Anyone an Herbalist?

Here.I.Stand, BSN, RN · Jan 26, 2017

I was taught that both prescribing and recommending meds is outside of an RN's scope of practice. You'd be playing with some very hot water incorporating herbal medicine into a non-advanced nursing practice. A good friend of my mother-in-law is a pharmacist in Korea, and my husband said they have to know as much about herbal remedies as pharmaceuticals, because Eastern medicine is so prevalent. But an RN? I wouldn't risk it.

DrCera · Jan 31, 2017

I was taught that both prescribing and recommending meds is outside of an RN's scope of practice....

Maybe you didn't see in the op's statement - they did mention 'practicing within limitations'. And FYI herbalists don't prescribe or recommend "meds" of any kind nor do they discourage people from seeing their family physicians. A herbalist would recommend chamomile tea for difficulty falling asleep; peppermint for upset stomach; lavender in your bath to help you relax; turmeric & pepper in food for inflammatory problems (yes, by the way, these are all EBP - look it up.) But yes Mnstn, there are many, many nurses out there who have furthered their knowledge on natural health and herbals and use it in practice & at home. I have a masters in nursing and a doctorate in natural health and I am a master herbalist. If herbalism and natural health interest you - go for it! You won't regret it.

DrCera · Jan 31, 2017

BTW there were 120 job postings on indeed today for 'integrative medicine RN' ... It's an up & coming field!

Mothernurser · Feb 7, 2017

I'm looking into the herbalist arena myself. Where are you doing yours? I did herbology and iridology stuff before nursing, but stopped when I got disenfranchised with it (long story). I'm getting disenfranchised with hospitals and allopathic medicine now, though, and want to do CAM stuff again, but I'm a little hesitant about who knows what they're doing. Any recommendations on where to look?

Recommending meds isn't out of our scope of practice. I recommend ibuprofen and colace to my postop patients every day. In fact, I believe OTC recommendations with teaching are a huge part of nursing. Prescribing is obviously out, but we don't have DEA numbers. Medical diagnosing is where we could run into real problems.

Icooka4u · Feb 14, 2017

I think it's great, and am interested in herbalism & aromatherapy. Now finding a program that is hands on in class is the challenge. Too many online only programs.

Mnstn, BSN, RN · Feb 14, 2017

Thanks everyone for your support! I started the Wildflower School of Botanical Medicine since they have a weekend program and I'm in Texas but if I ever plan to go further into the advanced stuff I'll need to move closer. A lot of their students have gone on to other outside of Texas schools for additional training as well.

This is just the beginning of my journey and something new I'm trying so I don't know how it'll all figure together in the future but I think that one has to follow their interests and see what happens.

elkpark · Feb 14, 2017

I'm looking into the herbalist arena myself. Where are you doing yours? I did herbology and iridology stuff before nursing, but stopped when I got disenfranchised with it (long story). I'm getting disenfranchised with hospitals and allopathic medicine now, though, and want to do CAM stuff again, but I'm a little hesitant about who knows what they're doing. Any recommendations on where to look?
Recommending meds isn't out of our scope of practice. I recommend ibuprofen and colace to my postop patients every day. In fact, I believe OTC recommendations with teaching are a huge part of nursing. Prescribing is obviously out, but we don't have DEA numbers. Medical diagnosing is where we could run into real problems.

"Disenfranchised"? Do you maybe mean "disenchanted"? "Disenfranchised" would mean your right to do it has been taken away. I'm guessing you don't mean that you have been stopped from working in "herbology" and "iridology" and are now in the process of losing (legally) your ability to work in allopathic medicine.

And I would question your statement that "recommending" even OTC medications is legally within the scope of practice of a generalist RN without rx authority. Do you have some documentation of that?

Here.I.Stand, BSN, RN · Feb 24, 2017

Recommending meds isn't out of our scope of practice. I recommend ibuprofen and colace to my postop patients every day. In fact, I believe OTC recommendations with teaching are a huge part of nursing.

Maybe it's state specific, but I was taught in no uncertain terms in pharm class that recommending meds, even OTCs, is outside of an RN's scope of practice. The instructor who taught pharm was also a legal nurse consultant, so highly doubt she was pulling that out of the air

DrCera · Feb 28, 2017

Instead of recommending Ibuprophen, for inflammatory issues and mild pain, I would recommend the person try to incorporate more Turmeric and peppers into their diet.... health and wellness are inherently nutritionally based, which is a foundation of Naturopathic medicine. For OTC medications, a person should always ask their primary care provider for advice. Some institutions have 'standing orders' (don't yell, it's true...) and Physicians routinely tell their staff to suggest certain OTC medications for certain conditions depending on circumstances. This may have been what the OP meant when she said IBU or colace - it may be standard practice and routine in her setting. In my opinion, Naturopathic medicine is 'anything that doesn't come in a pill' and can be easily accomplished by or for the patient - it reminds me a lot of nursing interventions (A nursing intervention is defined as "any treatment, based upon clinical judgment and knowledge, that a nurse performs to enhance patient/client outcomes" - or 'what can you do for your patient that doesn't require a doctor's order'). The use of meditation, heat & cold, massage, distraction, positioning, aroma etc. are all items that may be used to help & comfort a person - and if the person feels better, that's what is important. These items are nursing interventions and also naturopathic. There are many naturopathic (herbal, energy and body) therapies that are evidence-based and well studied. Cancer Centers of America employ NDs at all their facilities to collaborate care for their patients. Many old remedies are coming back into practice (think honey & maggots) in allopathic medicine. It's an interesting field - keep an open mind :)

syoung078, BSN · May 17, 2018

I'm very interested in getting back into CAM and becoming an herbalist. I am a RN-BSN, Home health nurse, going on 7 years. Where would I start? I work on the East Coast. Do you do an apprenticeship or go back to school? Any advice is greatly appreciated! Thanks!

Thefourofus · Feb 23, 2019

Know your scope of practice and how to apply the laws in your state is the primary concern. Language is key. I've been a nurse herbalist for at least two years now. I have a carefully worded and explicit disclaimer. I work as part of a team and my clients are well aware of the lines of demarcation. I am careful to go over the clause and what they can expect from me and what I expect from them. I have permissions statements so that I can communicate with their PCP. AHNA has a position statement that is part of our scope of practice and my state has a complementary practice clause.

Education is as one respondent suggested like another educational program separate from nursing. One will find this the case for any modality that they want to practice. Nurses have a lot at stake as do our clients/patients when we discuss and chose to use complementary health approaches (formerly CAM).

I use a variety of approaches and all of them has taken a significant amount of study. I'm now preparing for the Nurse Coach Board and working on a doctorate of Health Psychology with a focus on psychoneuroimmunology as we speak. I also am board certified in holistic nursing as an advanced holistic nurse (AHN-BC) and just completed a renewal cycle with well over 1000 hours of education for a 5 yr cycle--required 100 hrs for a renewal cycle.