In 1993, the New Zealand Charter of Health Practitioners Incorporated (NZCHP) was established to represent Traditional, Complementary and Alternative Medicine modalities in New Zealand. [1]
There are 4 main presidential boards established based on the available local traditional system. The categorization is as described in Table 2. [2]
Table 2: Categorization by New Zealand Charter of Health Practitioners.
| Board | Definition | Example/s |
|---|---|---|
| Traditional Maori Medicine | Traditional Maori medicine and other traditional healing methods from Polynesian | Traditional Maori medicine Pacific traditional healing system |
| Traditional Chinese Medicine | Includes traditional Chinese medicine and other healing tradition from Orient. | Traditional Chinese medicine Oriental healing traditions |
| Natural Medicines | All those traditional methods of healing that involve or are mainly based on ingestible medicines. | Classical homeopathy Medical herbalism Naturopathy |
| Natural Therapies | All those methods of healing that do not require the administration of medicines that do not require the administration of medicines as the essential part of treatment. | Massage therapy Manipulation Energy restoration Flower essences Homeobotanicals Cell salts |
In July 2001, Ministerial Advisory Committee on Complementary and Alternative Health (MACCAH) was established under Section 11 of the New Zealand Public Health and Disability Act 2000 to provide independent advice to the Minister of Health on matters related to complementary and alternative medicine in New Zealand. [2]
MACCAH has decided to adopt the NCCAM model of categorisation as the basis for a New Zealand model and adapted to suit those modalities practised in New Zealand, as shown in Table 3. [1][3]
Table 3: Categorization of Complementary and Alternative Medicines adopted by the Ministerial Advisory Committee on Complementary and Alternative Health.
| Classification | Examples | |
| Group 1: Alternative medical systems | Involve complete systems of theory and practice that evolved independently of, and often prior to, the biomedical approach. Many are traditional systems of medicine that are practised by individual cultures throughout the world. | Ayurveda Traditional Chinese medicine Pacific traditional healing systems Homoeopathy Naturopathy |
| Group 2: Mind / body / spirit interventions | Employ a variety of techniques designed to facilitate healing. Only a subset of mind–body interventions are considered CAM. Those that have now have a well-documented theoretical basis (for example, patient education and cognitive-behavioural approaches) are considered ‘mainstream’. | Hypnotherapy Rebirthing Spiritual healing |
| Group 3: Biological-based therapies | Involve natural and biologically based practices, interventions and products, many of which overlap with biomedicine’s use of dietary supplements. | Herbal medicine Homeobotanical therapy Biological therapies |
| Group 4: Manipulative and body-based therapies | Involve methods based on manipulation and/or movement of the body. | Chiropractic Osteopathy Massage (therapeutic and remedial) Alexander technique |
| Group 5: Energy therapies | Focus on the energy fields originating from within the body (biofields) or those from other sources (electromagnetic fields). | Chi kung Reiki Touch for health Bioelectromagnetic-based therapies |
Note: The definitions are direct quotation from the source.
References
- Ministerial Advisory Committee on Complementary and Alternative Health. Terminology in Complementary and Alternative Health. [document on the Internet]. 2002 Nov. Available from: https://www.moh.govt.nz/notebook/nbbooks.nsf/0/EDF8E1185848CE10CC256D1C00768E32/$file/Terminology-in-complementary-and-alternative-health.pdf
- Ministry of Health. Complementary and Alternative Health Care in New Zealand. [homepage on the Internet]. New Zealand. [updated 2013 May 23; cited 2021 Apr 26]. Available from: https://www.health.govt.nz/publication/complementary-and-alternative-health-care-new-zealand-0
- Ministerial Advisory Committee on Complementary and Alternative Health. Complementary and Alternative Health Care in New Zealand. [document on the Internet]. 2004 Jun. [cited 2021 Apr 26]. Available from: https://www.moh.govt.nz/NoteBook/nbbooks.nsf/0/C64721A66307CAD4CC256EF200701547/$file/Complementary-and-alternative-health-care-in-New-Zealand.pdf
