Introducing Dr Kate Norris - holistic GP
Up until recently, whenever someone asked me if I could recommend a good GP- one that is on the same nutrient-dense wholefoods and lifestyle page- I would shrug my shoulders and sigh. Regrettably.
Then I stumbled across Dr Kate Norris. Who was this person that that was referring many of her patients to me to buy sauerkraut and bone broths as the prescription to healing? After all, allopathic medicine is more focused on the treatment rather than the prevention of disease, and medical schools spend little, if any, focus on the importance of a nutrient-dense diet as critical to optimal health.
Dr Kate Norris is an integrative General Practitioner, originally from the UK, with a holistic approach combining conventional medicine with nutritional and environmental medicine for the optimisation of health and the prevention and treatment of disease. She advocates a nutrient-dense diet to her patients with a focus on lacto-fermented foods and bone broths. During a consultation, a comprehensive history followed by appropriate examination and investigation is undertaken to go further into the the foundation of health by looking at gut health, adrenal function, allergies, sleep, thyroid function and hormone levels. Extensive testing is available which may indicate imbalances in the body. Dr Norris is equally concerned with the elimination of dietary and environmental toxins as she is with a nutrient-dense diet.
Dr Norris recently joined UClinic at 421 Bourke Street, Surry Hills. PH 9332 0400.
Dr Norris also comes highly recommended by my long-standing trusted natropath/homeopath and friend, Anthia Koullouros. Anthia and Kate can work together to treat and heal patients. This is what occurred a couple of months ago in my family when my 5 year old daughter Michaela's foot became infected after standing on a seed pod. Her foot swelled up bright red and the infection was spreading. My concern was that the infection could spread into her blood stream. Michaela has never had a course of antibiotics in her life. A visit to Dr Norris confirmed that her foot was indeed infected but, unlike most GPs, Dr Noris did not think it necessary to resort to a course of antibiotics in the first instance. Her prescription was:
a specific anti-bacterial oral herbal tonic to be made up by my natropath (in this case Echinacea and Golden Seal)
food sourced vitamin C (acerola powder made from cherries) for strong immunity
extra doses of cod liver oil for vitamin A which builds strong immunity
chicken liver pate for vitamin A which builds strong immunity
liquid zinc
if desired, topical anti-biotic cream to apply to the foot which does not affect gut flora at all in the way that oral antibiotics do. Alternatively paw paw ointment with the herbal tonic could be topically applied.
After following the above treatment, within 24 hours the redness and spreading stopped. 3-4 days later the infection was completely gone. I detail the above treatment as illustrative of how an infection was treated in Michaela's specific case and obviously not for people to adopt it themselves without first seeking professional advice.
For me, finding practitioners who "speak my language" is important in order to maximise the best treatment with as few harmful side-effects as possible. I personally use General Practitioners for diagnostic purposes (ie when I need a diagnosis of what a medical issue is). Then I try to treat the problem with natural medicine as much as possible (herbs, homeopathy, diet etc). This typically (but not always) takes a little longer than conventional medicine but without any harmful side-effects. I turn to allopathic medicines for treatment if and when natural therapies are not taking hold and the medical issue is not improving.
Dr Kate Norris and I, along with a holistic paediatrician (Dr Deb Levy) and holistic dentist (Dr Aushi Patel) will be running a 2 part series workshop on "Growing Healthy Babies...Naturally!" later this year (28 July and 4 August 2013). Stay tuned for further details on this all-important workshop for parents of young children and prospective parents alike.