How To Find A Naturopathic Doctor

Location: 

Of course location matters if you are attending your appointment in person. If you’re working with your Naturopathic Doctor in person, you’ll want an ND who’s clinical location is close to either your work or home. The KuRated Care Collaborative also offers virtual care so for patients whose cases are suitable to online care, we can offer that option. In this case, we still see patients in person at least once yearly though so ensure a full physical exam is completed and patients should be prepared to present to the clinic as needed if something comes up in your appointment that requires us to examine you in person. For example: a patient with high blood pressure that needs frequent monitoring is not well suited for the virtual care model while a patient that is dealing with hormonal issues we are able to monitor using urine and blood testing can be safely and effectively monitored through regular lab work and online appointment follow ups without concern. Along with location you may also want to consider parking availability because that always impacts ease of access to the clinic and can be especially important to patients living with chronic health concerns that make accessibility especially important (think parking, wheelchair accessibility, hours of operation, physical environment (scent free?) etc.). 

Education: 

While it’s not legal for anyone who is a Registered Naturopathic Doctor to call themselves a Naturopath in Ontario, it’s important to know that “Naturopathic Doctor”, “Naturopath”, “Naturopathic” etc. are not protected terms everywhere. 

If you’re in Canada, ensure your ND was educated at either the Canadian College of Naturopathic Medicine (CCNM) in Toronto or the Boucher Institute of Naturopathic Medicine (BINM) in New Westminster, BC. When looking for a Naturopathic Doctor near you, you should also notice that your ND has an undergraduate degree (qualification required prior to entry into their 4 year Naturopathic medical training) 

Continuing Education (CE): 

As will almost all types of professionals, Naturopathic Doctors are required to accumulate continuing education hours in order to maintain their licenses. While all ND’s learn common content in school, it is their CE hours that can really determine how up to date they are in certain areas of practice. Medicine, be it allopathic (“western”) or complementary/functional/naturopathic in nature is complicated and the number of ailments that affect the human body are vast. If you have a specific concern, as most of the patients seeking care from the KuRated Care Collaborative do, you’ll want to inquire about the clinical focus of the ND you find when looking for a Naturopath near me. 

Personality:

When searching Naturopath near me, you’ll likely find a few options. If you are from a smaller town you may only come up with one option and realize there’s an ND from a larger city near by that has the capability of offering virtual care. We would encourage you to meet with several Naturopathic Doctors for a Free 15 minutes consultation to see you’re a good fit. Many are used to working with whoever is put in front of them when it comes to their medical doctors because, at least at the moment in Canada, we have such a shortage of MDs that choice just isn’t something we typically have.

This is not the case with your Naturopathic Doctor.

While there certainly aren’t as many NDs as there are MDs, I do encourage you to be choosy for a few reasons.

Availability: 

Looking for a “Naturopath near me” will show you who’s around but not always who’s available. As previously noted, there aren’t a ton of NDs around and for that reason, many of us are in high demand. Schedules, much like when you’re seeking care from a specialist, can be booked 6-10 weeks out. Be prepared for this on booking and ask to be put on your desired care providers wait list if they have one. Sometimes the best practitioners are worth the wait!

So, how do you finally go about sifting through the results of your “Naturopath near me” search? 

I’d encourage you to consider the following factors and ask yourself these questions before making your final decision:

If you’d like to consult with one of our Naturopathic Doctors to figure out if they’re the right fit to help you along your journey to feeling better please click here to either book a complimentary FREE 15 minute consultation or book in for your initial consultation