promotional feature
AUSTRALIAN NATURAL THERAPISTS ASSOCIATIONthe three-year degree content [in nutrition]
within their four years of training, but they
are required to have a discrete qualification
in nutrition — either an additional
undergraduate degree or a postgraduate
qualification in nutrition.”
For those thinking to upgrade their
qualifications to gain recognition in
nutrition, ANTA has a process for that
pathway in place: “They may not have a
bachelor degree but if, for example, they’ve
completed a postgraduate qualification
in nutrition, then we may consider that,
particularly from a naturopath, that’s
completed four years of training.”
ANTA members, and anyone aiming to
apply for a membership with ANTA, can go
onto the ANTA website and be guided by the
ANTA “recognised course list”, Olds says.
“We consult with teaching institutions about
the rigour of their program and whether their
course is relevant and suitable to an upgrade
situation. Those institutions may then be
added to the ANTA ‘recognised course list’.
“For example, a number of universities
deliver postgraduate programs in nutrition
and there are other private and mainstream
education institutions around the country
that deliver these qualifications. Someone
with a four-year degree in naturopathy,
for example, could gain admission to one
of these programs. They might have to do
some bridging studies but generally they can
gain admission into a program and go on to
complete their study in a Master’s degree or
another suitable postgraduate program.
“We have a good open communication
line and people can ring ANTA any time and
we’ll deal with their queries. We hate to see
people go off and spend a whole lot of time
and money on something that we might not
recognise and they enrolled there quietly
thinking they’d join ANTA when they finish
and they may be disappointed.”
You can get in touch with ANTA via
australiannaturaltherapistsaccociation.com.
au or by phone on 1800 817 577.
The benefi ts of ANTA membership
The high training standards ANTA puts in
place to admit members and graduates to
membership provides a level of assurance to
the public that ANTA members are capable
of delivering treatments that are safe, cost
effective, clinically efficacious and of the
highest quality, Olds says.
ANTA will continue to offer professional
membership in the five modalities removed
from the health funds list (aromatherapy,
Western herbalism, homeopathy,
naturopathy, shiatsu).
“They still need to be regulated whether
or not they receive private health rebates,”
Olds says. “Our primary interest is ensuring
that people who are trained well can gain
access to a high-quality association. We
take our carriage over that regulation quite
seriously, even though it’s not legislated.”
ANTA is a registered company established
in 1955 under the Companies Act and is bound
by company law under ASIC, Olds informs. It
was first formed to provide a peak body and
formal association for the naturopaths of the
day. As of 2019, the professional association
boasts over 9000 members and a national
council of company directors.
“ANTA established the highest standards
for entry to its list of therapists as early as
1955 to assure the Australian public that
health and safety were overriding conditions
of therapeutic practice,” Olds explains.
“Today, the current board of ANTA maintains
vigilance over practitioner standards and
recognises the four-year undergraduate
degree as the entry level for therapists
practising naturopathy and acupuncture.
“The three-year degrees for myotherapy,
nutrition and herbal medicine are the entry
requirements for graduate therapists to
enter these fields of practice as ANTA
members. The Diploma of Remedial
Massage is the only modality available
at this level of professional practice.
The Advanced Diploma of Myotherapy is
an upgrade to this level of training for
graduates from the diploma and these
graduates have a pathway into the Bachelor
of Health Science Myotherapy to develop
advanced knowledge and skills within their
chosen vocation at an undergraduate level.”
These entry standards established
by ANTA go some way toward providing
the Australian public with assurance
over safer and more effective therapies
compared to what has been available
in the early development phases ofcourses and programs to formally train
and educate therapists for entry into
professional practice.
ANTA have also submitted a proposal for
statutory registration of all natural therapies
to demonstrate to the Australian government
that they are confident that the educational
programs that exist will prepare graduates
for regulation of their therapies under
a registration board system.Web links
- The Quality in Australian Health Care
Study 1995
ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/7476634 - Medical Mistakes: A Silent Epidemic in
Australian Hospitals. ABC Report, The World
Today, 2013
abc.net.au/worldtoday/content/2013/
s3778256.htm - IBIS World Market Research report:
industry trends in alternative health
therapies, 2018
ibisworld.com.au/industry-trends/market-
research-reports/thematic-reports/
alternative-health-therapies.html - The Review of the Australian Government
Rebate on Private Health Insurance for
Natural Therapies, Department of Health
health.gov.au/internet/main/publishing.nsf/
Content/phi-natural-therapies - Private health insurance reforms:
Changing coverage for some natural
therapies. Department of Health
health.gov.au/internet/main/publishing.nsf/
Content/private-health-insurance-reforms-
fact-sheet-removing-coverage-for-some-
natural-therapies
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