Since summer 2022, making an appointment with a naturopath, a hypnotherapist or a sophrologist is no longer possible on Doctolib. The famous reservation platform has in fact banned these professions, whose practices spark debate among health professionals, from its catalog. However, other equally (if not more) controversial acts are still offered on the specialized site. As pointed out The Parisian In an article published Tuesday January 30, 2024, many players in the medical sector have been warning for months about the presence of certain practices deemed questionable on Doctolib. Reiki, Oligoscan, kinesiology, quantum osteopathy, microkinesitherapy, astropsychology, and even naturopathy… Dozens of holistic and unconventional processes, which for the most part have no never been the subject of scientific studies or clinics demonstrating their effectiveness, are available for reservation.
What are these controversial practices, and who proposes them?
But how is this possible, when Doctolib now only accepts practitioners registered in the shared directory of health professionals – namely doctors, masseurs-physiotherapists, dentists, or even pharmacists – or those who have an Adeli number , as is the case with psychologists and osteopaths in particular. In reality, these controversial practices are proposed by real health professionals, and not just “well-being” professionals who were excluded in 2022, even if their results have never been proven. And of course, sometimes 100 euros per sessionthat causes a problem.
Oligoscan is, for example, presented as a “revolutionary and completely painless method which allows you to measure in real time the bioavailability of trace elements and minerals present in your body as well as the heavy metal intoxication of your tissues”. Reiki, for its part, is an ancestral Japanese practice which aims to reconnect universal energy with the vital force specific to each person. Quantum medicine also relies on energy fields, just like kinesiology. Some of these alternative processes have also been highlighted by The interministerial mission for vigilance and the fight against sectarian aberrations (Miviludes), as is the case with Reiki, judged “particularly worrying”.
Doctolib asks public authorities to set regulations
Faced with these unrecognized practices, described as “quackery” by many health professionals, Doctolib regrets not being able to, “alone, to sort out or speak the law”. If the platform asks registrants to remove this treatment from their offer, which still led to the modification of 1,187 profiles last year, it nevertheless asks the public authorities to establish clear regulations on the subject. An official list of unconventional practices could indeed allow the company “to moderate in a legal and effective manner”explains Jean-Urbain Hubau, its general director, in the columns of Parisian.