Resourcing the Herbalists

2020 is here, and the Northern Rivers Flu has moved out of the rural areas in to the Greater Vancouver Region. I am communicating, coordinating, and collaborating with the Herbalist community of the City, the Province, and the Country.

In its first days of development, the NRF was conventionally treated in Canada's Northern rural areas with anti-virals and vaccines. The growing number of holistic clinics and community herbalists though were also taking part, using knowledge about local healing plants and international information regarding herbs and viruses to work out a strategy for remediating and stopping the spread of the NRF.

Now as it takes hold in the over-populated urban areas of Great Vancouver, I am making a networking and action plan to utilize the knowledge and skills of the Herbalist community to its greatest advantage.

The first step is to get the variety of herbal information in to a single resource. The independance of the herbalist community also means varying treatments. With all information available at a central office, herbal practitioners are able to see what others have done and are doing for treatment of NRF, then taking this information and integrating what works best with their particular approach.

Due to Canada's new Open Medicine Plan of 2018, the public hospitals are now open to a variety of medical perspectives operating independently and co-operatively within the hospitals. The next initiative is to then set-up kiosks in all of the major hospitals, where herbal practitioners may receive those possibly with NRF symptoms and distribute their care and herbal preparations accordingly. That these kiosks are connected with the central office allows for quick transmission of new information and the collection of data charting successes and failures.

To create awareness and attention in the general public, a media event is organized, bringing together the world's top experts in the herbal treatment of NRF in a round table, which is broadcast on local television and on the internet. While trying to find out about the key findings and testimonies regarding the issue, the public will also be informed that they are able to receive attention from a clinical herbalist at their nearest public hospital.

Before the NRF outbreak in Vancouver, when various herbs were purported to be beneficial in stimulating the immune system specifically for the NRF, and when others were found to specifically regulate the symptoms of excessive urination and irritation of the urinary tract most often occuring with this flu, these herbs became much in demand.

Pipsissewa had gained the most recognition for aiding the urinary tract symptoms. Though just recovering from overharvesting in the USA due to its use in soft drinks, the population in BC is still very healthy. Working with United Plant Savers, the central office for Vancouver herbalists has developed a protocol for harvest of pipsissewa, distributed to all contacted herbalists to either work with themselves or pass on to the wild crafters gathering the medicinal herbs for them.

In the case of Rhodiola, the herb most often used by people to prepare their immune systems for the oncoming NRF season, wild populations in Canada have already been threatened, and a message is sent out to all herbalists to avoid collecting or buying wild specimens. Thankfully, Alberta has already been developing its rhodiola farming program since 2007, and there is a plentiful supply available. As most of this rhodiola produced in Alberta is being used in 'energy drinks', an agreement is decided upon between the Canadian Herbalist Association of BC and the Alberta rhodiola growers, whereas a portion of rhodiola is made available to herbalists in exchange for consultation and free samples regarding potential new herbs to be used in the growing herbal energy drinks market.