Buyer beware!!! There’s an ever growing number of people proclaiming they’re experts in various areas. As you may expect, the 2 that concern me most are those people claiming to be experts in Emotional Freedom Techniques (EFT) and nutrition
“Our health is our MOST IMPORTANT asset, so why do so many people hand it over to people who aren’t highly qualified or appropriately experienced in this field?”
You may have heard grand sounding title’s similar to these:
I’m an EFT master practitioner I’ve an EFT certification I’m a nutrition expert I’ve a certificate in nutrition I’m a nutritionist
I’m an expert health coach I‘m a diet/nutrition expert I’m a Level 3 Diploma Nutritionist I’m a nutrition advisor I’m a therapist
When it comes to nutrition, there are now too many people who profess to be experts. However, this is often self-proclaimed or certified by organisations who are not regulated or affiliated to any regulatory body. Some charging as little as £29 for extremely basic online courses. With EFT, like many holistic/complimentary therapists, in the UK there’s no governing bodies currently regulating this. So this results in, often well-intentioned, so-called experts treading where they do not belong.
“Would you board a plane if the pilots had taken an online course, had limited to no flying experience and their skills and competence are not tested/audited on a regular basis? I wouldn’t……
Consider this for a moment………
Would you drive over a bridge designed and built by someone who did a 2-day weekend course in engineering or an online diploma costing them £29 where no one checked their competence? I wouldn’t….. Would you board a plane if the pilots had taken an online course, had limited to no flying experience and their skills and competence are not tested/audited on a regular basis? I wouldn’t….. Who do you want to take your tooth out, the dentist or the practice receptionist who knows a bit about pulling teeth, but has never removed any? I wouldn’t….. So my point is, our health is our MOST IMPORTANT asset, so why do so many people hand it over to people who aren’t highly qualified or appropriately experienced in this field? Just because a person is thin/buff and beautiful/handsome does not make them an expert in anything unless they have robust training and qualifications in the field of service they offer. There are key question to ask anyone who’s supporting you with your emotional or physical health:
- What are your qualifications, where did you achieve them?
- How long did it take for you to achieve these qualifications?
- Can I see your certifications?
- Does your qualification make you competent and safe to practice when supporting me and my medical condition(s)?
- How do you ensure you work within your limitations?
- How was your competence measured in this area and what methods were used?
- What was the qualification and competence of the people who signed you of as competent in this area?
- What methods do you undertake to keep your knowledge up-to-date?
- What regulatory bodies are you registered with?
- How often are your skills and knowledge audited?
- What supervision model do you use?
- Do you have an enhanced Disclosure and Barring Service certificate? – Especially important when supporting with children and vulnerable adults
- Do you have professional indemnity insurance for this particular treatment and how much are you insured for?
As a dietitian, a qualified health professional/clinician, I can confidently answer all of these questions. I’ve been using EFT personally since 2000, however waited until there was a suitably robust EFT qualification for professionals before I undertook any study. I wanted to ensure the standards expected of me as a dietitian could be matched by any holistic/complementary therapy I added to my practice. You can check my dietetic credentials here And my EFT credential here