Bastyr University

Bastyr University
Former names
John Bastyr College of Naturopathic Medicine
Bastyr College
Motto
Vis medicatrix naturae
Motto in English
The healing power of nature
TypePrivate university
Established1978
Endowment$4.32M (2021)
PresidentDevin Byrd[1]
ProvostDave Rule[2]
Students728
Undergraduates74
Location
Kenmore
,
Washington
,
United States

47°43′49″N 122°15′10″W / 47.7304°N 122.2528°W / 47.7304; -122.2528
Campus51 acres (21 ha)
ColorsCranberry and ginger
Websitewww.bastyr.edu

Bastyr University is a private alternative medicine university with campuses in Kenmore, Washington, and San Diego, California. Programs include naturopathy, acupuncture, Traditional Asian medicine, nutrition, herbal medicine, ayurvedic medicine, psychology, and midwifery.

Some of Bastyr's programs teach and research topics that are considered pseudoscience, quackery, and fake by the scientific and medical communities.[3][4][5][6] Quackwatch, a group against health fraud, put Bastyr University on its list of "questionable organizations" as a school which is "accredited but not recommended".[7]

Bastyr University and similar naturopathic programs are not accredited as medical schools but as special programs that are overseen by a naturopathic council which is not required to be scientific.[8][9][10] Bastyr's naturopathic program has been accused by critics of misrepresenting its medical rigor and its ability to train primary care clinicians.[3][11][12]

A 2024 report found that students in Bastyr's alternative medicine doctoral program had the second highest debt-to-income ratio among all US graduate programs, at 688%.[13][14]

  1. ^ "Dr. Devin Byrd Appointed Sixth President of Bastyr University". Bastyr University. 22 June 2021.
  2. ^ "Leadership Team". Bastyr University. Archived from the original on 18 November 2017.
  3. ^ a b Atwood, Kimball C. IV (2003). "Naturopathy: A critical appraisal". Medscape General Medicine. 5 (4): 39. PMID 14745386.
  4. ^ Cite error: The named reference atwood2003a was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  5. ^ Barrett, Stephen (November 26, 2013). "A close look at naturopathy". QuackWatch. Retrieved 28 September 2015.
  6. ^ Sisson, Paul (8 December 2012). "Med school embraces natural remedies". San Diego Union-Tribune. Archived from the original on 8 August 2016. Retrieved 28 June 2016.
  7. ^ "Questionable Organizations: An Overview". Quackwatch. Retrieved 22 October 2016.
  8. ^ Barrett, Stephen; Jarvis, William T. (1993). The Health Robbers: A Close Look at Quackery in America. Buffalo, NY: Prometheus Books. p. 236. ISBN 0-87975-855-4.
  9. ^ Massachusetts Medical Society (17 November 2015). "MMS Testimony in Opposition to H. 1992 and S. 1205, An Act to Create a Board of Registration in Naturopathy". www.massmed.org. Massachusetts Medical Society. Retrieved 22 October 2016.
  10. ^ Hermes, Britt (29 August 2015). "ND Confession, Part II: The Accreditation of Naturopathic "Medical" Education". Science-Based Medicine. Retrieved 30 September 2016.
  11. ^ Thielking, Megan (20 October 2016). "'Essentially witchcraft:' A former naturopath takes on the field". STAT. Retrieved 22 October 2016.
  12. ^ LeMieux, Julianna (16 November 2016). "Why 'Naturopathic Medicine' is an oxymoron". American Council on Science and Health. Retrieved 17 November 2017.
  13. ^ Camhi, Tiffany (30 August 2024). "Oregon alternative medicine students face a long road to loan forgiveness". OPB. Retrieved 28 October 2024.
  14. ^ U.S. Department of Education. "Most Recent Data by Field of Study". U.S. Department of Education College Scorecard. Archived from the original on 9 September 2024.