Controversial naturopath gives up license and says work will not change

A Victoria naturopath who has drawn public attention to the treatment of a child with a homeopathic solution based on rabid dog saliva, has surrendered her license but says she will continue to do so. act as an unregulated homeopath.

College of Naturopaths of British Columbia says Anke Zimmermann voluntarily waived her license after a "collegiate discussion" with her investigative committee earlier this month.

The college's vaccination policy – which banned naturopaths from including anti-immunization material in their advertising and advising patients against vaccination without well-documented medical justification – was central to the discussion.

What am I supposed to do, do not help them?– Anke Zimmermann

"The licensee stated that it felt that complying with college regulations and policies, particularly the standard for immunization, made it difficult for it to serve its patients with integrity", said the college in a public notice.

"The licensee has understood the College's standards of practice and the fact that its approach in this regard does not correspond to the College's professional regulations in this area."

The university said Zimmermann had made it clear during her meeting that she intended to practice as a homeopath. Homeopathy – an unregulated alternative health profession in BC – involves treating sick people with extremely low doses of substances that can cause symptoms similar to those of their disease.

College deputy registrar Phillipa Stanaway said in an e-mail that the college "urges the public to choose a licensed health professional to seek medical treatment."

S Supports parents

Zimmermann told CBC News that she had chosen to give up her license because university vaccination policies prevented her from practicing as she pleased. She is particularly opposed to the idea of ​​not developing treatment for autistic children, based on the unsupported theory that vaccines are at the root of autism. .

Zimmermann said she relies on parents to tell her that their children's autism is linked to childhood immunization.

"I'm not telling them that their child was hurt by the vaccine.They come to me.They call me from all over the world and tell me that's what happened to my child." you help me, please? supposed to do, not help them? "she said.

There is no evidence that vaccines cause autism, and many solid scientific studies contradict this theory.

When asked why one should trust a parent with no health professional training to diagnose a child, Zimmermann said: "If they tell me that their child has a reaction following their vaccination, I There is no reason not to believe it.Parents know their children better than any medical professional. "

Zimmermann described his meeting with college representatives as "very respectful and mutually helpful". By losing her license, she can not qualify as a naturopath or doctor and she is not subject to the norms of care of the order.

But Zimmermann said that otherwise, his practice would remain virtually the same.

"With regard to the treatments or care that I have provided to my patients before, it really will not change, because anyway I've mainly used homeopathy," did she declared.

Some naturopaths in BC are also qualified to dispense vaccines and write prescriptions, but Zimmermann said they do not have those qualifications. Now that she has surrendered her license, she will no longer be allowed to apply for reinstatement to college before five years.

Rabid dog saliva

In the spring, Zimmermann made headlines after writing an article on her blog claiming that she had used a homeopathic solution called lyssinum to bring back a four-year-old child with behavioral problems "to a more human after a slightly enraged dog. "

She said the boy was abusive to clbadmates, had trouble sleeping, and had nightmares about werewolves and wolves.

Lyssinum, also known as lyssin or hydrophobinum, is made by repeatedly diluting the saliva of a dog enraged in water. The use of Lyssinum is generally approved in Canada, but the brand used by Zimmermann does not have a license from Health Canada.

Claimed to eliminate autism

Zimmermann had also been the subject of complaints to the college for proposing a homeopathic treatment claiming to falsely eliminate autism altogether.

In May, the college banned the so-called CEASE treatment – "the complete elimination of autism spectrum expression" – baderting that it is based on the mistaken badumption that vaccines are the cause of most autistics. The college also said that any claim to eliminate autism would likely benefit from the vulnerabilities of autistic children and their parents.

Her plan to act as a homeopath means that she is theoretically free to continue to offer CEASE treatment, which experts in autism have described as false. She is now listed on the official CEASE website as one of 17 non-regulated practitioners providing treatment in British Columbia.

But Zimmermann told the CBC that while she will continue to provide autistic children with the remedies, supplements and diet changes used in CEASE treatment, she will not call it CEASE. She said that's because she understands that it's misleading to claim "complete elimination" of autism.