Expert: Dr. Kristina Conner - 7/19/2008

Question
I've been considering a drastic change in career(I'm 35) and am looking into switching to the alternative health field(although my previous jobs don't have any relevance to this potential new career). This is partly because it's always recommended to do what one loves - and I've in the past  been fascinated by certain alternative disciplines. I'm curious as to what particular fields of alternative-medicine  are most in demand by the public, what qualifications are required if any, how to start etc.

Any advice much appreciated,
Thanks,
Geoff (London, UK)

Answer
Hi Geoffrey,
Thanks for your question.  Congratulations on considering a big change in your life, and having the courage to consider alternative medicine.  Most practitioners feel their careers are very rewarding, hopefully this will be the case for you too.  
Doctorates in the CAM field, requiring the most amount of training, include naturopathic medicine, chiropractic, and oriental medicine.  Acupuncture is also a masters degree, with a little less training.  There are also master degrees in nutrition.  Other professional trainings can be massage therapy (about 6-12 months of training), midwifery (varies), cranio sacral, hydrotherapist, yoga, other body work specialties, herbalist, homeopath (there's little regulation or minimal education in these last fields).  I know that there are some differences between here in the US and the UK.  For instance, NDs like myself and DOs (osteopaths) here are doctoral level, but in the UK it can be an undergraduate or graduate degree.  Homeopathy is not a regulated specialty here , most homeopaths have degrees of other sorts, but in the UK it's more regulated & one can practice homeopathy alone.  So I would suggest you search for some resources where you intend to practice, such as professional societies or consortiums of schools.  If you see any CAM pracitioners, ask them where they trained or how they started.  
As far as demand, I think that is very open--most of the CAM fields are growing with increasing patient demand.  Although there are some areas where there are many, for the most part we need more pracitioners, of all kinds.  As all of the professions grow, we are seeing more collaboration between the CAM fields and the conventional medical fields, which only strengthens us.  What I would suggest is you investigate all the fields via internet/ books, then see a couple of schools, practioners of that sort, and find what you are drawn to.  Get some form of formal education, and join a profession, even if it's a new one.  While I appreciate people who do more alternative things, it's difficult for practitioners like that to grow, get established, and have some security in their practice/ income--things that are likely important to a second- career student like yourself than if you were just starting out.  
Good luck!
Dr Conner