Benchmarking Naturopathy Education; Comparing the Indian and Ghanaian Curricula
Raphael Nyarkotey Obu *
Nyarkotey University College of Holistic Medicine & Technology, Ashaiman, Ghana.
Lawrencia Aggrey-Bluwey
Department of Health Administration and Education, University of Education, Winneba, Ghana.
Sangeeth Somanadhapai
Nyarkotey University College of Holistic Medicine & Technology, Ashaiman, Ghana.
*Author to whom correspondence should be addressed.
Abstract
Background: Ghana has developed two significant programs for modern naturopathic education in Africa. This success story makes Ghana one of the first countries in the West African sub-region to promote and advocate for the standardized structured naturopathic practice. This also makes Ghana join the likes of countries with a well-defined Naturopathic education such as South Africa, India, North America, and the like. In the case of South Africa, the Naturopathic program is offered at the School of Natural Medicine at the University of the Western Cape, a public institution. However, in the case of Ghana, there is a dedicated university for the promotion of naturopathy and Holistic Health programs. This, therefore, makes Ghana the first on the African continent to have a dedicated university to teach Naturopathy and Holistic Medicine. With a team of Naturopathic and Biomedical Science professionals in both clinical and academic practice, the Nyarkotey University College of Holistic Medicine & Technology (NUCHMT) provided a roadmap in this area. National Occupational Standard was further developed at the Higher National Diploma (HND) and Bachelor in Naturopathy and Holistic Medicine approved by the Commission for Technical and Vocational Education and Training (CTVET) for training two different cadres of Naturopathic Professionals. The HND aims to train Naturopaths and Bachelors to train Naturopathic Physicians. As part of training professionals to meet international standards, the curricula were benchmarked as part of approval requirements. This research paper examines the Ghanaian naturopathic curriculum to assess if it meets the Indian model for training Naturopathic Physicians.
Objective: To critically review the Ghanaian naturopathy curriculum approved by the Commission for Technical and Vocational Education and Training (CTVET).
Methods: This is qualitative research that used a document analysis. In this stage, we undertook an in-depth curricula evaluation and comparison with the Ghanaian Bachelor of Naturopathy and Holistic Medicine and the Indian Bachelor of Naturopathy and Yogic Sciences (BNYS).
Results: We found that the Ghanaian and Indian Naturopathy curricula have some similarities and differences. The difference between the Indian and Ghanaian programs is that the first year is extended in the Indian BYNS for additional 6 months.
Conclusion. The subjects offered in the Ghanaian naturopathic curriculum are on the same level as the Indian standards. However, the Indian curriculum has yogic sciences as an important aspect of naturopathic education which cannot be said in the Ghanaian curriculum.
Keywords: Naturopathy, Ghana, Indian, nyarkotey, bachelors