AHPRA and complementary medicine
AHPRA does not register naturopaths. It can still own a naturopath's advertising. Here is how.
The starting point
Naturopathy sits outside the National Law. There is no naturopath board, and anyone can use the word. Chinese medicine, next door, has had its own board since 2012. That difference decides everything below.
Door one
AHPRA's own FAQ: if a physiotherapist also has qualifications as a naturopath, the advertising requirements apply to all of their advertising, including advertising solely about the naturopathic services. The registration follows the person, not the service.
Door two
Acupuncturist, Chinese medicine practitioner and Chinese herbal medicine practitioner are protected titles, reserved for the registered. Dry needling described as dry needling is unprotected wording. The same needle, different legal exposure.
Door three
Section 116: any word or description that could reasonably read as being a registered practitioner, used knowingly or recklessly, carries up to $60,000 or three years imprisonment for an individual. The advertising offence is fine-only. A bare Dr with no profession named is the accidental way in.
Who polices pure naturopathy
State codes for non-registered practitioners ban claims about treating illness or efficacy that cannot be substantiated. The NSW HCCC can investigate and issue prohibition orders, the unregistered world's version of losing a registration.
The product layer
Herbs and supplements are therapeutic goods. Some cannot be advertised to the public at all. A blog post that names a herb, attaches a serious condition and links to your shop has probably become an ad for a therapeutic good.
One website, four rulebooks
The only unregulated word is naturopath itself. Treatment claims, titles, product pages and co-located registered services each answer to a different regulator. The full post maps which line belongs to whom.
Tap below for the full map.