Lisa M. Doran doesn't like her children to be immunized

What's surprising is that she is a "health professional", and apparently practices naturopathic medicine in Whitby, Ontario, a suburb of Toronto.

I wonder if Lisa M. Doran, naturopathic "doctor", was taught anti-vaccine rhetoric at the Canadian College of Naturopathic Medicine?

Or did she pick it up from one of the many chiropractors in Ontario who also eschew this anti-public health rhetoric?

What did Lisa Doran learn in school? Did she attend and graduate from CCNM? If so, when did she graduate?

I looked for her on the web site run by the OAND - Ontario Association of Naturopathic Doctors today and was unable to find her. Perhaps she just isn't listed. The other thing that is quite astounding is that there are no links to the Drugless Practitioner Act, nor to the regulators in the Province of Ontario who supervise and license naturopaths.

There was an interesting OAND newsletter article written by Paddy Kamen, their executive director at the time. This is a "must-read" if one wants to begin to understand why this group feels persecuted and neglected. In the Spring/Summer of 1998, an article written by the executive at the time, implied that the government of Ontario was blocking changes in the law that regulates naturopaths in Ontario.

These folks, many of them happen to also be chiropractors, are crying in their herbal tea because the government is stalling. Well, let me tell you that if all this group did was to phone up and make an appointment with any local naturopath, even ones who are recent graduates, they might be in for a shock. Before these folks beg for regulation, they better clean up their act.

The author of the article has her right to refuse any treatment, as long as it's not life threatening to her children. She has the right to counsel her clients against immunization. But, she has her facts all wrong about the very essence of a public health measure that has saved millions of lives around the world.

I doubt that she has ever been put into the position of having to treat a tetanus victim who is unable to talk, or swallow and is on a ventilator for 5 days. Has she ever gone to a physiatrist with a 4 year old to check on his new leg braces because was paralyzed from polio. Nor has she ever crawled out of bed at 4:00 AM to rush to the hospital to stop a seizure in a 6 year old Aboriginal boy who has just been air-evacuated from Northern Ontario into Sioux Lookout because he was stricken with Hemophilus influenza meningitis, fell into a coma, and subsequently died in route to Winnipeg in a makeshift float plane that doubles as an ambulance.

No, Ms. Doran probably sits in her comfortable office in Whitby spinning herbal yarns with her clients, reading them the riot act if they let their kids get their shots. Or, maybe she just lectures them about the evil drug companies who produce drugs to help prevent rejection after transplants, or warns folks to only eat freshly picked organic berries from Guatemala or Chile.

Naturopaths, unless they have gone to medical or nursing school, have no idea of what it's like to take care of sick patients. All they do all day is to wave magic wands around, touching Vega or Interro machine probes to the fingers and palms of their guinea pigs, in an attempt to convince them that they know what they are doing. Some are fixated on the colon, and spend dozens of hours a months in a vain attempt to unplug normal colons with enemas or purgatives.

Some folks just look into your eyes and tell you what's wrong with your ovary or testicle for sure. And, they are damned proud of it.

Hey, if you can't make it in to the office you can even consult another naturopath, Julie Pegg, by phone. She calls it, and bills it as a "distance" consultation. She does a mind-body analysis over the telephone, and I assume she can do it also over the internet. Wow, it's a miracle. Yes, it's very safe, she can't stick you with the Vega probe or put a hose up where the sun don't shine. And, by the way, she says she's on the board of directors that regulates naturopaths in Ontario. Plus if it makes you feel really good, she's also a Registered Professional Counsellor. God only knows what that is. Then again, she should know everything there is to know, she does EMDR, too.

Well, I'd say, that for any naturopathic drugless practioner to be bold enough to admit that they know next to nothing about public health is about par for the course. When you're surrounded by enema bags, Vega machines, and herbal poltices for cancer, when do you have time to learn about real disease.

Perhaps some of you would find it convenient to drop in visit a naturopath's office near you. For those of you near Whitby, why not drop in and ask her for scientific evidence that led to her decision. And, by the way, ask her who taught her those things, and is it really based on her personal religious belief.

Lisa M Doran 
420 Crawforth St
Whitby, ON
905-665-7539

The regulators in Ontario don't list the license status of the naturopaths on their web site. In fact, they don't even have a web site. Naturopaths are indeed supposed to be regulated by their own body, separate from the other regulated health professionals. They may be reached at:

Most intelligent people should be able to see behind the rhetoric by simply going to page A15 of the Sunday Toronto Star on June 9, 2000.

It would be nice for the educators at CCNM to issue a public statement about naturopathic studies in the areas of public health maintenance. Since some of the teachings at CCNM are not based on what we would call evidenced based medicine, one that uses double blind studies, we are sit hear in amazement and wonder why the government still seems to be cuddling up with naturopaths and other pseudoscientific practitioners. Where is common sense here?

In my "neighborhood" there are recent graduates of CCNM who use Vega or Interro machines, they do applied kinesiology, and use iridology, live cell microscopy, and hair analysis to provide what many might consider to be quack care to their clients. Others treat cancer patients with vitamins and minerals, in effect sabotaging, not supporting regular therapy for life-threatening illness. Why does the government not step in?

Up near Lake Simcoe there are naturopaths who lead the anti-vaccine fight along with their brother and delusional sisters of other quack professions, some of them also regulated. Earlier this year several of them tried to get a debate going on a Rogers Cable TV station in Newmarket about the dangers of vaccines. It never happened due to the efforts of area doctors.

In Brantford, a chiropractor basically was fired, or perhaps he quit when the Roger's TV station there refused to allow an anti-vaccine activist on the show that he hosted. She wrote a book about the dangers of vaccines and is regularly sponsored on her journey around the country chiropractors to preach to school boards.

If CCNM and the Federal government are going to support a holistic school in Hamilton with public money, I would like to know that graduates of present naturopathic education programs are first of all being taught about public health, and secondly what exactly is their expertise to even object to immunizations in the first place.

This is amazing that there are still health practitioners who practice and support anti-science views.

Lisa M. Doran's letter to the editor:

Parents can refuse child vaccines

Arguments regarding pros and cons of vaccination aside, I would like to address the issue of informed choice in health care and inform parents of their rights.

You are not breaking the law if you decide against vaccination. It is your right and your responsibility to be informed about your child's health and any medication they receive. I encourage you to do some research on vaccinations. What are their contents? ARe the viruses live or killed (attenuated)? How are the viruses preserved? How are they grown (on what medium)? Are you, as a parent, comfortable with the many possible side effects?

Neither legislation nor bureaucracy may force you to inject a substance into your child's body. You have the right to say no --- and more and more families are saying no.

If you are in the same situation you can request a "statement of conscience or religious belief affidavit" form from the health department. Sign and submit it to your child's school and our choices regarding vaccinations should not be questioned again.

Lisa M. Doran
Naturopathic doctor
Whitby

Other anti-vaccine coverage

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• meningitis epidemic opposed by chiropractor in Waterloo

• Back to Naturopaths on Parade