Ethics of Homeopathy
Health treatments are treated with extreme caution while taking note of all the warnings and avoiding all the dangers. However, there are more than isolated cases where treatments are being abused and neglected. Because of this, certain standards are being set and regulated. While conventional medicine has health ministries and private organizations to control their by-laws which the public are mostly familiar with, another system of health treatment is struggling to make their own known. Different entities have accused homeopathy as unethical and is a disgrace as no scientific evidence is yet to exist to prove its efficacy. Moreover, more and more people are seeking this kind of treatment, deterring others to seek evidence-based treatments and receive the “proper” diagnosis and prescription they need. Conventional medicine believes that failure to comply set rules and procedures in determining the real problem can potentially harm people’s lives. Homeopaths, however, assured the Peterson Group that they still stand firm on their own discipline and has introduced their own code of ethics which has been a cause of conflict and numerous complaints from practitioners of conventional medicine. Homeopathy’s Code of Ethics has been drawn by the Council of the Homeopathic Medical Association in accordance with Objects of the Association. The main purpose of this code is to provide a high ethical and professional standard of conduct among its members to “….follow in order to preserve and enhance the practice of homeopathy as a healing art, and to protect the general public”. The full responsibility of ensuring the welfare of the public falls entirely to the homeopathic practitioner. Penalties and punishments are also conducted. According to the review, general guideline includes, “Failure by a Member to adhere to the Code will result in disciplinary action. If the unsatisfactory conduct is continued, or if there is gross negligence or misconduct, the name of the practitioner will be removed from the register and the appropriate authorities will be informed of such action. All privileges of membership will be withdrawn”. Despite this, there is no stopping the criticisms. Skeptics argue that it is ethically dubious to spend funds on something which has been proven fraud time and again. The government of Jakarta, for instance has let homeopathic clinics around the city with the same tax deductions with semi-public conventional hospitals. Studies for the efficacy of homeopathic remedies are being conducted in Indonesia. The results have been null and are obviously waste of the citizens’ money.
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