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Iva Lloyd, ND, RPP
The 2nd World Naturopathic Federation (WNF) General Assembly was hosted at the American Association of Naturopathic Physicians (AANP) conference July 11-12, 2017, in Phoenix, AZ. The following is a summary of the WNF presentation that was shared with AANP delegates.
The idea of having a world federation to represent the global interests of the naturopathic profession has been tried several times in the past, but has never really gotten off the ground. The idea to form a world federation was discussed at the 2013 International Congress on Naturopathic Medicine (ICNM) conference, was furthered by the efforts of the AANP’s Global Health Network, and was then spearheaded by naturopathic doctors Tabatha Parker and Jon Wardle.
During the 2014 ICNM conference in Paris, France, 30 naturopaths / naturopathic doctors spanning 20 countries attended meetings where the mission of a world federation was discussed. At the closing meeting, it was unanimously agreed to start the World Naturopathic Federation (WNF). An interim committee, made up of naturopaths / naturopathic doctors from Australia, Belgium, Canada, France, India, New Zealand, Spain, and the United States, was selected to formally incorporate the WNF and to create an infrastructure for the WNF including bylaws, a logo, and website.
In November of 2014, the WNF was officially incorporated in Canada. The inaugural meeting of the WNF was held in June 2015 in Calgary, Canada, during the CAND’s Health Fusion conference. The focus of the 1st WNF General Assembly was on brainstorming and determining the priorities of the WNF for the next few years.
The mission of the WNF is to:
One of the first projects of the WNF was to assess the status of the naturopathic profession globally. This was accomplished by conducting a number of surveys. The first one surveyed the profession as to how naturopathy was practiced. In July of 2014, a 79-question survey was sent to national naturopathic organizations from 30 countries, spanning all world regions. The response rate was 73%.
The survey indicated a high degree of consistency among naturopathic terms, definitions, philosophies, principles, and theories. Over 77% of the countries surveyed use the term “naturopath,” and 41% used “naturopathic doctor.” There was also a strong commonality among the naturopathic theories taught worldwide. The survey indicated a high degree of variability in educational standards, regulatory status, and number of practitioners. The survey results were published in the 2015 World Federation Report.1
Then, between February and April of 2016, the WNF conducted a survey of 86 naturopathic educational institutions, which inquired about what was taught in naturopathic schools. This survey indicated an extremely high degree of consistency within naturopathic curriculums worldwide. One hundred percent of the respondents indicated that their curriculum includes the study of basic science, clinical science, naturopathic history, principles, philosophy and theories, naturopathic disciplines, and clinical practice. Similar to the profession survey, this survey indicated high agreement among the foundational aspects, including the philosophies of vitalism and holism, the 6 naturopathic principles (see Figure 1), and core naturopathic theories and modalities; this was in spite of the variations in educational standards. The survey results were published in the 2016 Naturopathic Roots Report.2
The WNF’s third undertaking was to request the full curriculum from 6 naturopathic schools spanning 3 world regions: Europe, North America, and Western Pacific. They included 2 schools offering 1500-2500 hours, 2 schools offering 2501-3500 hours, and 2 schools offering over 3500 hours. A detailed 100-page document entitled, “WNF White Paper: Naturopathic Philosophy, Principles and Theories” was compiled and endorsed by the WNF membership in July 2017.3 This document provides a detailed overview of the philosophies, principles, and theories that define the naturopathic profession.
In 2016 the WNF published the Naturopathic Numbers Report,4 which outlines the status of professional formation in each world region. The historic roots of naturopathy reside in Europe. In the late 1800s, naturopathy was introduced to Asia (India), Western Pacific, and North America. All other world regions are a blend of European and North American naturopathy, with traditional medical practices incorporated in different countries. The statistics for the naturopathic profession, as we know them, are as follows:
Another project of the WNF is being spearheaded by the WNF Professional Mapping Committee. The aim of this committee is to examine regulatory and education infrastructure and policy frameworks that impact on the development of the naturopathic profession within each country around the world. This will be achieved through several surveys of regulatory and professional naturopathic associations and education providers. Curriculum mapping and scopes of practice will be investigated and will result in published papers to inform decision-making. The first phase of the Professional Mapping Committee is expected to be published by the end of 2017.
The WNF represents countries from all world regions. As of June 2017, the WNF membership is comprised of the following:
To learn more about WNF membership, visit our website at: http://worldnaturopathicfederation.org/membership/
The WNF is still in its formative years. Tight fiscal control is critical; as such, the WNF is a working board. The WNF Executive is made up of 13 full members and has representation from all world regions. The current countries represented on WNF Executive include Argentina, Australia, Belgium, Canada, Chile, Egypt, France, Nepal, New Zealand, Slovenia, Spain, United States, and Zambia.
There are 5 officers, a secretariat, and a part-time secretariat that oversee the day-to-day operations of the WNF. The current team includes:
One of the roles of the WNF is to create policy statements that assist in clarifying the status of the global naturopathic profession. All policy statements are approved by the WNF Executive. To date, the WNF has published the following policy statements:
All WNF Policy statements can be acccessed on the WNF website at: http://worldnaturopathicfederation.org/policy-statements/
A strategic objective of the WNF is to attend conferences around the globe and to promote the naturopathic profession in relevant venues. To date, the following is a list of the conferences that representatives of the WNF have attended:
A core objective of the WNF is to establish official relations with the World Health Organization (WHO). In order to qualify for collaboration with the WHO, the WNF must meet the following WHO criteria:
The WNF must also:
Members of the naturopathic profession have been involved with the WHO for a number of years. The following is a recap of the communication that we have had with the WHO to date.
Figure 2 outlines the 2-year and 5-year strategy of the WNF.
Refs:
Iva Lloyd, ND, RPP
The 2nd World Naturopathic Federation (WNF) General Assembly was hosted at the American Association of Naturopathic Physicians (AANP) conference July 11-12, 2017, in Phoenix, AZ. The following is a summary of the WNF presentation that was shared with AANP delegates.
The idea of having a world federation to represent the global interests of the naturopathic profession has been tried several times in the past, but has never really gotten off the ground. The idea to form a world federation was discussed at the 2013 International Congress on Naturopathic Medicine (ICNM) conference, was furthered by the efforts of the AANP’s Global Health Network, and was then spearheaded by naturopathic doctors Tabatha Parker and Jon Wardle.
During the 2014 ICNM conference in Paris, France, 30 naturopaths / naturopathic doctors spanning 20 countries attended meetings where the mission of a world federation was discussed. At the closing meeting, it was unanimously agreed to start the World Naturopathic Federation (WNF). An interim committee, made up of naturopaths / naturopathic doctors from Australia, Belgium, Canada, France, India, New Zealand, Spain, and the United States, was selected to formally incorporate the WNF and to create an infrastructure for the WNF including bylaws, a logo, and website.
In November of 2014, the WNF was officially incorporated in Canada. The inaugural meeting of the WNF was held in June 2015 in Calgary, Canada, during the CAND’s Health Fusion conference. The focus of the 1st WNF General Assembly was on brainstorming and determining the priorities of the WNF for the next few years.
The mission of the WNF is to:
One of the first projects of the WNF was to assess the status of the naturopathic profession globally. This was accomplished by conducting a number of surveys. The first one surveyed the profession as to how naturopathy was practiced. In July of 2014, a 79-question survey was sent to national naturopathic organizations from 30 countries, spanning all world regions. The response rate was 73%.
The survey indicated a high degree of consistency among naturopathic terms, definitions, philosophies, principles, and theories. Over 77% of the countries surveyed use the term “naturopath,” and 41% used “naturopathic doctor.” There was also a strong commonality among the naturopathic theories taught worldwide. The survey indicated a high degree of variability in educational standards, regulatory status, and number of practitioners. The survey results were published in the 2015 World Federation Report.1
Then, between February and April of 2016, the WNF conducted a survey of 86 naturopathic educational institutions, which inquired about what was taught in naturopathic schools. This survey indicated an extremely high degree of consistency within naturopathic curriculums worldwide. One hundred percent of the respondents indicated that their curriculum includes the study of basic science, clinical science, naturopathic history, principles, philosophy and theories, naturopathic disciplines, and clinical practice. Similar to the profession survey, this survey indicated high agreement among the foundational aspects, including the philosophies of vitalism and holism, the 6 naturopathic principles (see Figure 1), and core naturopathic theories and modalities; this was in spite of the variations in educational standards. The survey results were published in the 2016 Naturopathic Roots Report.2
The WNF’s third undertaking was to request the full curriculum from 6 naturopathic schools spanning 3 world regions: Europe, North America, and Western Pacific. They included 2 schools offering 1500-2500 hours, 2 schools offering 2501-3500 hours, and 2 schools offering over 3500 hours. A detailed 100-page document entitled, “WNF White Paper: Naturopathic Philosophy, Principles and Theories” was compiled and endorsed by the WNF membership in July 2017.3 This document provides a detailed overview of the philosophies, principles, and theories that define the naturopathic profession.
In 2016 the WNF published the Naturopathic Numbers Report,4 which outlines the status of professional formation in each world region. The historic roots of naturopathy reside in Europe. In the late 1800s, naturopathy was introduced to Asia (India), Western Pacific, and North America. All other world regions are a blend of European and North American naturopathy, with traditional medical practices incorporated in different countries. The statistics for the naturopathic profession, as we know them, are as follows:
Another project of the WNF is being spearheaded by the WNF Professional Mapping Committee. The aim of this committee is to examine regulatory and education infrastructure and policy frameworks that impact on the development of the naturopathic profession within each country around the world. This will be achieved through several surveys of regulatory and professional naturopathic associations and education providers. Curriculum mapping and scopes of practice will be investigated and will result in published papers to inform decision-making. The first phase of the Professional Mapping Committee is expected to be published by the end of 2017.
The WNF represents countries from all world regions. As of June 2017, the WNF membership is comprised of the following:
To learn more about WNF membership, visit our website at: http://worldnaturopathicfederation.org/membership/
The WNF is still in its formative years. Tight fiscal control is critical; as such, the WNF is a working board. The WNF Executive is made up of 13 full members and has representation from all world regions. The current countries represented on WNF Executive include Argentina, Australia, Belgium, Canada, Chile, Egypt, France, Nepal, New Zealand, Slovenia, Spain, United States, and Zambia.
There are 5 officers, a secretariat, and a part-time secretariat that oversee the day-to-day operations of the WNF. The current team includes:
One of the roles of the WNF is to create policy statements that assist in clarifying the status of the global naturopathic profession. All policy statements are approved by the WNF Executive. To date, the WNF has published the following policy statements:
All WNF Policy statements can be acccessed on the WNF website at: http://worldnaturopathicfederation.org/policy-statements/
A strategic objective of the WNF is to attend conferences around the globe and to promote the naturopathic profession in relevant venues. To date, the following is a list of the conferences that representatives of the WNF have attended:
A core objective of the WNF is to establish official relations with the World Health Organization (WHO). In order to qualify for collaboration with the WHO, the WNF must meet the following WHO criteria:
The WNF must also:
Members of the naturopathic profession have been involved with the WHO for a number of years. The following is a recap of the communication that we have had with the WHO to date.
Figure 2 outlines the 2-year and 5-year strategy of the WNF.
Refs:
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It is a long established fact that a reader will be distracted by the readable content of a page when looking at its layout. The point of using Lorem Ipsum is that it has a more-or-less normal distribution of letters, as opposed to using ‘Content here, content here’, making it look like readable English. Many desktop publishing packages and web page editors now use Lorem Ipsum as their default model text, and a search for ‘lorem ipsum’ will uncover many web sites still in their infancy.
The point of using Lorem Ipsum is that it has a more-or-less normal distribution of letters, as opposed to using ‘Content here, content here’, making
The point of using Lorem Ipsum is that it has a more-or-less normal distribution of letters, as opposed to using ‘Content here, content here’, making it look like readable English. Many desktop publishing packages and web page editors now use Lorem Ipsum as their default model text, and a search for ‘lorem ipsum’ will uncover many web sites still in their infancy.
It is a long established fact that a reader will be distracted by the readable content of a page when looking at its layout. The point of using Lorem Ipsum is that it has a more-or-less normal distribution
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