Good afternoon, committee members.
My name is Dr. Paul Saunders. I'm a naturopathic doctor in private practice in Ancaster, Ontario. I'm on the faculty of the Canadian College of Naturopathic Medicine and engaged in teaching, research, and clinical education. I am vice-chair of the CAND government relations committee.
I'm joined today by my colleague Dr. David Lescheid, who is a naturopathic doctor in private practice here in Ottawa, a clinical researcher, and scientific adviser to the CAND government relations committee. We want to thank you for the invitation to present to you today.
Naturopathic medicine is a distinct primary health care system that blends modern scientific knowledge with traditional and natural forms of medicine. Naturopathic doctors are primary care professionals with a minimum of seven years of post-secondary education, including an undergraduate degree and four years of full-time study at an accredited naturopathic college.
We have a detailed infrastructure of educational requirements, licensing examinations, jurisdictional examinations, and legislation in six provinces across Canada. We are fully compliant with chapter 7 of the Agreement on Internal Trade.
We are one of only three health care professions in Canada that offer primary care for patients, along with medical doctors and nurse practitioners. Our scope includes the ability to communicate a diagnosis.
An increasing number of Canadians are using naturopathic doctors as their primary care providers despite the fact that naturopathic services are not covered by public health care systems. For example, in P.E.I., 8,000 individuals do not have primary health care, and it's estimated that over 5,000 of them are treated by the qualified naturopathic doctors in P.E.I.
While conventional medicine is experiencing an increase in the number of MDs retiring and a reduction in the number of medical students choosing family practice, we are experiencing significant growth. In the two accredited colleges in Canada, there are over 715 students currently enrolled, with 160 students entering the program each year. We have a viable career choice for these individuals and, as a result of the growth of our profession, over 65% of them are between the ages of 25 and 35. I don't qualify for that, but it is an indication that when our naturopathic doctors graduate, they will be in practice for a long time.
Treating and preventing many different illnesses is a big scope of our practice and one of our unique capabilities, and we feel that we are in an effective position to offer this to the overburdened Canadian health care system.
I want to turn the rest of the presentation over to Dr. David Lescheid.