Guest guest Posted September 10, 2002 Report Share Posted September 10, 2002 September 11,2002 2:25 pm Melbourne, Australia Dear Frances, I can understand your frustration especially in the light of the lack of 'synergy' in the way biomedical practitioners , the broader community , the media and sometimes we 'ourselves' in approaching this question. It is an imbalance that needs addressing. However, we still need to articulate to the patients as well as to the doctors and the media how 'synergy' works among these herbal ingredients. The Chinese word for synergy is xie which is pictured with the character for number 'ten' shi and three scripts of the word li (strenght , or force, or the manifestation of Qi) arrayed in a triangular positions.The meaning of the word xie as given by Wieger as " ten persons i.e. a multitude joining their efforts " in common and in unison (Wieger L.l965.Chinese Characters. Paragon.New York. p. 144) i.e. working them together. I think that the herbal ingredients in a formula works in 'synergy' in the sense that their 'inclinations' or pian sheng in taste, Qi, Yin and Yang, acupuncture channel affinity,clinical indications so as to 'work together' to address the imbalance in the clinical pattern of a contingent patient. This synergy must work not only among the individualized herbal ingredients but also 'work together' with the clinical pattern of the patient. This means targetting diagnosed clinical pattern with the right formula of yao . As you can see this type of synergy affords the 'gathering' of all the ingredients of Chinese medical practice : its diagnostic techniques, the materia medical or yao or herb, acupuncture meridians, the herbal formula, the clinical pattern of the patient and sees their combined , wholistic irreducible effects in keeping the body in harmony and balance. It is a synergy which brings harmony between the three bodies i.e. body of the TCM practitioner, body of patient and body of yao. In similar TCM fashion, the biomedical clinical encounter is also constituted by the three 'bodies' i.e. (a) the corporate body of biomedical health practitioners, (b) their medical tools i.e. pharmaceuticals, injections, immunizations, diagnostic testing devices, etc. and © the body of the patient. Practitioners of this tradition of health care map the presence or absence of certain entities in the patients¹ bodies. It seeks to mimic the presence of viruses or bacteria or the absence of certain enzymes in the patients¹ body in its representation. The mimicked body or mapped body is here and the practice of medicine is over there. Like Œmatching¹ speech sounds with the correct ordering of the letters of the alphabet, this mapping enterprise is like Œmatching¹ what is Œon the ground¹ with what is Œon the map¹ i.e. Œmatching Œ the virus, bacteria or enzymes presence/absence in the patient¹s body with the Œmap¹generated by diagnostic tools such as the blood testing devices and then Œmatching¹ the antibiotic injections with the virus and bacteria in the patient¹s bodies. Like the stringing together of the letters of the alphabet in the right order and sequence so as to convey the right meaning, pharmaceuticals, injections, immunizations, diagnostic tests, etc. must be prescribed in the right order and sequence in accordance with stringent laboratory standards so as to put the Œmachine¹ of the uneasy body of the patient into good working order. Hence, explaining the synergy of the herbal ingredients to the patient and the biomedical practitioners encompasses a good communicatory synergy with the body of the patient and other traditions of health care bodies. Rey tiquia Phd Candidate Dept. of History and Philosophy of Science The University of Melbourne ---------- >Frances Gander <fgander > >Re: their doctor asks... >Wed, Sep 11, 2002, 7:16 AM > > What do you say when the patient's physician, usually via a spouse, asks to > know the ingredients of an herbal formula they taking, or I am recommending > they take. Even if they were to look each of the 14 or so ingredients, > named in pinyun, they would have no idea what its action is > synergistically, unless they were trained. After I mute the phone and > vent, how do I politely and intelligentlly handle these absurd requests? > Certainly we have all experienced this scenario. Thanks for your feedback. > > Frances > -- > Frances Lea Gander, L.Ac. > Sykesville, MD > > > Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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