Reading Comprehension
Australia has been unusual in the Western world in having a very conservative attitude to natural or alternative therapies, according to Dr Paul Laver, a lecturer in Public Health at the University of Sydney. "We"ve had a tradition of doctors being fairly powerful and I guess they are pretty loath to allow pretenders to their position to come into it." In many other industrialised countries, orthodox and alternative medicine have worked "hand in glove" for years. In Europe, only orthodox doctors can prescribe herbal medicine. In Germany, plant remedies account for 10% of the national turnover of pharmaceuticals. Americans made more visits to alternative therapists than to orthodox doctors in 1990, and each year they spend about $12 billion on therapies that have not been scientifically tested.
古筝乐谱Disenchantment with orthodox medicine has seen the popularity of alternative therapies in
Australia climb steadily during the past 20 years. In a 1983 national health survey, 1.9% of people said they had contacted a chiropractor, naturopath, osteopath, acupuncturist or herbalist in the two weeks prior to the survey. By 1990, this figure had risen to 2.6% of the population. The 550,000 consultations with alternative therapists reported in the 1990 survey represented about an eighth of the total number of consultations with medically qualified personnel covered by the survey, according to Dr Laver and colleagues writing in the Australian Journal of Public Health in 1993. "A better educated and less accepting public has become disillusioned with the experts in general and increasingly sceptical about science and empirically based knowledge," they said. "The high standing of professionals including doctors, has been eroded as a consequence."
Rather than resisting or criticizing this trend, increasing numbers of Australian doctors, particularly younger ones, are forming group practices with alternative therapists or taking course themselves, particularly in acupuncture and herbalism. Part of theincentivewas financial, Dr Laver said. "The bottom line is that most general practitioners are business people. If they see potential clientele going elsewhere, they might want to be able to offer
a similar service."
In 1993, Dr Laver and his colleagues published a survey of 289 Sydney people who attended eight alternative therapists" practices in Sydney. These practices offered a wide range of alternative therapies from 25 therapists. Those surveyed had experienced chronic illnesses, for which orthodox medicine had been able to provide little relief. **mented that they like the holistic approach of their alternative therapists and the friendly, concerned and detailed attention they had received. The cold, impersonal manner of orthodox doctors featured in the survey. An increasing exodus form their clinics, coupled with this and a number of other relevant surveys carried out in Australia, all pointing to orthodox doctors" inadequacies, have led mainstream doctors themselves to begin to admit they could learn from the personal style of alternative therapists. Dr Patrick Store, President of the Royal College of General Practitioners, concurs that orthodox doctors could learn a lot about bedside manner and advising patients on preventative health from alternative therapists.
1. Traditionally, how have Australian doctors differed from doctors in many Western countries?
A. They have worked closely with **panies.
B. They have often worked alongside other therapists.
C. They have been reluctant to accept alternative therapists.
D. They have regularly prescribed alternative remedies.
2. In 1990, Americans ______.
A. were prescribed more herbal medicines than in previous years
B. consulted alternative therapists more often than doctors
C. spent more on natural therapists than orthodox medicines
D. made **plaints about doctors than in previous years
汪小菲和大s为什么婚变3. Which statement is true according to the second paragraph?
魏千雅A. Australians have been turning to alternative therapies in increasing numbers over the past century.
B. Between 1983 and 1990 the number of patients visiting alternative therapists rose to a further 0.7% of the population.
C. The 1990 survey related to 55,000 consultations with alternative therapists..
D. In the past, Australians had a higher opinion of alternative therapists than they do today.
4. The word "incentive" (Line 4, Para.3) may be replaced by ______.
范冰冰三围A. concern B. advantage
C. benefit D. motivation
5. Which of the following is not a reason for people to turn to alternative therapies?
A. They paid much higher medical expenses for seeing doctors.
B. Alternative therapists advised patients on preventative health.
C. Alternative therapists adopted the holistic approach.
D. They received friendly, concerned and detailed attention from alternative therapists.
"The world"s environment is surprisingly healthy. Discuss." If that were an examination topic, most students would tear it apart, offering a long list of complaints: from localsmog(烟雾) to global climate change, from thefelling(砍伐) of forests to the extinction of species. The list would largely be accurate, the concern legitimate. Yet the students who should be given the highest marks would actually be those who agreed with the statement. The surprise is how good things are, not how bad.
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