Situation of Complementary/Acupuncture/Traditional Medicine Education and Practice in Iran

摘要

Purpose: Iran (Used to be called Persia) is an ancient andtraditional country with a history and civilization of around2500 years. Traditional Medicine is a core component of Iranianculture, which has its own concepts and basics, andlike other main CAM therapies focus on holism, individuality,prevention and nutrition, beside its herbal prescriptionsand unique manipulative and body based therapies. Historicalrecords show that in ancient times; lots of interactions,collaborations and exchanges happened between Iranian TraditionalMedicine and Oriental Medicine, and these twomutually influenced each other. Since recent two decades,along with the world movement toward Integrative Medicine,in Iran also lots of efforts is done to promote education andresearch on CAM therapies, and to integrate safe and effectivemethods into national health care services. In this paper, firstI try to summarize all recent policies, strategies, administrationsand actions done separately in government, academicand society levels. Then I describe the current situation, andfinally analyze the strengths, weaknesses, opportunities andthreats, focusing on the important role of international communications.Methods: I approached the vice-ministry of TraditionalMedicine in MoH, and reviewed all archives. Then carefullystudied their past and current 5-years strategic plans. I alsointerviewed with 3 deans of Traditional Medicine Collegesaround the country and several TM/Acupuncture practitioners.Results: CAM modules are quite popular in Iran, amongwhich TM and Acupuncture are used the most. The governmentseems to be supportive while lack of many plans,regulations and supervisions is still visible.Conclusion: As an eastern country, Iran needs tocommunicatewith East Asian countries to establish academic relationson Traditional Medicine. Invaluable experience of OrientalMedicine can help Iran to promote TM/Acupuncture in thecountry and to integrate them into health care services.