October 25, 2022
Dear HANP Colleagues,
I hope this letter finds you well and in good health. The HANP Board of Directors and I would like to update you on an exciting announcement for the homœopathic community of licensed medical professionals. In order to improve our credentialing process, we have decided to partner with the American Board of Homeopathic Medicine (ABHM).
History
Intermittently throughout the past 3 years, we have been in communication with the leadership of the ABHM about a possible merger of our certifying boards. The ABHM is the certifying organization for our conventional colleagues (MD’s and DO’s) and grants advanced specialty status, similar to the DHANP. The Diplomat of American Board of Homeopathic Medicine (DABHM), formerly known as Diplomate of Homeotherapeutics (DHt), is the oldest specialty status for homœopathic physicians in the United States.
After much discussion, the ABHM and HANP have agreed to a provisional merger for one year. At this time, the future of homœopathy in this country requires a strong and united voice within the professional medical community. Homœopathy is even being attacked within our own naturopathic profession. This decision to merge was made after much reflection and deliberation. We believe the best way to defend against the attacks that homœopathy is currently up against, is to face these challenges alongside our conventional colleagues. By merging certifying boards, this helps increase awareness of our specialty status, and sets a standard for the practice of quality Hahnemannian homœopathy. In addition, this gives greater credibility to our specialty status organization by having a distinct credentialing board that is separate from the HANP membership organization.
Merger with DABHMs
The HANP has transitioned certification of awarding specialty status (DHANP) to the ABHM for all new applicants. The HANP will continue its mission of promoting excellence in the practice of homœopathy among naturopathic physicians, establishing and upholding specialist standards, providing education and mentorship, and committing to the protection and preservation of homœopathy as a core therapeutic modality within the naturopathic profession. The merger went into effect on September 1, 2022. If, at the end of one year, either the DABHMs or DHANPs want to dissolve the merger, then both groups will amicably agree to do so.
During this provisional year, there will be two certification tracks — one for naturopathic physicians, and another track for medical and osteopathic physicians, nurse practitioners, physician assistants and dentists. These two tracks are the same as the current certification processes for DHANPs and DABHMs. The question of having only one certification process may be discussed in the future.
To learn more about the ABHM track, please visit the AIH’s website https://homeopathyusa.org/certification.html. Information regarding the HANP track is still currently found on our website, but will redirect to a new website in the future (see below). https://hanp.net/dhanp-certification/
Board of Directors of ABHM
The ABHM Board of Directors voted to increase the total number of Directors to six — thus, there will now be equal representation from both groups: three DABHMs and three DHANPs. Based on recommendations from HANP leadership, the three DHANPs serving on the Board are:
- Pearlyn Goodman-Herrick, ND, DHANP
- Stephen Messer, ND, DHANP (who will serve as Treasurer)
- Miriam Wheeler, ND, DHANP as Directors
The three DABHMs serving on the Board are:
- Timothy Fior, MD, DABHM
- George Guess, MD, DABHM
- Irene Sebastian, MD, PhD, DABHM (President)
Website & DHANP Directory
The ABHM website is currently being revised and updated to reflect this merger (though no changes are yet visible). The Directory for DHANPs will continue to be listed on the HANP website, but will also be listed on the ABHM website. Please let our HANP Executive Director, Hannah Bryant, know if any changes need to be made to your listing as soon as possible by emailing her at [email protected]. If you are retired, please let her know if you prefer to have your name remain on the website (with Retired in parenthesis) — if so, also specify if you also want to include your contact information or name only.
DHANP Renewal & Dues
The ABHM will begin handling all aspects of credentialing, including annual recertification for existing DHANPs. While we believe this merger is a positive change for a number of reasons, we recognize that change can be uncomfortable. As such, in an effort to be mindful of not wanting DHANPs to have to pay dues to two organizations without adequate advanced notice, the HANP will pay annual dues ($50 per DHANP) to the ABHM on your behalf during this preliminary first year in 2023. These dues help cover operating costs for the ABHM. At this time, please continue paying your annual dues of $150 to the HANP. Announcements will follow regarding when dues will be paid directly by DHANPs to the ABHM, though this is tentatively expected to take place in January 2024. Similarly, an announcement will soon follow regarding the logistics for where to submit the annual proof of your 10 hours of homœopathic CE during this transition year in order to maintain your DHANP status. For questions about CE requirements for annual renewal, see the most current published guidelines online here: https://hanp.net/dhanp-ce-requirements/.
If you are an existing DHANP, please be on the lookout for a survey from the HANP regarding this merger and feel free to share any comments or concerns you have with us there.
On behalf of the Board of Directors, thank you for your continued support of the HANP and commitment to excellence in the homœopathic profession.
Sincerely,
Jamie Oskin, ND, DHANP
HANP President