Modern versus traditional medicine

Choice of doctor tricky

It was really interesting to read that patients will soon have a choice of whether to seek modern or traditional treatment at selected government hospitals. Health Ministry Parliamentary Secretary Datuk Lee Kah Choon says this is the Health Ministry’s initiative to incorporate modern and traditional medicines into the national healthcare system. This is to provide more "holistic" medical care.

We hope the aim of this to introduce traditional and complementary medicine (TCM) move is noble and not politically motivated, which I’m afraid it may be so.

It is important to stress here that modern medicine is evidence-based medicine that is scientifically proven. We have to have an open mind to accept whatever that has sound scientific basis and only then can we progress further. In this respect traditional medicine has a long way to go before it can prove itself as an alternative primary modality of treatment especially of serious illness.

Regrettably there is already a trend in Malaysia where patients with serious diseases opt for traditional medicine as their first and only choice, only to realize too late that it was a fatal mistake. As practicing doctors we often encounter such a situation where patients come to us when traditional treatment has failed but by then the illness is too advanced for any curative treatment.

The health ministry has its hands full with numerous problems with providing quality modern medicine at its hospitals. These include the brain drain causing acute shortage of doctors, their salary scheme, the negligent and medico legal problems, the rising incidence of certain diseases, the occasional bursts of infectious epidemics and so on.

Furthermore the health ministry is finding it difficult in coming up with its own specialist register. It is unable to check its own doctors who falsely claim to be experts in certain fields and engage in all forms of unethical practices. We can imagine the chaotic situation we’ll be creating by allowing traditional practitioners in the same premises who do not possess proper accreditation or governing ethics.

In present day situation, even with modern medicine, the poor patients need the assistance of doctor friends to advice them in their choice proper doctors to consult for their ailments. With traditional medical practitioners in the same premises, we will need the help of divine powers to assist one to choose the proper doctor.

Dr.Chris Anthony