Medical and nursing students should study complementary and alternative medicine (Cam), according the House of Lords Science and Technology Select Committee, writes Caroline Davis.
Lord Walton's sub-committee, which reported the results of a year's research this week, said medical students should be prepared for dealing with patients using or interested in Cam.
It praised Southampton University's medical school for its Cam module, but said provision of such courses was "too uneven". It was concerned that nursing schools rarely provide Cam training. It said familiarisation should be included in the undergraduate nursing curriculum.