ABUJA-Prof. Charles Wambebe, former Director of National Institute for Pharmaceutical Research and Development, in Abuja, has called on the National Assembly to pass the bill on traditional medicine into law.
Wambebe said in an interview with newsmen that the law was necessary for the development of traditional medicine and its integration into Nigeria’s healthcare system.
“The draft bill on traditional medicine is very important for us to move to the next level in the recognition, organisation and development of traditional medicine in Nigeria,”he said.
Wambebe said the bill made provision for the establishment of the Council of Traditional Health Practitioners as the highest body to regulate the practice.
“There are many genuine practitioners but there is no council regulating the profession, so some people come in and abuse the system. We need that council to bring in control and regulation.
“Secondly, the bill has a provision for a code of conduct, which means that any member registered with the council can now be punished if he/she goes out of that code of conduct,’’ Wambebe added.
He further noted that the proposed law contained information on the training; retraining and educational standard that qualified traditional health practitioners should possess to be registered as members of the profession.
Wambebe said the establishment of the council would mean that government had accorded official recognition to traditional medicine in the country and explained that the step was important for it to be integrated into the country’s healthcare system.
He stressed the need for traditional health practitioners to know their limits and refer patients to qualified doctors for proper diagnosis of diseases and review in hospitals after treatment.
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