Homeopathic treatment does not call for sophisticated lab tests or equipment. Although information garnered from conventional diagnostic procedures may be essential to make an appropriate diagnosis and serve as a helpful reference, the interview itself is the main diagnostic tool and requires nothing more than two people meeting each other. The low-tech nature of homeopathy allows it to be not only economical but also quite accessible. Since special facilities are not needed, professionals as well as lay persons can "do" homeopathy just about any place at any time.
Although remedies can also be made by the individual practitioner, most homeopaths rely on remedies purchased from homeopathic pharmacies. In rare cases it may be necessary to make a remedy out of a medication or other substance that is not normally prepared by these pharmacies. There are approximately half a dozen major homeopathic pharmacies and many smaller ones that distribute to both professionals and lay persons in this country.
The remedies come in either liquid or pellet form. Pellets are made of lactose or sucrose while the drops are alcohol dilutions. Liquids either come in high alcohol dilutions that are kept as stock bottles from which the practitioner medicates vials of neutral pellets or in lower dilutions which are directly given to the patient.
Aside from personal experience and memory, the chief tools to assist the homeopath in selecting a remedy are several types of reference works. The first is a repertory. In this book symptoms are listed in an organized fashion which facilitates quick reference. Under each symptom is a group of remedies that have been found through the provings or through clinical experience to be effective for that symptom. The second type of book is a materia medica which essentially works in the opposite direction of a repertory. It is broken down according to different remedies, providing signs and symptoms pertinent to each one.
Another type of clinical reference material is organized according to diseases or syndromes. Under each heading there is a list of a group of remedies and the chief indications that differentiates each remedy for that particular illness. Although very useful in certain situations, these "differential" books can encourage a person to become a routine prescriber choosing remedies according to diseases and not according to the individuality of the patient. Many of the books for beginners fall into this category.
Lastly, there are books on the philosophy and principles of homeopathy. Chief among them is the Organon of Medicine by Hahnemann. Though rarely consulted in clinical situations, these works form a theoretical basis without which it would be impossible to practice homeopathy.
The most recent addition to the repertoire of clinical tools for the practicing homeopath is the computer. There are several programs now enjoying widespread use which are basically computerized repertories and materia medicas. The technology facilitates the creation of 'super-repertories' which combines the information from many different sources. It allows the user to call up information at rapid speed, conduct searches for information on rare remedies or symptoms, and analyze cases from many different angles. As helpful as this may be, the computer still cannot replace the intuitive judgments, experience and decision making processes of a good homeopath. If a group of symptoms are indiscriminately fed into the computer, the resulting analysis will usually be of little value. This simply emphasizes the fact that the key to selecting the correct remedy lies in an ability to elicit the significant information from the patient and then discriminate which are the characteristic symptoms of the case.
