The educational landscape in the field of alternative medicine has a long tradition, but it has developed considerably in recent years. In the past, there were no protected professions in the field of alternative medicine. This should change in order to guarantee a certain standard of quality for patients. Following a needs analysis funded by the federal government, it decided to award two titles to organize the working world for alternative medicine: Naturopath and Complementary Therapist. Health insurance companies are increasingly looking for such HFP titles and in certain cantons it is not even possible to work in these professions without the federal diploma.
There are two professions in the field of alternative medicine that are recognized by the federal government:
Naturopaths from the Oda AM are to be seen as an alternative to doctors in four specializations, which is why they also attend at least 700 hours of training in conventional medicine. Complementary therapists from the OdA KT, on the other hand, are employed in addition to doctors and only complete 150 hours of training in conventional medicine. With this background knowledge, the orientation of the professions can be better recognized and classified.
Training to become a naturopath with a federal diploma leads to the OdA AM industry certificate and the higher professional examination. Prerequisites for the OdA AM industry certificate are a Sek II qualification (completed apprenticeship or Matura) and personal aptitude. The AM training consists of the following modules:
The first two module qualifications are carried out by the OdA AM itself or by sponsoring organizations of the respective discipline. Module qualifications three to six are carried out by the training providers. With all six module qualifications, the OdA AM certificate can be applied for at the office. The industry certificate is then also the basis for the seventh module, mentoring, during which the naturopaths gain professional practice. The HFP consists of:
Upon passing the higher professional examination, the federal diploma is awarded. This allows naturopaths with a federal diploma to practise as an alternative to a doctor in the relevant specialty.
Training to become a complementary therapist with a federal diploma leads to the OdA KT industry certificate and the higher professional examination. Access to the industry certificate is granted to those with an upper secondary level qualification. The KT training consists of the following elements:
A competence-oriented KT final examination is taken for all elements. The alternative would be an equivalence procedure as an industry certificate. The OdA KT industry certificate and supervised professional practice are required for admission to the Higher Professional Examination for Complementary Therapists. The HFP examination consists of
Upon passing the examination, graduates receive a federal diploma. This enables them to work as a recognized complementary therapist with a federal diploma in addition to doctors.
Naturopaths and complementary therapists with longer professional experience and previous training can prepare for a subsequent higher professional examination at educational institutions. Solutions are being sought here to refresh knowledge and complete missing parts of training in order to be able to catch up on the HFP qualification. This is because certain cantons only issue licenses if this is available. The federal diploma can also become a prerequisite for billable services when billing health insurance companies. So if you are not about to retire, you should consider taking the higher professional examination. You can take longer than three years to do this, as these people are usually already firmly established in working life. With a federal diploma, you have something in hand and are certainly on the safe side for the next ten to twenty years.
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