Homeopathy on Channel 4 news – a second by second analysis

Last night Channel 4 news asked “should the NHS pay for homeopathic treatments? To save you the bother of clicking here and actually watching the thing I have written my own second by second analysis below:

1-10s Apparently the debate has taken place in newspaper letter and opinion pages, which is true but the bulk of the work suggesting that homeopathy is indistinguishable from a placebo takes place in scientific journals. No mention of that by Channel 4.

 

11-20s Oh, nasty doctors and scientists don’t like homeopathy apparently. Bad them. Ahh, Sense About Science (SAS) are introduced, I don’t like them, they have dubious political links. Oh, apparently SAS are best known for their work in favour of GM crops. This is news to me. I thought they were best known for tricking homeopaths into suggesting homeopathic products as a prophylactic against malaria. What has GM got to do with homeopathy? Is this the first smear against science in this report?

 

21-30s Homeopathic hospitals have lost 20% of their funding in the last year. Oh poor homeopaths.

 

31-45s Oooooo homeopathic medicines contain ‘not drugs but natural ingredients’ according to social affairs reporter. Yes, water is natural I suppose.

 

46-62s Apparently the ‘point is not do they or do they not work’ but how much they cost. Nah bollocks to that. We should worry about cost after they have been shown to work. Oh and ‘mainly retired’ doctors and scientists object to homeopathy apparently. Oh poor crotchety old people, all they do is complain.

 

63- 85s Oh look it’s Peter Fisher, Ben Goldacre’s friend. Acknowledges that homeopathy can’t work according to science. So science is wrong. Which is a logical position but he claims that these people have a lot ‘invested’ in how drugs work. Second smear against science?

 

86-105s Ahh, it’s Prof Colquhoun, a dead ringer for Heihachi Mishima, he furrows his magnificent aquiline features, chuckles about astrology and Chanel No 5 and states the importance of the need for evidence.

 

106-120s Repeating claims about the loss of funding for homeopathic hospitals. A tear forms in the corner of my left eye. It’s only a dust allergy.

 

121-145s Oh look an Iraqi refugee who has been ‘tortured’ now has to pay for his homeopathic treatment. Hmmm. Poor guy. He comes from a disintegrating country collapsing into civil war where terrible atrocities are a daily occurence and we make him pay for his miracle water. Bad us.

 

145s-175s Oh, conflation of homeopathy with all alternative medicines. The debate is apparently getting nasty.

 

176-210s The very intellectual looking Prof Colquhoun peers quizzically at some NHS headed notepaper which is apparently evidence of a conspiracy stretching right to the very heart of government. He seems at a loss to explain a letter he had no part in nor knowledge of. CONSPIRACY!

 

211-240s Peter Fisher repeats smear agains SAS over their support for GM and apparently they have ‘pharmaceutical industry funding’ and support insecticides. Whoa. Evil. I don’t like SAS but these allegations are really irrelevant to debates on homeopathy and are almost beginning to make me feel sorry for them. Third smear against science.

 

241-253s SAS lose my sympathy by putting out a really really twatty comment about Peter Fisher losing touch with reality which is just as idiotic as Peter Fisher’s comments. Unless the journalists at Ch4 have selectively quoted. Which is possible.

 

254-277s Oh apparently Primary Care Trusts have been working closely with SAS and taking PR advice from them. Argh. Does no one heed my warnings? SAS are compromised, even if much of what they do is reasonable. They have a twatty element and dubious links that raise legitimate questions over impartiality.

 

278-300s Smug doctor with neatly trimmed goatee makes very sensible point that NHS funds should be spent on treatments that work.

 

301-330s Apparently homeopathy only costs £5m a year. Still that’s enough money for 10 doctors or 5 consultants or something. Think of the waiting lists.

 

331-355s Peter Fisher goes on about real medicine having side effects that probably cost the NHS more than homeopathy. Or something. He has a big head. In a literal sense. Finally he is challenged on evidence.

 

356s Draws breath

 

356.25s Inflates cheeks

 

356.5s Huffs

 

357s Puffs

 

358-78s Proof has been shown in Germany apparently. Where? When? How? All questions not asked or answered. So Professor Sprout. Thinks this is proof that homeopathy saves the NHS money.

 

379-420s Now we’re onto acupuncture……which is related to homeopathy how? Oh it’s alternative and all alternative medicines are the same. Silly me. What’s Hahnemanns view on meridians I wonder?

 

421-440s Ahh in depth political analysis. The Government are being cowardly by not tackling alternative medicines openly. Difficult to argue with that. But apparently because our noble and honourable royal family and 1 in 4 of the public use them that’s an argument to continue using them. Of course. This fair and balanced news report ends.

 

Sadly no discussion of the efficacy of homeopathy. But the viewer is left with the impression that those poor homeopaths are being bullied by evil GM insecticide spraying pharmaceutical companies.