Craniosacral therapy and misleading claims in London - most CNHC-registered practitioners don't, some use gently evasive manoeuvres

The CNHC (Complementary and Natural Healthcare Council) regulates alternative healthcare practitioners who've voluntarily signed up to their regulation. They cover things like craniosacral therapy, aromatherapy and reiki and have around 5,000 members.

Members aren't meant to make misleading claims about their treatment (claiming that it can do more than the evidence says it can) and the Nightingale Collaboration is currently running a check to ensure that members' claims match what can be said.

CAP (Committee of Advertising Practice) has a very large list (431 searchable entries) of the different types of marketing claims, each leading to detailed information and case study examples of complaints that have been upheld by ASA (Advertising Standards Authority) who apply the CAP's code to advertising claims.

There is a "Therapies: Cranio-sacral therapy" page which is quite clear on what is and isn't permitted. It seems to be perfectly fine to say that the intervention can promote feelings of well-being but mentioning any medical conditions is a bit of a no-no.

According to that page, the results of a 2010 investigation by the ASA made it clear that craniosacral therapists should not be making any claims about asthma, autism, impotence or stroke (among others). Another investigation in 2011 still found no evidence for claims about asthma or autism but also found no evidence for any benefit for pain, depression, migraine, epilepsy or poor sleep. In short that page provides a list of medical complaints for which there is no evidence that craniosacral therapy can help and which therapists are not permitted to imply their treatments can help, in their marketing material (on or offline).

As far as I'm aware no craniosacral therapist can make these claims, but in particular anyone who's signed up to CNHC should not be making them. The CNHC is very clear that it's members should not be making misleading claims in their advertising. They also have a page explaining what craniosacral therapy is and there are no misleading claims made in that (beyond vague hand-waving but I can live with that).

How do CNHC-registered therapists do when compared against their own registration body's guidelines? Not bad. Most of the ones I've looked at, for craniosacral therapy, do not make any misleading claims. One did, directly on the page, another deferred to a separate page where misleading information is given. I've colour coded these with a sort of traffic light system.

On the CNHC's site there seem to be two registered craniosacral therapists within five miles of Greenwich. One operates from one website, another from three.

Therapist one

Bexley Craniosacral Therapy (http://bexleycraniosacral.co.uk/)

"What conditions have may Craniosacral Therapy help?
Craniosacral therapy is a holistic therapy promoting self-healing, relaxation and tension release for all-round greater well-being so it could be beneficial on many levels - for more information see:
.craniosacral-therapy-information.org.uk"

No misleading claims are made on the page itself, but it points to an information site about craniosacral therapy that has a button marked 'Medical conditions' which leads to a list of medical conditions that "craniosacral therapy can help to alleviate". That list is quite long and includes autism and asthma, also flatulence.

Therapist two

In the Breathing Space (http://www.inthebreathingspace.com/)
"For more information on specific conditions Craniosacral Therapy can help please visit the following website : Craniosacral Therapy Information. But do remember that if you are getting any symptoms, the first thing to do is seek medical advice in  case conventional medical attention was required."

There's a whole page on the 'Breathing Space' site full of vague stuff about the history of craniosacral therapy but there's hardly anything that would be a worryingly misleading claim. That can be found on the separate linked site though, under the same Medical conditions button as before.

There's also a leaflet on the site (http://www.inthebreathingspace.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/05/NCT-Spring-Advert.pdf) that vaguely references babies' problems with crying and sleeping but does so in a way that doesn't quite make misleading health claims.

Stepping Stones Greenwich (http://www.steppingstonesgreenwich.co.uk/services/cranio-sacral-therapy)
The site also includes psychic and angel readings etc.
Worryingly this page includes a bit of a shopping list of health conditions including stroke and cerebral palsy. That list just shouldn't be there.


Mycenae House (http://www.mycenaehouse.co.uk/eventtable.html)
No misleading health claims are made at all here, there is a reference in the events listing above to the time / day when Craniosacral Therapy is available and it links to the 'In the Breathing Space' website.

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I also had a look for craniosacral therapists within five miles of Camden and found two therapists, again one with one website and one with three.

Therapist three

Natural Equilibrium (http://www.natural-equilibrium.com/)
The site is listed on the results page twice but the page itself is a placeholder - site coming soon, so no misleading claims at all, hooray.



CHAIM (Centre for Complementary Health and Integrated Medicine) (http://www.chaimcentre.com/)
No misleading claims here. Interestingly at the top there are three 'anchors' which, when clicked, will take you to a particular section within that page. The ones for 'when is it available' and 'fees and consultation' both work though the one for 'what can it treat?' goes nowhere, so presumably that section of the page has been removed.

Therapist four

Harmony for Health (http://www.harmonyforhealth.eu/site/Craniosacral_Therapy.html)
Fairly vague stuff, I am not bothered by "It can also help with resolving emotional trauma".

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I searched for Charing Cross and it brought up three of the therapists already mentioned plus another one.

Therapist five

Howard Evans (http://www.howardevans.co.uk/)
No misleading claims there at all.

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That seems to cover CNHC registered craniosacral therapists within 20 miles of London who have a website. Overall, it's pretty good - not that many misleading claims.

I'm not at all impressed though, with the Craniosacral Therapy Association who have two PDF articles implying that CST can help with autism.

Academic spam emails about fake publications and conferences

Because I have two separate academic email addresses I probably get more than my fair share of academic spam inviting me to submit my paper to a journal or conference, or (much more rarely) be on the editorial board of some new journal. I've even had the offer of submitting one of my blog posts (on communicating difficult topics) to a journal. These are all fake.

Although I work in academia and have co-authored a couple of conference papers (real ones, honest) I'm not an academic so am largely immune myself. But it seems from reading what others have had to say that these conferences and journals are quite a problem.

Two academics (Prof Anthony Finkelstein's blog post and Dr Tom Crick's blog post on this topic) have suggested that the way to tackle this is not simply by listing them as 'conferences to avoid', libel being an ever-present threat. Getting the word out about dodgy conferences is perhaps more suitable (although I quite like the list option myself).

Here are a couple of other ideas that I've not seen suggested yet, though I've no idea how practical either are.

1. Academic email - stem the problem at source via Janet, which distributes all academic email.
Janet is the UK's academic and research network and each college / uni in the UK has 'Janet registered contacts' - I wonder if a few of them might be able to investigate blacklisting known spammers. Alas this would never be a 'do once and forget about it' as spammers aren't entirely stupid and will tweak their email addresses.

Surely anything that contains the word 'Masaumnet' in an email just shouldn't reach any academic account. Unless someone's researching the spread of spam emails of course...

2. Action Fraud
I discovered this marvellous website via the Police earlier this year - it covers pretty much everything, including email fraud attempts such as phishing and malicious software, but it doesn't cover academic fraud*. Given that this is a way to extract money from academics (well, ultimately the public purse I suppose) it would seem that this could be added to the list of things to be monitored.

Since discovering the site I have forwarded a massive chunk of the spam emails I receive to them, after filing a brief report via their online form. No particular action is taken on individual emails, it simply helps the fraud people get an idea of the scale of the problem.

I've just filed a report for what seems to be a fake conference (they 'aplogized' for multiple copies of the email and even my email software flagged it up as spam) and asked if they handle academic fraud, however I might never hear back!

*I'm not referring to fraud perpetrated by academics, eg plagiarism or falsifying data.

Government psychometric tests - my results ;)

I've little time for psychometric tests when applied to the sphere of work. My jury is out as to whether or not they have any validity in any other sphere but I am aware that some people find them beneficial, I have not been among them as yet.

I've just read an article in The Guardian and a blog post about the existence of a psychometric test (48 questions) which jobseekers have apparently been urged to complete online, with the hint that if they don't their benefits may suffer.

The questions are of the sort where a statement is given such as "I enjoy writing new blog posts" and the five answers are always the same, of the type "this is like me a lot" ...  "neutral" ... "this isn't like me at all".

I've just filled it in twice, on two different browsers, and emailed the results to myself with two different emails.

The results are below - in the first I said that all 48 questions WERE NOT LIKE me and in the second I said that all the questions WERE LIKE me, ie the exact opposite. The expected difference in my results is not very obvious. Beyond a slight rearrangement of the numbers in each 4 out of the 5 strengths are the same with only one different in each.

It's suggested at the end of the test that I might like to discuss these with my Job Advisor. Damn right I would - how will they use this information to help me and give me tailored information in my search for jobs? Beyond demonstrating my meekness in agreeing to fill in this pointless test what value does it have if it gives everyone identical answers? Is this just a glitch and I am being unfair to the test? After all "I do not jump to conclusions" and am able to change my mind (a scientific test says so).

In answering these I paid very little attention to the actual question being asked - after the bank holiday I will try again with a different email address, answer it more honestly and see if it makes any difference.

I sincerely hope that no-one is feeling threatened (in terms of loss of benefits) about doing this test and that the news as reported is mistaken.

Grrrrr.

Ones in green below are identical results and found in the same order, ones in orange are identical but in different orders and the two in black are the only differences.

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Example 1 - none like me

Hi!

Thanks for completing the signature strengths questionnaire, your results are below.

This exercise has been shown to find peoples' strengths in scientific studies and you may find it useful to identify your strengths and use them to inform your job search, CV or use in interviews. You may also find it useful to try to incorporate your strengths in your daily life and play to them whenever you can.

You should aim to use your strengths whenever you can. This could be in the your job search choices, your CV or at interviews. You could also apply these to your daily life. You should aim to use each one of your signature strengths in a new way everyday for at least a week.

Strength 1. Curiosity
You are curious about everything. You are always asking questions, and you find all subjects and topics fascinating. You like exploration and discovery.

Strength 2. Love of learning
You love learning new things, whether in a class or on your own. You have always loved school, reading, and museums-anywhere and everywhere there is an opportunity to learn.

Strength 3. Critical Thinking
Thinking things through and examining them from all sides are important aspects of who you are. You do not jump to conclusions, and you rely only on solid evidence to make your decisions. You are able to change your mind.

Strength 4. Originality
Thinking of new ways to do things is a crucial part of who you are. You are never content with doing something the conventional way if a better way is possible.

Strength 5. Social Intelligence
You are aware of the motives and feelings of other people. You know what to do to fit in to different social situations, and you know what to do to put others at ease.

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Example 2 - all like me

Hi!

Thanks for completing the signature strengths questionnaire, your results are below.

This exercise has been shown to find peoples' strengths in scientific studies and you may find it useful to identify your strengths and use them to inform your job search, CV or use in interviews. You may also find it useful to try to incorporate your strengths in your daily life and play to them whenever you can.

You should aim to use your strengths whenever you can. This could be in the your job search choices, your CV or at interviews. You could also apply these to your daily life. You should aim to use each one of your signature strengths in a new way everyday for at least a week.

Strength 1. Fairness
Treating all people fairly is one of your abiding principles. You do not let your personal feelings bias your decisions about other people. You give everyone a chance.

Strength 2. Curiosity
You are curious about everything. You are always asking questions, and you find all subjects and topics fascinating. You like exploration and discovery.

Strength 3. Critical Thinking
Thinking things through and examining them from all sides are important aspects of who you are. You do not jump to conclusions, and you rely only on solid evidence to make your decisions. You are able to change your mind.

Strength 4. Originality
Thinking of new ways to do things is a crucial part of who you are. You are never content with doing something the conventional way if a better way is possible.

Strength 5. Social Intelligence
You are aware of the motives and feelings of other people. You know what to do to fit in to different social situations, and you know what to do to put others at ease.

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I have now heard from a friend who's also filled this in, their answers are slightly different from both of mine and we've now uncovered two extra 'strengths' that didn't appear in mine. My initial answers didn't offer any evidence of gratitude or a sense of humour ;)

I've also done the test 'properly' myself, my results are the second set below, and uncovered another three strengths. While I don't disagree that I am a bit like that for the five it's selected for me I think I'm a bit like that for all eleven of them. Presumably everyone else does too, more or less.

Admittedly my annoyance with it is pretty high for only having evidence from a sample of four results (n=4) but it seems to be so banal that I'm beginning to think that it might actually be a form of sneakery by whoever put the test together. No-one can fail, everyone comes out well. Baffling.

Does anyone have any strengths other than the eleven already collected?

• Appreciation of culture
• Carefulness
• Critical Thinking
• Curiosity
• Enthusiasm
• Fairness
• Gratitude
• Humour
• Love of learning
• Originality
• Social Intelligence

Friend's results
 
Hi!

Thanks for completing the signature strengths questionnaire, your results are below.

This exercise has been shown to find peoples' strengths in scientific studies and you may find it useful to identify your strengths and use them to inform your job search, CV or use in interviews. You may also find it useful to try to incorporate your strengths in your daily life and play to them whenever you can.

You should aim to use your strengths whenever you can. This could be in the your job search choices, your CV or at interviews. You could also apply these to your daily life.

Strength 1. Gratitude
You are aware of the good things that happen to you, and you never take them for granted. Your friends and family members know that you are a grateful person because you always take the time to express your thanks.

Strength 2. Fairness
Treating all people fairly is one of your abiding principles. You do not let your personal feelings bias your decisions about other people. You give everyone a chance.

Strength 3. Critical Thinking
Thinking things through and examining them from all sides are important aspects of who you are. You do not jump to conclusions, and you rely only on solid evidence to make your decisions. You are able to change your mind.

Strength 4. Originality
Thinking of new ways to do things is a crucial part of who you are. You are never content with doing something the conventional way if a better way is possible.

Strength 5. Humour
You like to laugh and tease. Bringing smiles to other people is important to you. You try to see the light side of all situations.

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My results...

Strength 1. Carefulness
You are a careful person. You do not say or do things that you might later regret.

Strength 2. Appreciation of Culture
You notice and appreciate beauty, excellence, and/or skilled performance in all domains of life, from nature to art to mathematics to science to everyday experience.

Strength 3. Gratitude
You are aware of the good things that happen to you, and you never take them for granted. Your friends and family members know that you are a grateful person because you always take the time to express your thanks.

Strength 4. Humour
You like to laugh and tease. Bringing smiles to other people is important to you. You try to see the light side of all situations.

Strength 5. Enthusiasm
Regardless of what you do, you approach it with excitement and energy. You never do anything halfway or half-heartedly. For you, life is an adventure.

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Have just invented the word 'teledelegates' for people who aren't actually AT the conference but are participating by hashtag

I remember reading a year or two ago that conferences would soon reach the point where those attending remotely, either through hashtag following (interacting with other non-attendees as well as delegates who are in the room) or via videolinked 'watch parties', would probably exceed the number of people actually attending the event. We've probably comfortably passed that point now.

Anyway, I have just made up a nice word to describe these 'delegates at a distance', akin to telegraph, telephone and television. I'm not sure if teledelegate needs a hyphen but let's see how it goes ;)

I like to think that this word will do better than my acronym 'satbawu' which stands for 'Start at the bottom and work up' and can be used for those ridiculously long threaded emails. Can be used, but isn't...

Bet this is my shortest blog post.

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Edit 30 April 2013
Others have suggested 'telegates' which is the more obvious word, though I don't think it actually works that well, 'hashgates' and 'delegavatar'. I still like teledelegates the best, but don't get to be in charge of usage ;)

Posterous is closing next week - here's how to move your blog to WordPress.com

Posterous is closing, Posterous is closing. Move your blog before 30 April 2013. Posterous is closing.

Section A - download blog - you need to do this before Posterous closes on 30 April 2013
1. Log into Posterous.com and click on the 'Backup' button (it should be visible from all pages but if not click on Spaces).
2. Click on 'request back up' next to name of blog, wait a bit, come back later (you'll get an email when it's done) and...
3. Click on 'download' to get a zipped file containing your entire blog, unzip as and when needed.

Bonus points

• Disable the autopost to Twitter and then...
  (Spaces > Your blog ('space') > Autopost setup (in panel on right) > hover over Twitter name then press red X to delete) 
• ...add a final post saying that your blog is closing / moving (if you do this once you've moved the blog to its new home you can include the new adress).
  
  This means that all your Posterous followers will get a notification but it won't go to your Twitter followers (who don't need this info since your new blog will seamlessly start autoposting to your Twitter account).

Section B - import blog to another host, example given is WordPress.com (free version) - you can do this at your leisure

If you want to move it to Tumblr then Posterous has suggested using http://justmigrate.com/ (you might need to do this before Posterous shuts though) - if you already have a Tumblr blog and it posts to Twitter you'll need to switch off the autopost function before you start the migration.

4. Unzip the zip and note that one of the files is an xml with the word 'wordpress' in it
5. Create a free blog at http://wordpress.com
6. In the dashboard [https://YOURBLOGNAME.wordpress.com/wp-admin/] go to Tools > Import > Posterous and select ('navigate to') the xml file
7. Wait patiently - or just open your new blog in another tab / window https://YOURBLOGNAME.wordpress.com/ - I've moved large blogs and it's been done and dusted within about 3-15 mins but usually takes an hour or so for you to get an email letting you know it's all done.

5b. If you prefer to go for the self-hosted Wordpress.org type of blog then there's a plug in that will help you transfer it (you need to do this before Posterous shuts though http://wpmu.org/posterous-shutting-down-how-to-move-your-posterous-site-to-wordpress/)

To create a new post on your new blog you can just click on 'New post' which appears on most pages including the dashboard, however this brings up a light version which I don't like one bit, I prefer to go to Dashboard, then hover over my name (top right) until the list of my blogs appear (I have several), then hover over the one I want to post to and choose the New post option that shows up there.

I've moved about 8 blogs so yell if you get stuck :)

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Section C - customising it a bit 
You need to be in your dashboard for this, it's https://YOURBLOGNAME.wordpress.com/wp-admin

• Autopost to Twitter etc: Settings > Sharing > Add Twitter account (also Facebook, LinkedIn, Tumblr)
• Getting rid of the weird tagline they keep adding: Appearance > Customise > hover over panel on right, choose Site Title and then amend text in Tagline field
• Tweak the look / themes / skin: Appearance > Themes

Section D - troubleshooting
The import info says that it will let you "Import posts, comments, images, video, and categories from a Posterous export file" - attached files seem to show up as an absolute link, pointing to files.posterous (though some point to files.wordpress or something like that).

I'd not be surprised if file links might break once Posterous disappears, however you have all the atttachments in the various folders of your zip and can navigate to them and manually upload if necessary. I've got over 800 to do for ScicommJobs so not overly enthusiastic about that ;)