Medical School in Planning Stages
Maharishi College of Perfect Health
The Maharishi College of Perfect Health in Fairfield, Iowa, is developing a new medical school that will train doctors to practice integrative medicine — a synthesis of conventional medical diagnosis and treatment, and the most effective practices of natural medicine. We are in the process of preparing an application for accreditation with the Liaison Committee for Medical Education. The approval and commencement of the program is not yet determined.
While in the planning stages, we expect that when finalized and approved, this will be the first medical school in the world to train MDs in the most advanced knowledge, technologies and practices of both modern medicine and natural medicine, including Maharishi Ayurveda, a prevention-oriented science of health from the Vedic traditions of India.
All students will learn about a wide range of natural medical systems, such as traditional Chinese medicine, homeopathy, naturopathy, osteopathy, chiropractic, and energy medicine.
Post-graduate students can gain expertise in modern medical specialties such as internal medicine, cardiology, pediatrics and family medicine, psychiatry and neurology, geriatrics, and anti-aging medicine.
Rising demand
Side effects from modern medicine are now the third leading cause of death in the United States, after cardiovascular disease and cancer. Adverse effects from modern treatments result in over 200,000 deaths every year. Close to half of all Americans use some form of complementary or alternative medicine, spending billions of dollars on natural health care.
The Association of American Medical Colleges is calling for a 30 percent increase in medical school graduates. For every student accepted to a medical school today, two more are deferred.
Curriculum
The curriculum is organized around the study of the eight major organ systems of the body. Each system is examined from the perspective of Ayurveda, which takes into account all the factors that influence health — including mind, body and environment — many of which are not usually considered by contemporary medicine.
During the first year, students will focus on the structure, function and development of the body — and its source in consciousness. Year two is dedicated to prevention, health and disease as understood by modern medicine, Ayurvedic medicine, and other natural systems of health care. The third year covers diagnosis and treatment of common disorders with emphasis on primary care. In the final years, (this is planned to be a 5 year MD/MS ) students will begin their clinical practice, and move into diagnosis and treatment of severe and chronic stages of disease.
Pre-med program
Beginning in January 2009, the Maharishi College of Perfect Health began offering a pre-med program (with a B.A. in Physiology and Health) to prepare students for the MUM medical school or any other MD or naturopathic medicine program in the U.S. or Canada.
Students in either of these MCPH programs — pre-med or MD — will not only gain thorough knowledge in the field of health, they’ll simultaneously improve their own health. While earning their degree, they’ll have organic vegetarian meals, study in college buildings designed to maximize health and well-being, follow a balanced routine of rest and activity, and optimize their brain functioning through the Transcendental Meditation technique.
The approval and commencement of the program is not yet determined, but the process will take several years under ideal conditions and is dependent on requisite funding being secured.
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