Complementary and Alternative Medicine: Why is Conventional Medicine Not Enough?

Are you interested in contributing to the spiked/Wellcome Trust online debate 'COMPLEMENTARY AND ALTERNATIVE MEDICINE: WHY IS CONVENTIONAL MEDICINE NOT ENOUGH?', and in attending the related public event being held in central London on the evening of Wednesday 15 June 2005?

The 'COMPLEMENTARY AND ALTERNATIVE MEDICINE' online debate can be found on spiked at:

http://www.spiked-online.com/cam


The 'COMPLEMENTARY AND ALTERNATIVE MEDICINE' public event is taking place at:

- 6.30pm for 7pm (complimentary drinks at 6.30pm) Wednesday 15 June 2005

- Shepherd Hall
St Thomas' Hospital
Lambeth Palace Road
London SE1 7EH

- Map http://www.streetmap.co.uk/newprint.srf?x=530620&y=179339&z=1

- Tickets
£10 (individual)
£30 (corporate/institutional)

- Telephone booking
+44 (0)20 7269 9234

- Online booking
http://www.spiked-online.com/event



Five lead pieces have been published as part of the online debate, and three of these experts will be speaking on the panel at the 15 June public event:


The uses of CAM
- DR PETER FISHER, clinical director of the Royal London Homeopathic Hospital, argues that 'for some clinical problems, conventional treatments are not fully effective'.
http://www.spiked-online.com/articles/0000000CAB80.htm


Failing the double-blind test
- MARK HENDERSON, science correspondent at The Times (London), argues that 'any perceived benefit of homeopathy or reflexology arises purely from the placebo effect or the regressive fallacy'.
http://www.spiked-online.com/articles/0000000CAB6A.htm


Holism can heal
- CHARLES PITHER, medical director of the RealHealth Institute, argues that 'conventional medicine has forgotten the primal aspects of caring'.
http://www.spiked-online.com/articles/0000000CAB68.htm


Don't turn back medical gains
- MICHAEL BAUM, emeritus professor of surgery at University College London, argues that 'in the past 200 years we have learnt much about the exquisite mechanisms of the body'.
http://www.spiked-online.com/articles/0000000CAB69.htm


CAM has a short shelf-life
- Dr Robert Harland, Institute of Psychiatry, the Maudsley'
People’s longing for belief and miracle cure will not be resolved by turning to less understood medical systems.'
http://www.spiked-online.com/articles/0000000CAB94.htm


We welcome any views that you have on this issue, and that you would like to submit in response to the debate.

The debate, while moderated, is open to contributions from anybody, and all contributions will be permanently archived. To submit a contribution, simply click on 'Join the debate' in the right-hand menu at:

http://www.spiked-online.com/cam



Sandy Starr

spiked Ltd
http://www.spiked-online.com

Tel: +44 (0)20 7269 9234
Fax: +44 (0)20 7269 9235