A comment from Christian Lamontagne
In many Western countries, acupuncturist training takes place at university and requires three to five years of full-time study, depending on whether it is a bachelor’s, master’s or doctoral degree. Why would Quebec be an exception?
Addressing the participants of the 1st International Congress of Acupuncture of the Order of Acupuncturists of Quebec, on April 5, Mr. Claude Arbor, PhD, Dean of Undergraduate Studies at the University of Quebec in Trois-Rivières, drew a panorama of the teaching of acupuncture and Chinese medicine in the Western world.
Thus Australia, whose education system is very close to the Quebec system, demands a minimum of three years of full-time study and some of the eight programs accredited by the Australian Acupuncture and Chinese Medicine Association are offered on four years. In England and the United States, university programs last a minimum of three years, and several schools require two preliminary years of science study. Elsewhere on the European continent, the Europe Acupuncture Association estimates that the training of an acupuncturist should be 4,625 hours, or the equivalent of five years of full-time study, even if it recognizes a diploma in traditional Chinese acupuncture. of 1,150 hours, of which 350 will be devoted to the specificities of Western medicine.
In Canada, excluding Quebec, there are currently 22 establishments offering training in acupuncture and most programs last at least three years at the university level.
Why then did the Quebec government determine that acupuncture would be taught at CEGEP rather than at university when it legalized it in 1985? Very clever who could respond by evoking a single reason, but in doing so, it was de facto granted the status of “technical” rather than a true medical profession.
At that time, despite their discontent, Quebec acupuncturists were emerging from a long struggle to have their profession recognized and lacked the strength to assert their point of view. However, in 1989, they returned to the charge with a first university education project. This year, thanks to the adoption of amendments to the Professions Act, the Ordre des acupuncteurs du Québec intends to submit to the Office des professions du Québec (OPQ) a new file justifying the training of acupuncturists. at University.
“The first step is to obtain the approval of the Office des professions du Québec, explains Claude Arbor, because Law 90 specifies that it is the Office – under the recommendation of each professional order – which determines the education. required to practice the profession. It would therefore be difficult for the University to offer training without it being compulsory because we have to ensure that we have a sufficient number of students.
“Obviously, there are multiple instances that can try to influence things. The hardest part is certainly not to set up a training program, but to have the permission to do so. This year, several professional orders will demand to increase the level of training required to obtain a right to practice, so it is a good time to present the file, concludes the dean. “
In fact, despite the diplomatic language of official documents and reports, and beyond the main principles of “protection of the public”, a secret struggle opposes the various health professions between them. If Quebec acupuncturists were to be even better trained and, who knows, one day have the title of “Doctor of Chinese Medicine”, what financial and therapeutic threat would they represent for certain professionals in the institutional health system?
Certainly some would prefer that the very idea of this possibility be nipped in the bud. Sometimes, it seems that the last concern of professional orders is precisely that of the quality of therapeutic acts and the protection of the public. The case will have to be watched carefully.
Christian Lamontagne – PasseportSanté.net
