THE approach of the Prince of Wales to alternative medicine is obviously sincere, but equally decent are the distinguished doctors who have taken him to task for advocating it.

It seems amazing to doctors that, as we progressively have greater ability to cure patients, or to prolong their lives for years, patients are rejecting the treatments that can deal with troubles that would have resulted in an early death even 30 years ago.

A decreasing number of doctors have the ability to talk to a patient in a way that gives the impression, during the brief time that the NHS allots for each consultation, that the patient and his or her troubles are the doctor’s sole concern. Too many doctors are not only hurried, but are also bad communicators. Where modern doctors fail, alternative practitioners succeed. The alternative practitioners have more time, and still display the art of communicating.

The establishment of huge general practices has resulted in many doctors no longer knowing their patients. Research about 15 years ago showed that the quality of the rapport between a doctor and his or her patient affected the outcome of the patient’s disease. The better they knew them, the earlier the diagnosis and, when a patient knew his GP well, he was more likely to follow assiduously the instructions for taking the medication.

Doctors do not want their patients denied the opportunity of a diagnosis and treatment at a stage when orthodox treatment might be effective. They are also conscious that too little is spent on medical services in this country compared with other developed countries, and they do not want scarce resources to be used on doubtful treatment.

The answer lies in the doctors’ hands. We need to select medical students who like patients — and who patients are likely to like — and they must learn to communicate.

THE EVIDENCE

There are few firm rules about which complementary and alternative medicines may be prescribed on the NHS. The decision to refer patients is usually left to GPs and consultants, and different trusts have different policies. Common therapies offered by the NHS include:

HOMOEOPATHY

What is it? It is based on the principle of “like cures like”, so conditions are treated with chemicals that produce similar symptoms. Only tiny amounts, however, are given: solutions are diluted so heavily that sometimes not a single molecule of the supposedly active ingredient remains

Does it work? The evidence says no. A review, led by Matthias Egger, of the University of Berne, and published in The Lancet, examined 110 trials and suggested that it has a placebo effect

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