Obligation to advise of options for treatment--medical doctors and complementary and alternative medicine practitioners

An important aspect of health professional's duty of care is to advise patients of the available options of treatment so that the patient can choose the form of treatment that suits her or his requirements. As CAM becomes more evidence-based and accepted, medical doctors need to consider the extent to which they should provide patients with information about those types of treatments. If a CAM treatment option is evidence-based, there is a strong argument that medical doctors should advise of this option for treatment to satisfy their duty. CAM practitioners should also provide details of options for treatment within their own modality but are not obliged to advise of medical options.     

Mainstream medicine versus complementary and alternative medicine in the witness box: resolving the clash of ideologies

Mainstream medical philosophy and practice differ in many respects from those of complementary and alternative medicine (CAM), differences which are explored in this article. Because of a resurgence of CAM therapies, courts and tribunals will scrutinise CAM in more and more contexts in the future. Such court cases may require the resolution of conflicts between opinions of CAM and medical experts. This article considers how courts evaluate such opinions where experts hold conflicting ideologies or philosophical approaches, and addresses the following questions: Do the opinions of CAM practitioners qualify as "expert" opinions in court? How do the courts examine the basis of such opinions? Are they systematically given less weight than the opinions of mainstream medical practitioners? Will recent procedural reforms for hearing expert evidence make it easier for courts to resolve these issues?     

海事赔偿责任限制制度的补充赔偿机制

阐述海事赔偿责任限制制度的历史动因,基于海上风险的相对变迁,借鉴船舶油污损害的双重赔偿机制,《中华人民共和国海商法》应在海事赔偿责任限制制度之外,确立补充赔偿制度,采用海事赔偿基金机制,对船舶侵权的受害人提供补充性救济,从而适度修正责任限制制度下的权益失衡格局,引导海事赔偿制度从海运政策保护性趋向法律公正性.     

Woman wins claim for tax deductability of complementary/alternative medical expenses

On 30 April 2001, the Tax Court of Canada granted judgment in favour of a Victoria woman who claimed that she should be entitled to deduct from her taxable income, as legitimate "medical expenses," her expenses for vitamin supplements and for rehabilitative therapies such as massage and therapeutic touch.     

The regulation of traditional Chinese medicine practitioners in Australia

The Australian Government has recently recommended that all jurisdictions regulate Traditional Chinese Medicine practitioners along the lines of the Chinese Medicine Registration Act 2000 (Vic). In light of this recommendation, this article examines whether the Victorian legislation is an effective means of regulating a group of practitioners who operate under an alternative health care system. While the main focus is on the challenges of regulating of Traditional Chinese Medicine practitioners, the article also considers the broader issue of whether a statutory approach is the appropriate method of regulating unregistered complementary and alternative medicine practitioners.     

Report on complementary/alternative health care and HIV/AIDS

In 2001, the Canadian HIV/AIDS Legal Network published a lengthy report on Complementary/Alternative Health Care and HIV/AIDS: Legal, Ethical & Policy Issues in Regulation. The document is the first in a series of papers to be produced by the Legal Network on priority legal and ethical issues related to HIV/AIDS care, treatment, and support. The article below summarizes the contents of the report.     

The uncritical enthusiasts versus the uninformed sceptics: regulation of complementary and alternative medicines

The introduction of a treaty between Australia and New Zealand to regulate complementary and alternative medicines (CAM) has revived the age-old debate between advocates of conventional medicine and those of CAM, particularly with regard to the standards of regulation that should be applied. Currently, the systems for regulating CAM products in Australia and New Zealand are very different, making harmonisation contentious, as the proposed treaty follows the Australian system very closely. New Zealand and Australian principles of good regulatory practice stipulate that only minimum necessary standards should be imposed, and should be transparent, understandable and equitable. It is argued that the proposed treaty does not adhere to good regulatory standards, and that other forms of harmonisation should be sought to avoid adopting a regulatory regime in New Zealand that is overly restrictive and harmful to the New Zealand CAM industry.     

Religious objection to autopsy. An ethical dilemma for medical examiners

In recent years, religious objection to autopsy has become an ethical dilemma for medical examiners. We present two cases that illustrate these dilemmas, and we also review the history and legal considerations of religious objection to autopsy.