Questioning quality There's a war going on, and I am not talking about military action overseas. This war is focused on natural medicine and its practitioners, and battle lines are being drawn as we speak in Washington state. The Washington State "Quality" Medical Assurance Commission is on the attack. Under the guise of consumer protection it has come knocking on the doors of at least five of the 15 doctors based in Washington state who are members of the American College for Advancement in Medicine, the largest group of holistic physicians nationwide. Within the last year, these doctors have received letters notifying them that they're being investigated. Two of them have been dragged through hearings where ridiculous judgments have been imposed against them. Just a couple of months ago, Dr. Wright himself was notified via letter that the commission is conducting a "preliminary investigation" of some procedures discussed on the Tahoma Clinic website -- despite the fact that there hasn't been a single patient complaint about any of the treatments the commission is questioning. Meanwhile, this same commission seems to be looking the other way when a real problem is brought to their attention. In late April the Seattle Times published a series of articles detailing stories of licensed conventional medical doctors in the state who were carrying out blatant acts of sexual misconduct and getting away with it. The front-page story of one article revealed how a doctor had been allowed to keep his license even though he had been secretly taking pictures of female genitalia. Another physician was told to attend a "refresher class" on how to conduct breast exams after he was accused of fondling women's breasts. In all, during a 10-year period ending in 2005, only 13.5 percent of those accused of sexual misconduct had their licenses taken away. This isn't "quality" -- it's a travesty! An organization that is supposedly so concerned with patients' welfare should be cracking down on blatant abuse -- and advocating safe treatments and reputable practitioners. It should also accurately represent people undergoing all types of treatments. Yet, the commission doesn't have a single member who is skilled in natural medicine. I don't know about you, but I don't like it when those who have no knowledge in a particular field take it upon themselves to judge those who do. And I don't like it when someone attempts to restrict my access to holistic therapies and then has the nerve to call themselves my advocates. Once again, we must defend our rights to safeguard our access to these therapies. Let the commission know of the good results you have had using the techniques they are attacking, by contacting: Washington State Department of Health, Health Professions Quality Assurance
P.O. Box 47865
Olympia, Washington 98504
Phone (360)236-4700
e-mail: hpqa.csc@doh.wa.gov Or you could just go straight to Governor Christine Gregoire:
Office of the Governor
P.O. Box 40002
Olympia, Washington 98504
Phone (360)902-4111
To send an e-mail, go to www.governor.wa.gov/contact/default.htm Source: http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/news/local/licensetoharm | 
