For the promotion and popularization of Indian traditional medicines worldwide, the Union government should take steps to integrate the Ayush streams and rename the department of Ayush as department of ‘Indian Traditional Medicines’ (ITM), Dr Arul Amuthan, an ethnopharmacologist from Manipal Medical College suggested to the Union health ministry.

Dr Arul Amuthan, observes that the Ayush degree holders (BAMS, BSMS, BUMS, BNYS and BHMS) are practicing various streams of traditional medicines irrespective of their qualifications. Therefore it is necessary to integrate all the streams (Ayurveda, Yoga & Naturopathy, Unani, Siddha and Homoeopathy) and branded as one.

The department of Indian Systems of Medicine and Homoeopathy (ISM&H) was created in March,1995, but re-named it as department of Ayurveda, Yoga & Naturopathy, Unani, Siddha and Homoeopathy (Ayush) in November, 2003 with a view to providing focused attention to development of education & research in these systems.

Dr Amuthan, who is supporting the research work in the Centre for Traditional Medicines & Research (CTMR) in Chennai, says that the current Indian healthcare scenario is moving towards the concept of an integrative medical management of diseases where the traditional remedial methods/drugs are combined with the modern systems. This will help the patients receive drugs or remedial measures from different systems of medicines for one disease. But, before initiating this integration of modern and traditional systems, the various traditional medical systems should be integrated first and made it as one system.
 
At present, the government provides healthcare by using western medical systems throughout India. Additionally it promotes the country’s own traditional healing methods which are not handled alike and are not balancing. For example, in north-eastern states, none of the Ayush systems is followed by the people there. Measures are needed to make all citizens in the country avail the benefit of all the systems.

His observation is that if a modern medical practitioner is intending to refer his patient to Ayush systems, he gets confused as to which system the patient should be guided. The department of Ayush should give a clear idea on this problem. Though there are many physicians available with BAMS, BSMS, BUMS, BNYS and BHMS, these degrees make huge confusion among allopathic practitioners, hence they reject the systems. This problem can be solved by integrating the Indian traditional medical systems.

“When we have a common degree and common practice of Indian traditional medicine, then it would be easy to popularize our heritage worldwide and easily to integrate it with modern (allopathy) system. Then Indian citizens will get equal opportunity to enjoy our ancient healthcare heritage, and all other medical systems will have equal chances to serve public”, said the lecturer.