Australian College of Natural Medicine

Last Sunday, I visited Medicine and Health Sciences Education Fair. Suprisingly, I came to this institute which I never came across to - Australian College of Natural Medicine (ACNM). This institute is really fresh to me, however, looking into the courses that they provide, it interests me.

Firstly, the school fee is much more lower than other Aust Uni, about 10-11k Aussie annually, about half of other universities. The reason? I did ask.
The pretty sweet girl replied: We don't earn much from students. We own our clinics in Australia,we provide platform for students to practice. We earn from the clinic.

The most interesting part is that the college only provides Natural medicine and health courses - namely Acupuncture, Naturopathy, Homeopathy, Nutritional Medicine, Western Herbal Medicine, Musculoskeletal Therapy, Remedial Therapies, Aromatherapy and Reflexology at certificates, diplomas and bachelor levels.

Sounds so healthy in this campus. And that's the main reason I love it so much.

In addition, they have clinics over main cities in Australia, namely Melbourne, Perth, Gold Coast and Brisbane. You can choose where you want to complete your studies. Second one and a half year will be heavily involved in Practical, where you will be doing consultation for real patients visited, and accompanied by your senior. This is so practical!

Well, I face the same problem as UK one, the recognition globally.

At the same time, I'm waiting for the exemption and offer letter from school which promise to be given in these 2 weeks.

Looking into modules and consolidate some information for myself:
(The Bachelor in Nutritional Medicine will provide the student with extensive practical and theoretical skills to become a competent holistic clinical nutritionist. The course includes studies in food as medicine, dietary analysis and planning, nutritional biochemistry, clinical nutrition, as well as Western health sciences and interpersonal skills. The nutritional medicine practitioner will be able to treat people to improve health and well being over a wide range of disorders using food as medicine, dietary counselling and modification, and nutritional supplements. )


Sem 1

Foundations of Human Biology
This unit aims to provide students with a basic understanding of the different systems of the human body in terms of components and their structure and functions, and how the systems integrate to maintain homeostasis within the body.FHUB is a foundation unit of study that articulates directly into Human Biology 1 which, in turn, articulates into Human Biology 2. Each builds and incorporates the knowledge of the previous unit so that students, on completion of all three units, have an in-depth, comprehensive knowledge of all systems of the human body and their interactions for maintenance of homeostasis.
Foundations of Chemistry
This unit introduces general, physical and organic chemistry and prepares the student for further studies in biochemistry, human biology, nutrition and human disease processes. It also introduces students to the major principles of scientific enquiry and scientific method and is a foundation unit of study for those students who do not have credit for Year 12 chemistry.
Foundations of Communication and Counselling
This foundational unit develops the communication and counselling knowledge and skills, and ethical practice required by practitioners to establish and maintain an effective therapeutic relationship with their clients. This unit is taught across all natural medicine modalities. The development of communication and counselling skills will enable students to formulate effective treatment strategies thereby ensuring that outcomes are maximised because of the practitioners� highly developed interpersonal skills.
Food As Medicine 1
By the conclusion of the unit, it is expected that students will be able to; basically analyse food and food-based chemicals for the purpose of good health; differentiate between the different roles of individual foods and food chemicals for alleviation of specific therapeutic goals and utilise specific foods and food chemicals within the dietary treatment of basic dietary cases. This unit of study complements other core curriculum units and provides essential knowledge and proficiencies within the application and completion of both naturopathic, nutrition medicine and/or herbal medicine clinics.
History & Philosophy Of Natural Medicine
This foundation unit underpins everything that is taught within the natural medicine stream of all ACNM courses. It provides a comprehensive introduction to natural medicine foundation principles and places natural medicine into its social, cultural and historical context. Selected therapies are introduced to demonstrate these principles. Completion of this unit is essential for a naturopathic understanding of every unit in the course.
Safe Practices
This unit covers general Workplace Health and Safety (WHS, Queensland), Occupational Health and Safety (OHS, Victoria) and Occupational Safety and Health (OSH, Western Australia) requirements according to State legislation on infection control, hazard identification, risk assessment and management. On completion of this unit the student - practitioner should be able to both follow an organisation�s policies and procedures in relation to risks and where necessary implement and manage procedures to minimise these risks. The unit also covers the application of first aid techniques for the practitioner to Level 2 standard (Victoria) or Senior First Aid (Queensland and Western Australia). This unit is fundamental to students entering clinical practice and essential for their ability to establish and operate their own practice.

Sem 2
Nutrition 1
Provides a foundation for the understanding of naturopathic nutrition. The biochemical role in the body of macro- and micronutrients and their importance to optimum nutrition is presented, and their therapeutic potential is discussed. The components of a healthy, balanced diet are outlined.
This is a foundation unit of study. By the conclusion of the unit, it is expected that students will be able to: understand naturopathic principles (introduced in History and Philosophy of Natural Medicine) and apply them to the study of nutrition therapy; understand the importance of optimum nutrition to maintenance and promotion of optimum health; develop a coherent argument for the application of dietary therapy and nutritional supplementation to the promotion and maintenance of health; understand the biochemical role of macro- and micronutrients in the human body; and understand and analyse the components of a healthy, balanced diet from a naturopathic perspective.
Human Biology 1
This module progresses the knowledge and proficiencies gained in Foundations of Human Biology (FHUB). It examines the functions of the respiratory, cardiovascular, digestive, urinary and nervous systems of the body in more detail. Through reviewing the knowledge gained in FHUB, information on the detail of physiology and anatomy is presented to the students to give them a comprehensive overview of how these systems work. This information on the normal functioning of the human body provides a basis on which the pathophysiology of these systems can be taught to give an understanding of clinical medicine and disease.
Human Disease Processes 1
This unit lays the foundation for the study of pathology and disease states in western medicine. The emphasis is on the elucidation of general pathological processes and how they affect the body as a whole. The concepts that there are common responses of the body to injury, and that it is these responses in specific locations that give rise to clinical signs and symptoms, are introduced. Information is given on common diagnostic techniques and how they may be utilised to obtain pathological knowledge about a disease. This is a foundation unit on which later units of Human Disease Processes 2-4 build. In these further units, students investigate individual disease states and their pathologies.
Biochemistry
This unit provides students with foundational proficiencies and knowledge of biochemistry in order to be able to understand the chemical workings of the human body at a cellular, tissue and systemic level. The understanding of the processes of replication, transcription and translation are necessary to be able to understand the genesis, prevention and management of genetic conditions. A major component of this unit is to be able to critically evaluate the major biochemical pathways in the body and to be able to use them in health and disease. These relate very closely to studies in optimum nutrition, as well as metabolic diseases. This unit builds on the underpinning knowledge and skills established in Foundations of Chemistry.
Food as Medicine 2
By unit�s conclusion, it is expected that students will be able to: analyse whole foods and food constituents for the purpose of health promotion and treatment; understand the effects of cooking and other food preparation methods, food growing, contemporary eating habits on optimum health and wellbeing; and understand and apply the nutritional and therapeutic properties of selected foods. The Food as Medicine 2 unit of study builds on the foundations established by Food as Medicine 1. It contributes to the nutritional knowledge and skills of naturopathic and nutritional medicine practitioners.
Introduction to Professional Practice
This unit provides students with opportunities to develop skills required for the effective management and operation of a clinical health practice. The unit explores appropriate clinic policies and procedures with case examples of effective communication with clients. Special emphasis is placed on ethics and legislative requirements of relevance to natural medicine practices. This unit provides the essential foundational knowledge and skills for managing a clinic in any natural medicine modality.

Sem 3
Human Biology 2
This unit builds on the knowledge gained in Foundations of Human Biology (FHUB) and Human Biology 1 (HUB1). It provides students with a more advanced understanding of the functions of the lymphatic and immune, haematological, endocrine, reproductive and musculoskeletal systems of the body. Through reviewing the knowledge gained in FHUB and HUB1, details of the physiology and anatomy is presented to students to give them a comprehensive overview of how these systems work and are coordinated within the body to create a functioning whole. This information on the normal functioning of the human body provides a basis on which the pathophysiology of these systems can be taught to give an understanding to clinical medicine and disease.
Human Disease Processes 2
This unit aims to utilise the basic concepts of disease processes learned in Human Disease Processes 1, and apply this learning in conjunction with anatomical and biochemical knowledge to allow students to understand and analyse the pathology of diseases of the different systems of the body. On completion of this unit, students will be able to apply the philosophies, principles and ethics of Western Medicine to the study of pathological processes, clinical features and management of diseases of the cardiovascular, respiratory, digestive and nervous systems.
Wellness Analysis
This unit of study explores the importance and therapeutic potential of the client/practitioner relationship. It is designed to provide students with the ability to identify the factors contributing to sound therapeutic relationships and to apply these principles in clinical practice to achieve positive therapeutic outcomes. Students should be able to establish and understand client expectations of the therapist and the consultation/treatment process, and apply mentoring/coaching principles to assist clients to achieve their established goals. Wellness Analysis continues on from the foundations of communication and basic counselling established in FCC (Foundations of Communications and Counselling) and from HPNM (History and Philosophy of Natural Medicine), where the philosophy and principles of natural medicine are established). Application of the principles and concepts established in this unit is vital to NPCS (Naturopathic Pre-Clinical Skills) and clinic practicum (NCLS 1-8, NUCLS1-8, HBCLS1-8)
Nutritional Biochemistry
By unit�s conclusion, it is expected that students will be able to: understand the role of nutrients in important biochemical pathways; differentiate between these individual biochemical pathways and determine their significance in various disease processes; and utilise a variety of different nutritional agents to enhance key biochemical mechanisms. This unit of study integrates knowledge previously gained from biochemistry and nutrition units to provide an understanding of the potential of diet and nutrition therapy for normalising and optimising the functions of important biochemical pathways in the human body. The understanding gained from the Nutritional Biochemistry unit will be applied in future units of study (eg Nutrition 3 & 4, Advanced Nutrition and Food Therapy, Naturopathic Pre-Clinical Skills) and the clinic practicum units.
Iris Analysis
This unit provides the foundation knowledge and practical skills required to conduct iris analysis as part of a naturopathic health assessment procedure. An integrated approach is taken incorporating the major iris analysis methods. Existing iris analysis publications and research data are critically assessed. This unit is a prerequisite for clinic practicum, and Advanced Iris Analysis (AIRA).
Nutrition 2
Continues to provide a foundation for the understanding of naturopathic nutrition.
Nutrition 2 expands on Nutrition 1 and explores to a greater depth and breadth the macro- and micronutrients, their biochemical roles in the human body and their therapeutic potential. By the conclusion of this unit students should be able to: apply naturopathic principles and an understanding of the macro- and micronutrients, their physiological role in the body and their therapeutic potential to the prevention and treatment of health conditions. This unit of study draws upon an understanding of biochemistry established in Biochemistry (BIO) and the basic nutrition foundations established in Nutrition 1 (NU1) to further develop students� understanding of macro- and micronutrients and diet, their biochemical mechanisms of action and their therapeutic potential within a naturopathic framework of practice. From this foundation students should be able to apply their nutritional knowledge to the treatment of various health conditions (to be covered in Nutrition 3, Nutrition 4, Advanced Nutrition and Food Therapy, and in other units of study including Clinics).

Sem 4
Clinical Examination
This unit provides the students with a theoretical and practical framework for the clinical assessment and examination of the client/patient. It lays the foundation for examination procedure and strategy and explores the use of common assessment tools that may be employed by the practitioner to aid and expand their assessment repertoire. It provides an essential adjunct knowledge base to clinical practice.
Pharmacology
This unit provides the student with a sound basic understanding of pharmacology and westerndrug treatment. It provides students with a western scientific approach to the investigation ofmedicines that will advance the knowledge of traditional medicines and also act as an introduction to potential drug interactions.
Nutrition 3
Provides the student with knowledge of the nutritional approach and application of treatment for diseased systems. It addresses expectations in clinical practice from a naturopathic perspective. Naturopathic nutritional treatment regimens for specified health conditions and individual case studies are planned.
By the conclusion of the unit, it is expected that students will: integrate the information from Nutrition 1&2, Food as Medicine 1, Nutritional Biochemistry, Biochemistry, Human Disease Processes 1&2 and History and Philosophy of Natural Medicine and apply this to the treatment of specific nutritional and pathological conditions. Students will also differentiate between the biochemical mechanisms and therapeutic actions of individual nutrients, determine their individual clinical significance for the effective management of specific nutritional and pathological conditions and utilise a wide variety of nutrients, dietary recommendations and dietary therapies towards nutritional treatment of specified conditions and case studies.This unit of study complements other core syllabus units and provides essential knowledge and proficiencies for application to client health management in naturopathic and nutritional medicine clinics. Once all nutrition study units and clinic practicum are completed successfully, graduands will have gained extensive knowledge within naturopathic nutrition thus allowing for professional practice following registration with a relevant professional body.
Human Disease Processes 3
By the conclusion of the unit, it is expected that students will: integrate the information from Nutrition 1&2, Food as Medicine 1, Nutritional Biochemistry, Biochemistry, Human Disease Processes 1&2 and History and Philosophy of Natural Medicine and apply this to the treatment of specific nutritional and pathological conditions. Students will also differentiate between the biochemical mechanisms and therapeutic actions of individual nutrients, determine their individual clinical significance for the effective management of specific nutritional and pathological conditions and utilise a wide variety of nutrients, dietary recommendations and dietary therapies towards nutritional treatment of specified conditions and case studies.This unit of study complements other core syllabus units and provides essential knowledge and proficiencies for application to client health management in naturopathic and nutritional medicine clinics. Once all nutrition study units and clinic practicum are completed successfully, graduands will have gained extensive knowledge within naturopathic nutrition thus allowing for professional practice following registration with a relevant professional body.
Nutritional Clinical Studies 1
This unit consolidates the knowledge and skills from all units previously completed in the course, as well as the co-requisite units. By exercising the application of these skills and knowledge in a class environment, the student is readied for clinic practicum (NCLS3, NCLS4, or HCLS3, HCLS4, or NUCLS3, NUCLS4). The process of taking the case, determining a naturopathic analysis, therapeutic strategy and prescriptive advice is presented and practised, as are procedures required for effective clinical practice.
Nutritional Clinical Studies 2
This unit provides the opportunity for students to observe senior student practitioners and/or experienced practitioners in the workplace. Students gain experience in the application of clinic management procedures and client management. Documentation and research of client cases is introduced at a basic level. NCLS2 students experience the benefit of collaborative teamwork with peers and mentors to natural medicine health assessment and therapeutic strategy development.

Sem 5
Human Disease Processes 4
This unit expands on the foundations laid down in Human Disease Processes 1, 2 & 3 (HDP1, 2 & 3) for the study of generic disease states and pathological processes of the body by Western Medicine. The unit provides a comprehensive overview of disease states from their pathophysiological manifestations, clinical features and significance, to testing and treatment. The emphasis is on the disease states of the endocrine and reproductive systems including stress and depression, and the musculoskeletal system. Knowledge gained in previous Human Disease Processes subjects is directly referred to in HDP4 as the multi-system nature of disease in the human is consolidated.
Nutrition 4
Provides the student with knowledge of the nutritional approach and application of treatment for diseased systems. It addresses expectations in clinical practice from a naturopathic perspective. Naturopathic nutritional treatment regimens for specified health conditions and individual case studies are planned.
By the conclusion of the unit, it is expected that students will: integrate the information from Nutrition 1,2,3, Food as Medicine 1, Nutritional Biochemistry, Biochemistry, Human Disease Processes 1,2,3 and History and Philosophy of Natural Medicine and apply this to the treatment of specific nutritional and pathological conditions. It will also be expected that students will differentiate between the biochemical mechanisms and therapeutic actions of individual nutrients, determine their individual clinical significance for the effective management of specific nutritional and pathological conditions; and utilise a wide variety of nutrients, dietary recommendations and dietary therapies towards nutritional treatment of specified conditions and case studies.This unit of study complements other core syllabus units and provides essential knowledge and proficiencies for application to client health management in naturopathic and nutritional medicine clinics. Once all nutrition study units and clinic practicum are completed successfully, graduands will have gained extensive knowledge within naturopathic nutrition thus allowing for professional practice following registration with a relevant professional body.
Integrated Pharmacology
This unit explores the potential of interaction between pharmaceutical drugs and complementary medicines or foods. Reporting of adverse reactions to drugs (pharmaceutical and complementary medicines) and interactions is outlined. Integrated pharmacology draws on knowledge gained from BIO (Biochemistry), PHAR (Pharmacology) and the Human Disease Processes units of study and applies it to knowledge gained from the herbal medicine (HBP, HB1-4) and nutrition (FOM1, NU1-4, NUBIO) units of study.
Critical Research Skills
This unit is designed so that students will become critical readers of literature in relation to theirspecific modalities. In this unit students learn about different forms of knowledge and literature,and techniques for critically reading and evaluating the information gained. This presumes anunderstanding of a variety of different research methodologies including basic statistical techniques and the importance of ethics within research. The unit encourages students to maintain an awareness of the current state of research in natural medicine, evaluate the merits of research (including scientific research) and its contribution to practice, and incorporate research and learned theoretical concepts into other units of study and into their clinical practice, post-graduation. Furthermore the unit develops basic skills involved in writing up an application for funding to conduct a research project
Nutritional Clinical Studies 3
By unit�s conclusion, it is expected that students will be able to: take and analyse a case history; develop a naturopathic health assessment based on naturopathic and Western biomedical principles, short and long-term therapeutic goals and a holistic naturopathic treatment incorporating nutrition, herbal medicine, lifestyle changes, massage and flower essences; and rationalise and implement specific naturopathic treatments for each individual case. This unit of study builds on previous core syllabus units and provides students with the opportunity to implement their knowledge and skills within a supervised clinical environment. Once all Clinics are completed successfully, each graduand will have gained extensive knowledge within the clinical application of naturopathic medicine thus allowing their professional practice following registration with a relevant professional body.

Sem 6
Interpersonal Skills Of The Helper
This unit introduces and develops the foundational communication skills required to establish and maintain an effective helping relationship with a client. The curriculum covers Gerard Egan�s problem-management and opportunity-development approach to helping.
Advanced Nutrition Food Therapy
Advanced Nutrition and Food Therapy is the capstone unit of the nutrition stream of the course. By unit�s conclusion, it is expected that students will: integrate the knowledge and skills from Nutrition 1, 2, 3 & 4, Food as Medicine 1 and Nutritional Biochemistry towards the specialist treatment of key nutritional and pathological conditions; differentiate between nutrient and dietary therapy possibilities given the current available peer-reviewed research; and utilise a variety of nutrients, dietary recommendations and dietary therapies towards the generation of a specialist dietary intake designed specifically for the given individual. This unit of study draws from and complements other core syllabus units and provides essential knowledge and proficiencies for the application and completion of both naturopathic and nutrition medicine clinics. Once all nutritional units of study are completed successfully, each graduand will have gained extensive knowledge of naturopathic nutrition thus allowing for professional practice of their nutritional specialisation following registration with a relevant professional body.
Establish a Practice
This unit provides students with opportunities to develop knowledge and skills required to establish a clinical health practice. The unit explores appropriate business strategies including planning, marking, financial, legal and regulatory issues and the role of Professional Associations. Special emphasis is placed on ethics and legislative requirements of relevance to a clinical health practice. This unit is placed towards the end of the course as students begin to think about establishing their own practice.
Nutritional Clinical Studies 6
This unit provides students with opportunities to develop knowledge and skills required to establish a clinical health practice. The unit explores appropriate business strategies including planning, marking, financial, legal and regulatory issues and the role of Professional Associations. Special emphasis is placed on ethics and legislative requirements of relevance to a clinical health practice. This unit is placed towards the end of the course as students begin to think about establishing their own practice.
Nutritional Clinical Studies 5
By unit�s conclusion, it is expected that students will be able to: take and analyse a case history; develop a naturopathic health assessment based on naturopathic and Western biomedical principles, short and long-term therapeutic goals and a holistic naturopathic treatment incorporating nutrition, herbal medicine, massage, lifestyle changes, and flower essences and rationalise and implement specific naturopathic treatments for each individual case. This unit of study builds on previous core syllabus units and provides students with the opportunity to implement their knowledge and skills within a supervised clinical environment. Once all Clinics are completed successfully, each graduand will have gained extensive knowledge within the clinical application of naturopathic medicine thus allowing their professional practice following registration with a relevant professiBy unit�s conclusion, students should be able to integrate the knowledge and understanding from their nutrition studies (NU1, NU2, NU3, NU4, FOM1, FOM2 and NUBIO) and from the Western health science units (FCH, BIO, FHUB, HUB1, HUB2, HDP1, HDP2, HDP3, HDP4) and develop specific dietary intakes for the management of various health conditions. The Dietary Planning unit of study draws on the students� existing understanding of diet, nutrition and disease states and introduces additional knowledge and understanding of diet therapy in order to enhance and extend the nutrition skills that students have developed in their clinic practicum units.onal body.
Dietary Planning
By unit�s conclusion, students should be able to integrate the knowledge and understanding from their nutrition studies (NU1, NU2, NU3, NU4, FOM1, FOM2 and NUBIO) and from the Western health science units (FCH, BIO, FHUB, HUB1, HUB2, HDP1, HDP2, HDP3, HDP4) and develop specific dietary intakes for the management of various health conditions. The Dietary Planning unit of study draws on the students� existing understanding of diet, nutrition and disease states and introduces additional knowledge and understanding of diet therapy in order to enhance and extend the nutrition skills that students have developed in their clinic practicum units.




If you wish to further your postgraduate study, Australian College of Holistic Medicine is the choice after ACNM. This is really interesting!