s formal health care system is most likely to be achieved and has been demonstrated to be practicable in many countries, particularly in Asian countries such as China, Japan, Korea, and India, among others (World Health Organization 2001). On the other hand, the incorporation of traditional medical modalities such as herbal medicine into modern or EBM by either the second or third method of health care integration is not easily achieved for a host of reasons, including scientific, cultural, educational, and legal.