Homeopathic research is carried out by a few organisations as well as groups of practitioners around the world. Many trials concentrate on the testing of substances on healthy people, ‘provings’, to ascertain the symptoms that these substances could alleviate, based on the principle of ‘like cures like’. The symptomatic evidence from provings is progressively confirmed through successfully treated cases.
In the areas of medicine and pharmacy, clinical trials, based on ‘randomised and often double-blinded control’, test medicines or treatments on a group of people suffering from a specific complaint. Usually, the trial is conducted including a control group of people who receive a non-medical substance (placebo).
In recent decades, this type of research has increased for homeopathic medicines, with statistical results very similar to those of tested conventional drugs.
However, there is also another type of research not used or recognised by the medical establishment, whereby individualised prescribing for a specific complaint is tested on the principle of ‘like cures like’. This qualitative evidence is called ‘anecdotal evidence’ in scientific circles and does not enjoy the same acceptance as quantifiable trial data.
Homeopathy Research Institute (HRI)
The HRI is an international charity, which was created in 2007 and achieved charitable status in 2009. It aims to address the need for high quality scientific research in homeopathy. It was founded by physicist Dr Alexander Tournier, who previously worked as an independent researcher for Cancer Research UK, conducting interdisciplinary research at the boundaries between mathematics, physics and biology.
With the support from several established leaders in homeopathy research, such as Dr Peter Fisher, Dr Elizabeth Thompson, Dr Clare Relton and Prof Kate Thomas, and invaluable help from many other individuals, HRI established a new institute which is now headed up by Dr Tournier and Rachel Roberts, homoeopathic clinician and lecturer. The institute’s primary purpose is to facilitate homoeopathy research. It supports new research projects, awards PhD Studentships in the field of homoeopathy, presents evidence for homoeopathy at an international level and organises international research conferences to bring together the best homoeopathy researchers from around the world.
Dr Alexander Tournier, HRI Chairman, says, ‘Recent statements in the media have argued that further research in homeopathy is not justified, however this is far from the case as many important questions remain unanswered. Homeopathy is a complex subject, which we are only just starting to explore’.
The Aurum Project
The Aurum Project (AP) is an Australian non-government organisation registered with the Australian Charities and Not-For-Profits Commission (ACNC). Its mission is to advance the understanding and practice of homeopathy in Australia.
The Aurum Project uses the concept of Research Pods through which groups of professional homeopathic practitioners undertake research. Pods build relationships between colleagues and increase resilience within the profession of homeopathy and are different to traditional research teams in the way the researchers works together.
Melting Pot sessions are a technique that has become an integral part of Aurum Project seminars and workshops. A Melting Pot is a one hour session of open exchange between practitioners on a specific topic of interest to rapidly increase clinical knowledge on a chosen topic. Discussion groups have a maximum of 8 – 10 people. At the end of the discussion time, each group reports their findings to a larger group.
The Aurum Project is dedicated to improving the health and wellbeing of children through natural medicine research.
Since 2013 the Aurum Project has been running the Autism Support Project to bring affordable care to ASD children and offer partially subsidised or half price treatment for children diagnosed with ASD. There are a growing number of practitioners around Australia who are Autism Support Project Recognised Providers.