Coronavirus: 'Vague' rules on levels 'put lives at risk' - Fife herbal therapist
Medical herbalist Keren Brynes MacLean wants clearer guidance on how the different lockdown levels should be interpreted in Scotland.
She said without further clarity, the complementary therapy sector will be overly restricted - and that will place added pressure on the NHS.
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Hide AdShe said it will also put lives at risk because of the mental health impact of the ongoing pandemic.
Her call follows a move from the Integrated Healthcare Collaborative which has written to health ministers across the UK, calling on them to designate the UK’s complementary, traditional and natural therapists and practitioners as essential healthcare workers.
Keren, who runs the Kirkcaldy Herbal Clinic, said the rules for lockdowns beyond Level 3 are too open to interpretation.
Fife is currently in Level 3.
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Hide AdShe said:: “It’s unfathomable to me that we should deny people access to valid and professional treatments, especially when the NHS is under such stress.
“With NHS pressures only set to increase as the Covid vaccination programme comes on board, we literally need all hands on deck this winter.
“As an industry, we’ve worked hard to make sure our working environments are safe and comply with government Covid 19 protocols so that means there should be very little risk of our sector increasing the spread of the virus.
“The Scottish Government must make its position clear and demonstrate its trust in our professionalism. If we’re denied the opportunity to practice, the sector will soon be destroyed, lives will be put in danger and the NHS will lose a valuable support network.”