Alternative health care group to help Latinos

Alternative health care group to help Latinos
By Amanda H. Miller, JH News and Guide, October 17, 2009

A group of alternative health care providers will make a second visit to help the Jackson Hole Latino community this weekend.

When the Global Alternative Healthcare Project came to Jackson in March, it was the first time the organization had set up an operation in the United States, founder Frank Butler said.

More than 150 people showed up for that one-day clinic at the Latino Resource Center in March. Because of the popularity of the program, the group is returning with more than twice as many volunteers for a two-day clinic in the Jackson Hole Middle School commons area, said Clare Payne Symmons, interim director of the Latino Resource Center.

The clinic will be open from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Saturday and Sunday.

Butler, a doctor who specializes in Chinese medicine — acupuncture, body work, lifestyle counseling and nutrition — created the Global Alternative Healthcare Project in 2005.

The organization consists of about 14 volunteers skilled in alternative medicine practices who travel around the world helping people in developing countries who don’t have regular access to health care.

Some of the organization’s volunteers came from Jackson and suggested doing something here, Butler said.

That wouldn’t work in most places. Wyoming, however, is one of only two states in the country where acupuncturists don’t have to be licensed, Butler said.

That lack of regulation allowed the group to come here.

People went to the doctors with every manner of problem, from aches and pains to liver problems, circulation issues, heart problems and cancer.

“We did a lot of nutrition counseling,” Butler said. “We also did triage, and there were some people who we said, ‘You have to go to a Western doctor and get this treated,’ ” he said.

Visitors do not have to have anything wrong, Payne Symmons said. They can come for a checkup or a counseling session. It’s free.

The health care providers are trying to focus efforts on the Latino community, but if there are openings, they will see anyone, Payne Symmons said.

Anyone interested in attending the clinic should call the Latino Resource Center at 734-0333 to make an appointment.