All healthcare professionals, from doctors to traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) practitioners to physiotherapists, have to abide by a strict code of conduct and ethics, which includes guidelines on what can and cannot be advertised.
They are not allowed to publish claims that are not substantiated by science, put up testimonials, or give discounts that might entice the public to over-consume healthcare services.
With the rise of social media, however, there are a lot of unregulated professions that are making claims in their favour. Fitness instructors, masseurs, beauty centres and pilates and yoga instructors are claiming that they provide healthcare services.
They are even calling themselves “clinics” when there isn’t any medical professional working in these places. A centre run by yoga instructors, for instance, does not have any medical professionals working there but is treating people for pelvic floor disorders. Beauty centres have been known to do aesthetic procedures like fat freezing, filler injections and ultrasound facials, and they are not regulated.
Centres run by fitness instructors or those trained in sports science are opening “clinics” and claiming they are pain specialists. Chiropractic centres, which are not regulated by the Ministry of Health (MOH), are also making claims of curing conditions like scoliosis and migraine. Masseurs claiming to be TCM practitioners are claiming they can increase fertility through their massages.
All these claims are not substantiated by science and they spread based on word of mouth. They might cause more harm than good. There most probably are people suffering more issues after consulting these people. But what recourse do those who suffer the effects of poor treatment have?
The strict regulations that MOH has for healthcare professionals are to protect the public from errant practitioners, but what about those who are untrained and not regulated? Healthcare professionals undergo years of training to gain proper in-depth knowledge and skills.
The authorities should clamp down on unmerited claims and act firmly against unregulated professions which make false claims.
Calvin Sim Pheng Hoe
