Context:

Ayurveda graduates face limited career options as Ayurveda is not the preferred medical system, even among practitioners who lack trust in it.

A scepticism that has some basis:

• There is widespread scepticism in the public mind about the soundness of Ayurvedic theories and the fruitfulness of its practices. 
• The Ayurveda establishment has failed to keep pace with the intellectual and scientific advances of the times. 
• A major reason for the trust-deficit in Ayurveda is its diminished evidence-based quality.
• Ayurveda treatments are slow to heal.

A practitioner’s ordeal:

• The field of Ayurvedic practice has a difficult public perception, and a novice practitioner faces challenges in sifting through ancient medical wisdom to find practical treatments. 
• Ayurveda lacks a robust ecosystem of science and research, leaving the practitioner to rely on trial and error. 
• Patient interest often necessitates the use of modern medicine, which is prohibited in many states for Ayurveda graduates. 
• Conscientious practitioners struggle while others resort to gimmickry and publicity.

Focus on primary care:

• Appropriate policy-making can solve a lot of these problems that well-meaning Ayurveda practitioners face. 
• Rejuvenating primary care is a sine qua non if a country is to secure the health of its citizens. 
  • Ayurveda graduates can contribute enormously towards this rejuvenation if trained properly.
• A proper training of Ayurveda graduates to make them good primary-care doctors would involve two preparatory exercises. 
• One, a vigorous evidence-based appraisal of Ayurvedic theories and practices in order to sift the usable from the obsolete; and 
• Two, a statutory decision to allow Ayurveda graduates to practise modern medicine in stipulated primary care areas. 

Conclusion:

Ayurveda’s thrust is on patient benefit and not merely on patient gratification. Sustainability of treatments requires a gradual transition from illness to wellness. The popular view that Ayurvedic treatments are slow to heal is thus a half-truth. It can be corrected by appropriate patient education.

News Source: The Hindu 

DOWNLOAD PDF