In July a meeting was held at the Kings Fund in London for the newly formed CNHC (Complementary and Natural Healthcare Council). All the professional associations that have been working towards VSR were invited to have a representative from their committee at this meeting. The purpose of the meeting was to hear what the CNHC has done to date. Bowen was represented by John Francis (Chair of BTER) and Janet Barry (Bowen Forum). The CNHC board gave an informative presentation; this can be viewed at www.cnhc.org.uk. They encourage you to check this website regularly for all the latest news. They have to be commended for tackling the huge task that has been handed to them following the recommendations made in the report by the Federal Working Group. Some of the timescales that had been put in place by the FWG were extremely optimistic and the CNHC board have had to grasp the spirit of the report if not following it to the letter. The presentation showed that Massage and Nutritional therapy are ready with their standards and therefore eligible to join the CNHC register whilst Bowen was highlighted as ‘Ready shortly’!
The Bowen Forum AGM will be taking place in London this year on Saturday 8th November 2008, 10.00 am till 1.00 pm, at Central Club, 44 Portland Place, W1B 1NE. We hope that many of you will be able to attend. As the AGM is only going to be for the duration of the morning it will leave you free for shopping or sightseeing in the afternoon. You will hear about the next steps to be taken regarding VSR and there will also be a discussion period.
Up until now there has been an Education Sub Group working alongside the Bowen Forum. They have done sterling work pulling together all the information that was required to create the core curriculum for Bowen. The Forum has now reached another stage and it must make recommendations to the regulator as to what is approved CPD. This is a very complex area and for this reason the entire forum will now be involved with education matters. The education sub group has therefore merged itself to work with the full Bowen Forum committee and will be assisting the forum in this next important body of work. As you probably know there are considerable differences in what BTER and BAUK currently approve as CPD. We are happy to hear from anyone who has views about CPD - your comments are valuable in helping to make the right decisions for Bowen.
Maureen O’Mara is a new lay representative on the Bowen Forum. She has a huge wealth of experience in education and an impressive history in her field of knowledge. The forum is lucky to have her and she will be a great asset in the work of setting standards.