Support for acupuncture

Press, 29 March 1982, Page 6

Support for acupuncture

PA Auckland The Director-General of Health, Dr H. J. H. Hiddlestone, has spoken out in defence of acupuncture. Speaking in Auckland at the first national conference on acupuncture yesterday, he said that while on a medical visit to the Soviet Union 10 years ago he was told by an acupuncturist that he would have, among other things, trouble with his gall bladder and transverse colon.

On his return, Dr Hiddlestone was examined and nothing abnormal was found. Since that unfavourable encounter, however, his attitude to acupuncture had “changed radically.” He had since visited hospitals overseas where acupuncture was practised and had heard of incidents which had impressed him deeply. Dr Hiddlestone said the most “staggering”’ incident involved the use of acupunc-

ture on a heart-surgery patient. “His heart was stopped, the circulation was maintained and the patch was sewed to correct the defect. The patient was wide awake on the other side of the screen and quietly asked for a sip of water. The whole procedure seemed vaguely indecent," Dr Hiddlestone told the conference. He said acupuncture had achieved a sophisticated, sound, scientific footing from which patients in New Zealand would benefit “significantly.” “I am convinced that once suitably appreciated, acupuncture will find its rightful restricted role in family medicine and specialist practice, in pain clinics and in rehabilitative medicine,” said Dr Hiddlestone. He said he had been disap-

pointed in 1975 when a select committee of Parliament had “rubbished" a bill to restrict the practice of acupuncture to doctors, dentists, veterinarians, and physiotherapists. Dr Hiddlestone said the bill foundered because backbenchers from both parties testified that lay acupuncturists had relieved their wives of pain. Subsequently, he said, efforts had been made

to oversee standards and training to include lay acupuncturists, but so far little agreement had been achieved. Dr Hiddlestone said he believed the week-end conference, which attracted 140 people from Invercargill to Northland, had “every chance” of stimulating further scientific investigation into acupuncture.