Homeopaths in sacka with Big Quacka - lacka ethics and evidence

I have just noticed that Nelsons, a major supplier and manufacturer of homeopathic pseudomedicine and assorted quackery, have developed a PR toolkit for homeopaths with an organisation called 4homeopathy. Now I’ve never heard of 4homeopathy and google reveals little apart from a defunct website, however they are described as ‘media specialists’. Perhaps they are some dubious front group, the homeopathic equivalent of Trotyskyist groupuscules, either way I’m not interested. What is of interest to me is the motivations, means and methods of this toolkit and the now public sally of Big Quacka into the fray before Homeopathy Awareness Week (HAW) 14th-21st June.

Hilary Fairclough and AIDS idiocy (again)

I’ve just come across this astounding press release from the College of Practical Homeopathy which is recognised by the Society of Homeopaths (SoH) and the Alliance of Registered Homeopaths (ARH) amongst others.

DIFFERENT APPROACHES TO TREATING COMPLEX DISEASE

By Hilary Fairclough

Sunday April 27^th 2008, 10am -5pm

College of Practical Homeopathy

Homeopaths are required to treat increasingly complex disease. This requires an understanding of a full range of homeopathic prescribing styles and methodologies.

The ability to deal with disease processes, suppression of natural diseases and intense emotional states related to pathology is needed. Also important is the ability to deal with illness in the context of societal factors that have important implications for disease progression and homeopathic treatment.

Hilary Fairclough, a homeopath and a former nurse, set up The Maun Homeopathy project in Botswana in 2002. Since then about 1500 people have been treated for Aids and HIV.

Hilary Fairclough is going to share her immense experience and knowledge gained from running the Maun project. The day will cover:

· Various homeopathic analysis techniques used in the project

· The Triad Method

· Using the Triad Method alongside conventional medicine

· Using this method for children and adults, similarities and differences and implications for case-taking and management

· What to look for in follow-ups

· Importance of miasmatic prescribing

· Understanding posology

· Homeopathic principles related to the triad method

· Palliation of incurable conditions

At the end of the day you will have an increased knowledge of treating difficult cases including HIV and Aids with confidence.

BOOKING AND PAYMENT:

Seminar: Treating Complex Disease

Date: Sunday, April 27th, 2008

Time: 10am – 5.00pm

Venue: College of Practical Homeopathy, 760 High Rd, North Finchley

Cost: CPH students: £40.00

CPH Graduates: £45.00

Non-CPH students and graduates: £50.00

Cheques payable to: Nimisha Parekh

Please return the booking form with your payment to: Nimisha Parekh, 1491 High Rd , Whetstone, London N20 9PJ

CPD certificates will be provided. Refreshments will be served. There is a wide choice of restaurants in the area for a great lunch. Parking is free on Sundays.

Hilary Fairclough is the homeopath who runs the Maun Homeopathy Clinic in Botswana and gave a SoH organised talk last year resulting in numerous critical articles from Ben Goldacre, Nick Cohen, David Colquhoun, Orac and many others.

You would have hoped that the homeopath profession would have taken on this criticism and responded appropriately. However, from this press release it seems business as usual in the world of conducting unethical homeopathic treatments in third world countries without fear of professional misconduct charges. Still what can you expect from a profession that is utterly incapable of forming a coherent regulatory body. The most depressing thing about this press release is the small print in italics at the bottom.

CPD certificates will be provided.

Certificates of Professional Development (CPD) mean that this course is recognised as part of the ongoing professional development of homeopaths, a requirement of the SoH and ARH.  This, together with other examples, is yet further proof that homeopaths are dangerously deluded and need to be independently regulated to avoid the spread of such counterknowledge.  Or that the profession should be abolished except for those medically qualified homeopaths who are regulated by their strict professional bodies and would b e statutorily prohibited from such idiocy.

Adventures in paediatric homeopathy

Let me take you on a journey through the homeopathic education system. I recently came across this site, Adventures in Medicine, that offers a postgraduate course in paediatric homeopathy. The rationale for the course is described as follows:

There is a large gap in the training of homoeopaths when it comes to treating children. Most homoeopaths have to struggle for years to gain the knowledge and experience required to create a successful practice in paediatrics.

This course is designed to bridge that gap by providing training in paediatric care by experienced teachers who are experts in their field.

It is also designed to empower and support students to enable them to practice with knowledge and confidence in what is often a very little understood area of homoeopathy.

CORH - a quorum of quackery (part two)

At long last here is part two of CORH. This post is primarily to make the public the back stabbing, money grabbing and devious actions of the main contributors. There will be another post over the weekend looking at the fallout, plans for the future and the apparent defection of prominent members of one society to another.

Faculty of Homeopaths are just as silly as the Society of Homeopaths

I have just come across this press release from the Faculty of Homeopaths (FoH), the medically qualified scion of the homeopath industry. The FoH have been fairly muted in their criticisms of the homeopathy can cure AIDS/cancer/malaria claptrap and have refused to criticise organisations representing the non-medically qualified homeopaths. However they have emphasised that:

Society of Homeopaths - unethical lying nitwits

Jayne Thomas Vice Chair of the Society of Homeopaths (SoH) and chair of the Professional Standards Committee and Professional Conduct Director was debating Professor David Colquhoun over their shameful AIDS conference this morning on the Today programme (listen again, 15 minutes in).

Le Canard Noir over at the Quackometer has made an excellent point that when Prof Colquhoun brought up the infamous Newsnight malaria sting the SoH again changed their story, effectively making them liars. This has led the little black duck to conclude

Society of Homeopaths in untruthful hypocritical AIDS press release non-shock *update*

The Society of Homeopaths (SoH) have just released a press release justifying their astonishing AIDS conference. If you remember both Ben Goldacre and Nick Cohen have been highly critical of this conference. Fisked for your pleasure and my blood pressure below.

Peter Fisher lays the smack down on the Society of Homeopaths

Well I’ve been too busy to finish the second part of yesterdays post so I thought I would share this amusing little tale from the quick response section of an old BMJ letter by Ernst & Schmidt on the poor advice offered by homeopaths, amongst others, on MMR. The contents of the letter are hardly surprising, homeopaths go against government advice on MMR and GPs don’t respond to patients emails. So incompetence in the alternative and arrogance in the orthodox, not exactly news.

The interesting story is in the comments. One of the first responders is Dr Peter Fisher, big cheese in the Faculty of Homeopaths (FoH), supreme leader of the Royal London Homeopathic Hospital and the Queens own Woo Master.

CORH - A quorum of quackery (part one)

The Council for Organisations Representing Homeopaths (CORH) is a coalition of a dozen or so bodies that purport to regulate the homeopathy profession in the UK. The key aims of CORH are:

a. To establish a single voluntary, self-regulating register of professional homeopaths.
b. To establish a common code of ethics.
c. To establish criteria and procedures for the registration of homeopaths to a single UK register.
d. To establish an accreditation process to accredit courses of homeopathic education.
e. To define, promote and continually evaluate the elements and standards of best homeopathic practice.

This seems like a good idea because a single standard would prevent homeopaths shopping around for the regulatory body that caresses with the lightest touch and goes down to the lowest ethical standards. Sadly CORH seems to have collapsed in bitter recriminations and it seems our friends at the Society of Homeopaths (SoH), known for their honesty, integrity and accountability are at fault.

wtf iz hoemopathy

haha

The Society of Homeopaths and others respond to Nick Cohen’s Observer article - a round up

You may remember that Nick Cohen wrote an article highly critical of homeopathy and homeopaths belief that it can be used to treat AIDS in last weeks Observer (in a refreshing change from their usual credulity). You may also remember that the Society of Homeopaths (SoH) issued a press release that at best could be described as untruthful and misleading or at worst as a duck would say, a quack of quies.

Anyway, the Observer have published responses from the SoH and other members of the public today so I will present a brief round up.

Ralf Jeutter, a director of the Society of Homeopaths, ignores Code of Ethics, treats nasty diseases with magic potions

Ralf Jeutter, PhD., is a director of the Society of Homeopaths (SoH) and a member The Society’s Professional Standards Committee. Amongst other things the Professional Standards Committee has a direct line of responsibility for the Professional Conduct Committee. You would expect any director whose remit includes responsibility for both Professional Standards and Professional Conduct to observe rigorous adherence to the Code of Ethics. Sadly for Ralf Jeutter and the SoH, his attitude to the Code of Ethics makes further mockery of the SoH’s claims, given to the House of Lords, that:

The Society of Homeopaths noted that its members were “subject to a rigorous Code of Ethics” and that it was also “a key player in the Council of Organisations Registering Homeopaths … working to establish a single register for the profession” which would allow patients and healthcare workers “to be sure of the professional standards, competency and accountability of the homeopaths they employ

Jeremy Sherr, Fellow of the Society of Homeopaths, wants to cure AIDS and Malaria with homeopathy

Jeremy Sherr is a Fellow of the Society of Homeopaths (FSHom) (SoH), founder and principal of the renowned Dynamis School and a software entrepreneur. He is the author of several respected homeopathic tomes and acquired legendary status in the homeopathic community with his provings of Hydrogen, Plutonium and Chocolate amongst others. His admirers include Louis Klein, John Melnychuk and the SoH who have accorded him the honour of being a Fellow as well as promoting his seminars. He also is in possession of a Ph.D. from Medicina Alternativa, founded by Lord Pandit Raja Guru Maha-Atma Who qualified Chinese Master Acupuncturist Professor Doctor Sir Holy Tibetan Lama Shaman Healer Anton Jayasuriya, a member of the North American Society of Homeopaths (NASH) and an honorary professor of Yunan Medical College, Kunming, China. From his own website:

Jeremy is acknowledged by the homœopathic community as a brilliant and creative thinker who is well grounded in the philosophy and writings of Hahnemann.

Jeremy is an international homeopath maintaining busy practices in Malvern, New York and Tel Aviv as well as running the Dynamis Certificate in homeopathy (~£1700 for five meetings). In fact he is so important he even has his own Wikipedia entry.

Jeremy also believes that homeopathy can be used to treat or cure AIDS and malaria and encourages such treatments.

Society of Homeopaths fan the flames of untruth

Look what they have done now, just when you think standards cannot get any worse for the Society of Homeopaths (SoH) they do. In recent weeks they have failed in their attempts to bully a blogger into silence, had their ethical failings exposed and organised conferences with dangerous quacks who believe they can cure autism and AIDS. As well as this they have been exposed as having a lackadaisical attitude to notions of truth, accuracy and accountability. Right now they have repeated their untruths in a fresh press release despite being told that their claims were misleading and inaccurate both in private and in public. So let’s look at their latest affront to honesty….

Society of Homeopaths and Louis Klein - a coalition of quackery

Louis Klein is one of the worlds most renowned and influential homeopaths. He is the primary teacher of the Homeopathic Master Clinician Course, the premier course for advanced homeopathy in the American continent. He is the founder and past president of the North American Society of Homeopaths (NASH) and as his website states:

He has been instrumental in putting the profession into the 21st century through the development and research into new techniques and the introduction of new remedies. His two books have been received enthusiastically and one has been translated into German. He has lectured extensively throughout the world and has published various articles in professional homeopathic journals and other magazines.

He has recently had the honour of being named a Fellow of the Society of Homeopaths (SoH) (FSHom) and is described as having a ‘genius’ and his “courage lies in solving what had been deemed insolvable”. As well as this honour the SoH have invited him to give a seminar in November at the Martin Wood Complex, part of the Department of Physics at Oxford University (note that the university do not endorse or advertise this seminar), on “Homeopathic Perceptions and Methods for the Modern Child and Teenager“.

In my opinion, Louis Klein RSHom, RSHom (NA), FSHom is a dangerous and deluded quack.

Society of Homeopaths break own Code of Ethics in leaflet: Part four

As the nights lengthen and the mornings are full of freezing mist it is a good time to think back to the half-arsed summer we had. While summer is generally an enjoyable time where one can work in a lab or office that becomes ideal for increasing the cactus harvest and think back to the days where the hardships of educating oneself sufficiently to work in a desert micro environment were rewarded by lengthy periods of doing nothing in the summer sun. However, some people suffer in early summer from hayfever, an allergy to pollen amongst other things, that results in itchy eyes, blocked sinuses and more mucous than a snail racing tournament. While not suffering from hay fever myself I sympathise with those that do. I once had a relationship with a particularly bad sufferer and it was awful waking up to a somnambulating mucous drenched slug during the summer. As well as sympathy there are plenty of over the counter remedies available to counteract the vindictive nature of the immune response to these allergens and these antihistamines are considered generally effective and the more modern ones have no significant side effects.

However, as I am sure you are now all aware, homeopaths believe that side effects will result in long term illness and death, so it’s best to avoid conventional medicine altogether and use homeopathy. It is fair to assume the Society of Homeopaths (SoH) endorse this worldview so with this in mind I will look at their Homeopathy and Hayfever leaflet, as always focussing on the following sections of their Code of Ethics:

Society of Homeopaths break own Code of Ethics in leaflet: Part three

October is a time when students are starting or returning to their studies. University can be a stressful environment, particularly if it is a new experience, and institutions and the NUS take student welfare seriously. Stress can be a funny thing with both causes and symptoms being poorly defined and is often short lived as one adapts to a new environment. It is quite conceivable that the placebo effect may have a significant role in reducing stress levels or make short-term suffering more tolerable. This suggests a possible role for homeopathy if one accepts the Goldacre ‘Ethical Bullshit’ doctrine. Such an opportunity to plug homeopathy has not escaped the Society of Homeopaths (SoH) whose Student Stress leaflet will be examined today. As always my criticisms will focus on the following sections of the Code of Ethics:

Society of Homeopaths break own Code of Ethics in leaflet: Part two

Right, it’s time for part two of my criticisms of the Society of Homeopaths (SoH) advertising leaflets. Now since I started my criticisms last week, with the aim to ultimately submit a formal complaint, the SoH have declared that they will no longer respond to critical bloggers. They justify this because they allege some bloggers have been unpleasant and vitriolic and they are quite upset by this. In fact they suggest that bloggers don’t want to engage in real debate with them “on the basis of either science or the public good but who simply want to attack homeopathy, for the very sake of it”. Now while some bloggers have been overzealous in their criticisms, no links to you you bad bloggers, others such as David Colquhoun, Ben Goldacre and Le Canard Noir have been unfailingly polite and explicitly expressed a willingness to engage. I will take inspiration from these titans of reason and try to adopt a more a constructive approach to my criticisms so as not to offend the delicate sensibilities of the SoH. Of course I consider it entirely constructive to point out that the ‘Expressing Concerns, Resolving Complaints‘ section of the website states that

Any member of the public who believes they have witnessed, or have information about, a breach of the Society of Homeopaths Codes of Ethics & Practice.

is entitled to make a complaint. In addition to this the Code of Ethics & Practice also states that:

86 A concern or complaint can be brought by any member of the public or of the Society.

I feel that, as required by the Code of Ethics, the SoH are obliged to acknowledge and investigate my concerns and complaints. A failure to do so would be in breach of the Code and if the SoH wish to be taken seriously as a regulatory body then they must be seen to uphold both the letter and the spirit of the Code of Ethics. My, sometimes pedantic, criticisms and concerns over SoH literature are not malicious in nature. While I don’t believe that Homeopathy has a place in modern medicine, although Ben Goldacre has advocated a limited role, my criticisms reflect my concern that the SoH is propagating misleading and potentially dangerous advice and its frequent breaches of its own Code of Ethics suggest that their claims as a regulatory body of significance are not justified.

Anyway, on to my criticisms of the leaflets. Today’s subject is the Homeopathy For People On Long Term Medication leaflet, as before my criticisms will focus on the following sections of the Code of Ethics.

Society of Homeopaths break own Code of Ethics in leaflet: Part one

The Society of Homeopaths (SoH) have recently come under a lot of scrutiny after their attempts to silence the Quackometer spectacularly back fired. The original Quackometer article now has close to 20,000 hits on google, has been replicated by numerous bloggers and has now been written about in the pages of The Guardian, circulation ~350,000, readership ~1,200,000 and on Ben Goldacre’s blog. I have previously pointed out that the SoH’s website is in breach of their own Code of Ethics and I will now draw your attention to many more breaches in their advertising pamphlets. These pamphlets are sold to homeopaths for distribution to their patients. Over the next few weeks I will analyse each pamphlet in turn and will submit a formal complaint once all pamphlets have been dealt with. The breaches of the code of ethics I am concerned with are as follows:

Society of Homeopaths breach own Code of Ethics on website *updated*

When those naughty people at the Society of Homeopaths (SoH) are not bullying bloggers through dubious legal tactics, falling victim to the ‘Streisand effect‘ or misrepresenting House of Lords reports they like to maintain a veneer of respectability. The SoH claims to turn ordinary homeopaths into Professional Homeopaths through a modest annual fee and a formal contract binding them to the Code of Ethics. You would expect adherence to this Code of Ethics to be the cornerstone of professional self-regulation but not for the mischievous SoH. A cursory examination of one small section of their Code of Ethics reveals that their website is in numerous breaches of this section. Oh those cheeky little scamps, they nearly had us all fooled into thinking that they took ethics seriously.