Many qualified Ayurveda practitioners from India are practising Ayurveda in Australia for the last decade. The recognition and legal status as a medical system is very far. Presently, drugs are imported subjected to TGA. Most of the Ayurvedic products cannot follow this route due to want of required data. Still a large number of products are imported mainly from India and Sri Lanka by avoiding the law.
An International Congress of Traditional Asian medicine (ICTAM) was held in 1979 at Canberra. After this congress, Australian School of Ayurveda was founded in Adelaide with the help of experts from Indian Universities.
Later in 1994, this Institution developed into the Australasian Academy of Natural Medicine. This institution with recognized Ayurveda faculty was to gain full accreditation in Australia. It offers Diploma (either Ayurveda or Naturopathy) after four years of training plus clinical practice. Its competency based standard training comes under the vocational Education and training Authorities.
In New Zealand, the situation is more or less the same. Dr. Phillip Cottingham established the Wellpark College of Natural Therapies in 1990 in Auckland. This college conducts various courses in Ayurveda, Natural Therapies and Yoga. They conduct a Certificate course in Ayurvedic Life style counselling, extending to total 840 hours. Another course of 3 year Diploma in Ayurveda Medicine is also being conducted. New Zealand Government recognizes this college. An Ayurveda faculty including Dr. Ajit from India supports this college.
The drug trade and dispensing is still heavily restricted in these two countries and currently, circumventing the local rules and regulations does the trade and practice.
