Frequently Asked Questions

Video: Introduction to Homeopathy, with Dr. Joe Kellerstein

Homeopathy is a system of natural medicine that has been in use worldwide for over 200 years. It is recognized by the World Health Organization as the second most widely used therapeutic system in the world. Millions of people benefit from homeopathy.

The name homeopathy, coined by its originator, Samuel Hahnemann, is derived from the Greek words for ‘similar suffering’. Hahnemann was born in Germany in 1855. He was a medical doctor and a chemist who became disenchanted with harsh and ineffective medical interventions.  Through rigorous scientific experimentation and the application of inductive reasoning, Hahnemann created the homeopathic system of medicine.  His careful observations led him to uncover the laws of healing found in nature upon which homeopathy is based.

Homeopathy is founded on two main principles, the first being ‘like cures like’, which means that a substance capable of producing certain symptoms in a healthy person, can be used to treat those same symptoms in a case of disease.

In Homeopathy we trust that the body will always be using its most effective healing response to a given situation. By using medicines which can stimulate a similar healing response, we boost the body’s own vitality, and work with it, instead of against it.

The second main principle in Homeopathy is that only ‘the minimum dose’ should be employed, in order to avoid the side effects that are so often the consequence of conventional treatment. This principle is based upon the understanding that homeopathic medicines are stimuli for healing vital force (qi or chi or life force) and that we need only give enough to produce a response.  This ensures that treatment will be as gentle and natural as it is healing and effective.

CCHM is the only Canadian Homeopathy school accredited for North America, but what does this mean?  Accreditation can be so unclear. Let us break it down for you.

What is the process and purpose of accreditation?

Accreditation is a process that assures the educational community and the general public that an institution or a program has clearly defined and appropriate objectives and maintains conditions under which their achievement can reasonably be expected. It encourages improvement through continuous self-study and review. It fosters excellence in post-secondary education through the development of principles and guidelines for assessing educational effectiveness.

Why is accreditation important?

It reflects the quality by which an educational institution or a program conducts its business. It speaks to a sense of public trust, as well as to professional quality.

As a student: Accreditation provides assurance that the program in which you are enrolled or are considering enrolling is engaged in continuous review and improvement of its quality, that it meets nationally endorsed standards in the profession, and that it is accountable for achieving what it sets out to do.

As a faculty member: Accreditation provides a formal process for ongoing evaluation and improvement of your program and faculty development outcomes, a process by which faculty, students, and administration can work together in advancing the educational institution’s mission.

As a member of the public: Accreditation ensures public accountability of a program or an institution — that it has the means and demonstrates the outcomes for its educational process that are consistent with its goals and objectives; in other words, that there is ‘truth in advertising.’

CCHM is accredited

CCHM is accredited by a private third-party agency, Accreditation Commission For Homeopathic Education In North America (www.ACHENA.org), the gold-standard for homeopathic accreditation in North America. The purpose of a third party professional independent agencies is to help establish standards of excellence for specific professions or private institutions. Often they ensure that the institution meets their standards through self-study analysis, on-site evaluation, monitoring and regular re-evaluation.

The Accreditation Commission for Homeopathic Education in North America (ACHENA) is the only accrediting body for homeopathic education and was founded in 1982 as an independent agency to assess homeopathic training programs in the United States and Canada. ACHENA is comprised of professional homeopathic practitioners, educators, representatives from accredited schools, representatives from national organizations supporting homeopathy and public members. ACHENA was formerly known as the Council on Homeopathic Education.

Homeopaths work with the individual to restore a state of health. They do not diagnose or treat a disease, unlike practitioners of mainstream medicine, they recognize and treat the unique state of each individual’s vital energy as expressed in mental, emotional, and physical symptoms and characteristics. The homeopath seeks to remove the ailment by using remedies that stimulate the individual’s own inherent ability to heal and thus encourage the body to cure, instead of simply suppressing symptoms.

The classical homeopath selects the single most appropriate remedy in a potency that most closely matches the illness by investigating the individual’s state of health in a thorough case-taking. They analyze the case by using the symptoms and characteristics that show the uniqueness of the individual with special emphasis placed on a known cause of the sickness or any striking symptoms or themes. After taking the case, a selection of the most similar remedy is determined through differentiation. The medicine that most closely matches the symptoms and the individual is prescribed in a single and minute dose. Only one remedy is ever prescribed at one time.

The patient`s case is followed carefully and any changes that have occurred since taking the prescribed remedy are analyzed. The remedy and its action will be evaluated so that the course of healing can continue until complete healing is achieved.

Beyond this distinction, the classical Hahnemannian homeopath also practices in a coherent way according to the principles of homeopathy as explained in Hahnemann’s Organon of Medicine. At CCHM, all aspects of the training are consistent with these principles, those principles which provide a sound methodology and background to achieve effective results in treating the sick. Results will always be reproducible when you use these principles. This science, practiced as Hahnemann described, has great potential to relieve suffering and create a harmonious life.

Naturopathy basically refers to any method of treatment that depends on lifestyle and diet modifications to tackle a particular disease or disorder. Naturopaths study a variety of alternative healing methods, including homeopathy, but receive what amounts to a basic training in these modalities. Homeopaths specialize in homeopathic medicine, which is a complete medical system in its own right. A Homeopath will prescribe a similar medicine to treat the root of the disease and ultimately cure the ailment naturally from within outward. Both Homeopathy and Naturopathy are regulated health professions in the province of Ontario.

The Canadian College of Homeopathic Medicine offers a part-time professional program and this means that classes take place on weekends, both Saturday and Sunday from 9am to 5pm. Classes begin in September and January of each year and go into the following May or July. You will attend your classes either at our Yonge and Davisville classroom adjoining the schools administrative offices, near the Davisville subway station, or at Northrop Frye Hall at The University of Toronto located at 73 Queens Park Crescent East. This scenic location is conveniently located near the Museum Subway Station. Our first year program commences in September and then a second and separate session begins in January. These two classes are amalgamated the following September for your second year.  In year two and three, you will be attending your student clinic internship on selected Fridays from 10am to 7pm. As well, in these years you are required to take on your own clinical externship patients under supervision, outside of the classroom.

Lecture attendance requirement is 80% to be eligible for a pass mark. If you need to miss a class, then you can make arrangements with a classmate to share notes and pick up any handouts for you. Please contact us for more information on this option. 

How many hours on top of the hours in-class is expected to spend on studying?

You will likely spend from home an equivalent of about 150% of the hours you are in class or clinic on assignments and studying. 

Video: Why Students Choose CCHM, with Dr. Joe Kellerstein

We offer the most comprehensive Homeopathic education available in Ontario and across Canada.  Founded in 1994 by classical homeopath, Raymond Edge, what truly sets our school apart is our dedication to training students in pure Hahnemannian Homeopathy, with the best clinical training, and in accordance with the founding scientific principles of this amazing system of medicine.  We are so proud of our proven track record, and enjoy the status of being North America’s longest running Homeopathic College in over one hundred years – in fact we are now in our 22nd year.

CCHM is one of the top schools in all of North America. We have graduates practicing and students currently studying with us from different countries all over the world. 

Our program of study meets or exceeds the parameters for both the theoretical and clinical components as required by the College of Homeopaths of Ontario (CHO) which is the regulatory body for the homeopathic profession in this province. We are recognized and approved by the College of Homeopaths of Ontario.

In addition we are the only Canadian Homeopathic School accredited by the Accreditation Commission for Homeopathic Education in North America (ACHENA) – the only accrediting body that exists for homeopathic education. Please read, Understanding Independent Accreditation, for more information on the importance of independent accreditation. 

We pride ourselves on presenting a solid foundation steeped in the tradition of the old masters of homeopathy, and on intensive hands-on clinical training.  Our clinical internship model is unique in homeopathic education today.  It is important to us that our students learn and fully understand the fundamentals as specified in the Organon of Medicine so that what they see and hear in the classroom is fully supported in the classic literature and is consistently reproducible in the clinic. We offer a comprehensive three-year program that has produced hundreds of graduates in our history as Canada’s longest-running homeopathic medical school, established in 1994. Our longevity speaks to our success in providing the most thorough, relevant and enjoyable training.

For more information on our facilities, faculty and school, and what sets us apart, please visit our page: Why Study with CCHM?

To enrol at CCHM you must fill out our application form and enclose a $85 application fee, along with 2 letters of reference; one personal and one professional. Include a personal life sketch (expanded resume) and an essay on “why I want to be a homeopath.” We also need your most recent transcripts from post-secondary educational institutions that you have attended. Two academic years of Post-Secondary Education is required for application into our Homeopathy and Health Sciences Diploma Program. Once this is all received an interview with our Director of Admissions or Registrar will be set up in person or by phone. Upon satisfactory completion of your application and interview, an acceptance letter will be mailed to you.

Upon successful completion of the course, graduates of the Canadian College of Homeopathic Medicine, use the suffix DCHM, which represents the Diploma of the College of Homeopathic Medicine. Upon registration with the CHO, the regulatory body in Ontario, practitioners can also use the designation ‘Homeopath’ and the suffix HOM.  Graduates practicing outside of Ontario may choose to join a homeopathic association and use the corresponding credentials

The use of the ‘homeopathic doctor’ title and the ‘HD’ credential are not provided for in the new legislation (Homeopathy Act) in Ontario only. Therefore it is illegal and inappropriate to use it in Ontario only. In Ontario, the protected title is ‘homeopath’.

Yes, almost all of our students work full time and at least half of them have families. 

You can have a wonderful, fulfilling career as a homeopath. Whether it is a clinical practice, teaching or research that attracts you, the avenues are endless. Many homeopaths open their own general practice after graduation. Some work with other alternative practitioners in a complementary clinic.

In the Teaching Clinic, during years 2 and 3 of the Diploma Program, students shadow master homeopaths with a combined experience of over 45 years. Clinic days offer you the opportunity to see firsthand, how experts deal with the challenges and successes of clinical practice. Dr. Joe Kellerstein and Monica Frohmann provide in-depth guidance and discussion about homeopathic case taking and case management in an intimate setting, while live patients receive the considerate and individualized care that homeopathic treatment is known for. CCHM holds the highest standards of clinical training for our students and our faculty and staff are second to none.  By attending our Teaching Clinic, you have the opportunity to shadow Master homeopaths in a thought-provoking, inspiring and nurturing environment. 

Homeopathy is an art and science of practice, as well as study.  For this reason, it is of the utmost importance to gain hands-on experience as part of your homeopathic training. This is the purpose of the Externship portion of CCHM’s Clinical Training, when you take on your own patients, and begin to practice homeopathy with one-on-one supervision from a professional homeopath. Our Clinical Training model offers a great deal of flexibility so that you can begin to build your future homeopathic practice right in your own area. You are also welcome to join a roster for patient referrals, should you wish to receive patients through CCHM. Upon graduation, the patients you have treated form the basis of your professional practice.

Exemptions for Anatomy and Physiology, Nutrition, Physical Examination, and Pathophysiology may be granted for people with prior training, for example, Registered Nurses and Medical Doctors.  If you would like to inquire about the particulars of your training please contact our Director of Admissions, Joyce Edge at [email protected]  

We have created a special accelerated program for Physician’s and Healthcare Providers, for more information please visit the link included.

Governmental financial assistance (e.g. Ontario Student Assistance Plan, OSAP) for students of homeopathy is not available. 

In the absence of governmental financial assistance, CCHM offers installment plans to ease the financial burden for students. Some students have obtained loans from their personal financial institutions. Students typically work to support themselves and this is the reason for part-time weekend classes.

Any student who wishes to withdraw from these courses must submit a written request to the Registrar specifying reasons for their decision. This request must be received at the College Office, to the attention of the Registrar, by the official deadline period for a refund to be considered. Tuition fees are refunded as follows: • 100% refund of total payable tuition fees (minus the $500.00 deposit) upon receipt of a written request for withdrawal up to one week after commencement of the course. • 50% refund of total payable tuition fees (minus the $500.00 deposit) upon receipt of a written request for withdrawal up to four weeks after commencement of the course. There is no refund for withdrawal from the course after the official deadline period. Students paying in instalments who withdraw after the official deadline period must complete their instalment payments. Before a refund is authorized, any outstanding fees must be paid.

You are part of an alumni that is bound by a wealth of support from your first day at CCHM. During your education and after graduation we hope you will stay connected to the community through all or any of the following:

• Find a Homeopath listings
• Blog opportunities
• Cross promotion opportunities
• Alumni Talks opportunities
• Pub Nights
• Newsletter
• Study Week
• Attending Internship Clinic
• Facebook Group discussion forum

The opportunity is also there for you to continue your homeopathic studies in our Post-Graduate Program, where you will better develop your case analysis skills as Hahnemann intended. You may bring your own complex cases into the classroom for assistance and you will continue networking with your peers. Upon successful completion of your Post-Graduate studies, you will be granted the additional title of Fellow of the College of Homeopathic Medicine (FCHM).  

Have an idea you’d like to share to make our community better? Email us at [email protected]

EXEMPTIONS & ADVANCED STANDING CONSIDERATION
Any student seeking exemptions and/or advanced standing must provide official transcripts. Full details of the course may also be requested to ensure that the course taken is in fact at least equivalent to what CCHMoffers. Official transcripts must be provided (and a grade of 60% or better must have been achieved) for an exemption to be granted. 

For advanced standing in the program, the standardized placement exam must also be written (multiple choice, 3 hours) before September 1st or January 1st for a fee of $75.00 and achieve a grade of 60% orbetter.
When needed, in cases where interpretation of foreign educational credentials is needed, we ask prospects with foreign education to have an Assessment Report completed via ICAS

(http://www.icascanada.ca/new/college.aspx)
.
Where necessary, when English is a student’s second language, English language competency may be required. This may be satisfied by scoring at least 500 on the Test of English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL) and at least the currently reported mean score on the Test of Spoken English (TSE).
Students wishing to be considered for exemption from any other subjects must contact the Registrar in writing before September 1st for details about proper procedure.