An excerpt from HRH Prince of Wales speech presented at the World Health Assembly, Geneva, Switzerland, in May 2006, which talks about the need for integrated healthcare

In many ways, and over rather too long a period, we have maintained a dangerously fragmented and abstracted view of our world which has led to the abandonment of a great deal of valuable traditional knowledge and wisdom. There is now a desperately urgent need to redress the fragile, but vital balance between man and Nature through a more integrated approach where the best of the ancient is blended with the best of the modern. I believe, modern medicine needs to accommodate a more integrated and holistic approach.

To my mind, this is even more true in regard to long-term diseases. I have heard them referred to as the "silent epidemic", but the statistics speak as loudly as those of infectious diseases. According to the World Health Organization, of 58 million annual deaths worldwide, a staggering 35 million are the result of chronic diseases. They are now the major cause of death among adults in almost every country of the world. ..This acceleration in long term disease, it seems to me, can be seen as the result of fragmented approaches to health which, in turn, fail to produce that apparently most elusive quality, which is harmony.

We need to be prepared to think radically - and certainly beyond the range of conventional health approaches. As few long term diseases are curable, we need also to think radically about our objectives in improving the lifestyles of those who suffer from chronic conditions. The need to prevent deterioration, to maximize the quality of life and the ability of a patient to function, calls for a more holistic approach - one which respects an individual's choices, culture and expectations.

This is where orthodox practice can learn from complementary medicine, the West can learn from the East and new from old traditions. For the past 24 years I have argued that patients should be able to gain the benefit of the "best of both worlds" - complementary and orthodox - as part of an integrated approach to healing. Many of today's complementary therapies are rooted in ancient traditions that intuitively understood the need to maintain balance and harmony with our minds, bodies and the natural world.

There are clear examples which come to mind, particularly in the fields of acupuncture and herbal medicines...I believe that the proper mix of proven complementary, traditional and modern remedies, which emphasizes the active participation of the patient can help to create a powerful healing force for our world.

In the United Kingdom, research in recent years has shown that fifty per cent of General Practitioners are referring their patients to complementary Practitioners, and, according to B.B.C. Television surveys, over seventy-five per cent of patients would like to have the choice of a complementary as well as an orthodox approach to their problem.

You might be interested to know ... that last year I commissioned a report in order to encourage a better informed debate about the effectiveness of different therapies and treatments which might eventually result in savings. The report, compiled by a British economist, Christopher Smallwood, was published last October and it found evidence that complementary approaches could help to fill gaps in some orthodox treatments, particularly in relation to many chronic conditions such as lower back pain, osteoarthritis of the knee, stress, anxiety and depression, and post-operative nausea and pain.

Ladies and Gentlemen, if we nurture the humane, guiding principles of integrated health through combining the best of the ancient, well-tried methods with the rigours of science and the technological imperatives of our age, I believe we will be taking the first bold step in a new vision for the future healthcare of the world. .

The complete speech can be downloaded at