Naturopathic medicine is a distinct, patient-centred form of primary healthcare built on prevention, root-cause investigation, and the body’s natural ability to heal. Rather than only suppressing symptoms, naturopaths work to understand why a symptom is occurring combining modern diagnostic tools with evidence-informed natural therapies or gentle therapies to support sustainable health. Naturopathic assessment considers the whole person: physical health, family history, lifestyle, and the environment.
Every treatment plan is individualized.
The result is care aimed at sustainable, whole-person outcomes: better health literacy, sustainable lifestyle change, and a treatment plan built around why you feel the way you do not just what to do about it.
A naturopathic treatment plan draws on evidence-informed natural therapies selected for the individual never one-size-fits-all:
Naturopaths are trained to function as primary-care healthcare providers in Ontario, B.C., NWT, Alberta, Nova Scotia, Manitoba and Saskatchewan. Many work in multi-disciplinary settings alongside family physicians, nurses, and other regulated health professionals receiving and making referrals as part of a patient’s broader circle of care. When they choose to come work in Quebec, they don’t have a scope of practice as it has not yet been established by the government in Quebec.
They provide complimentary care that works alongside the care patients seek from their family physician or specialist.
Their approach is vastly different. Their lens at looking at the body to provide recommendations, is holistic, everything is connected, and functional. They have a goal to get the body functioning well again.
A naturopathic treatment plan is never one-size-fits-all. Naturopaths are trained across a defined set of modalities during their CNME-accredited education, and draw on the combination best suited to each patient’s history, goals, and presenting concerns.
Food and targeted nutrient support as a first-line therapeutic tool dietary protocols tailored to a patient’s condition and goals, along with the therapeutic use of vitamins, minerals, amino acids, and other nutrients where a deficiency or imbalance is identified. Often the foundation a broader treatment plan is built on.
The clinical use of plant-based medicines from teas and tinctures to standardized extracts selected for their pharmacological action and prescribed with attention to dosing, safety, and interaction with any conventional medications a patient is takin
Manual and rehabilitative therapies used to support musculoskeletal health, circulation, and recovery, including therapeutic exercise, soft-tissue work, and other hands-on techniques within an ND’s training.
Structured support for the everyday factors that shape long-term health sleep, movement, stress management, and hydration grounded in behavioural-change methodology rather than general advice. A recurring, active part of a treatment plan rather than a one-time recommendation.
The therapeutic use of hot and cold applications one of naturopathic medicine’s oldest tools, tracing back to the 19th-century nature-cure movement used to support circulation, recovery, and the body’s own regulatory responses.
A distinct system of individualized, highly diluted remedies selected through detailed case-taking, used by trained NDs where appropriate as part of a broader plan.
NDs are trained in physical examination, laboratory testing, and interpretation of diagnostic imaging the same diagnostic foundation used to identify what a treatment plan needs to address, and when a referral to another provider is the right next step.
Most naturopathic treatment plans combine two or more of the above for example, a nutrition protocol alongside targeted botanical support and a structured lifestyle-change plan reassessed and adjusted as a patient progresses. The goal is never to use every tool available, but the right ones for that patient, at that time.
An ND (also known as a QANM Registered Naturopath) is trained through a CNME-accredited four-year medical program, following prerequisite pre-med coursework a minimum of 7 years of post-secondary education in total. NDs integrate standard medical diagnostics with natural, evidence-informed therapies, and are trained to function as primary-contact healthcare providers.
Your first visit typically runs 60–90 minutes. Your ND will take a full health history before discussing an individualized plan and any recommended testing. Follow-up visits run 30 minutes or more.
RAMQ does not currently cover visits to an ND in Quebec. Many extended health plans do include naturopathic coverage check with your provider, and ask your ND about their QANM membership number, which some plans require for reimbursement.
Not yet Quebec is one of the few Canadian provinces without a regulatory framework for naturopathic medicine. QANM is actively advocating to change that. Learn more on our Why Regulation Matters page →
Look for QANM membership every member has completed a CNME-accredited program and passed board examination (NPLEX or the Ontario Clinical Sciences Examination). Find a ND →
A minimum of 7 years of post-secondary education, including a CNME-accredited four-year program with 4,100 hours of clinical training, including 1,200 hours supervised followed by board examination. See the full breakdown on our Naturopathic Education page →
Regulation protects Quebecers. Naturopathic medicine complements public healthcare through prevention and education.
For QANM’s purposes, “ND” and “naturopath” refer to a graduate of a CNME-accredited naturopathic program who has also passed the NPLEX or CONO licensing examination and carries malpractice insurance.
