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It’s Wellness, Naturally
Christine Girard-Couture, a licensed doctor of naturopathic medicine, made history in 1997-98 when she became the first resident naturopathic doctor at a U.S. hospital — Derby's Griffin Hospital — in more than a century. Now in private practice at the Cornerstone Center for Health in Seymour, and co-director of the Integrated Medicine Center at Griffin. In a conversation with BNH, she puts naturopathy in perspective for the region's business community.
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Business New Haven
4/17/2000
By: John Florian
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Naturopathy has a certain buzz about it - and perhaps is misunderstood by many people. What exactly is it?
Naturopathy has been around for ages. The newness we associate with it is really a media phenomenon. These days the real buzz phrase is integrated medicine, which takes conventional medical care and integrates it with complementary and alternative medicine, or CAM.
Then what do you integrate into conventional medicine?
Many things. For instance, we can integrate nutrition, botanical medicine, hydrotherapy, acupuncture, massage, counseling and homeopathy. Integrated medicine also means communication between different medical specialties, where practitioners confer about a specific patient. An internist might confer with a GI specialist, for example. Integrated medicine is not exclusively about CAM, but it does include that.
Most people are familiar with at least some of the therapies you mentioned. And naturopathy puts it all together?
Right. Naturopathy is the cornucopia of those therapies. It's about the healing power of nature. We believe not only that natural things can be used in treatments, but also that the body has a very organized way of dealing with the healing function. Also, naturopathic physicians identify and treat the cause of a disease, not just the symptoms. And we treat the whole person, not just the physical symptoms, but also the mind-body connection - the complexities of the spiritual, intellectual and emotional pieces of the person. For instance, I could have two patients with the same diagnosis, but I'd treat each differently because of their different needs. Primarily, we want to prevent a disease from happening. Secondarily, we try to prevent a disease from getting worse. And finally, we try to do no harm. We want to use the least toxic, least invasive way to treat a patient.
For all that, it seems you'd have to spend a lot of time with patients.
Yes, I do. The Latin root of the word “doctor” translates to “teacher.” So I educate patients, encouraging them to be responsible for their health. I have specialty training, but I want to be part of a team with the patient. Patients who gain that kind of empowerment get better more quickly.
Speaking of empowerment, can employers find health insurance plans that include naturopathic care?
Yes. Connecticut is one of three states mandating insurance companies to cover naturopathic and other forms of CAM. Types of things covered will vary, though. Also, HMOs will commonly require a physician to be in practice for three years before adding them to their provider list. In my case, I've been here just a little under two years. But there are 50 or more naturopathic doctors in Connecticut now. You can find them in the yellow pages, or go to www.naturopathic.org, which is the Web site of the American Association of Naturopathic Physicians.
Corporate-sponsored events?
Definitely. They'll sponsor one-day wellness programs with a variety of speakers, and encourage employees to attend and give feedback about what they've heard. Incorporating wellness into a business is a way to let employees know they are valued. It also brings a little bit of variety to the workplace. What it comes down to is [that] keeping employees healthy makes them more productive. BNH
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