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Western conventional medicine has defined itself in large part through the scientific paradigm, of which clinical research is an important cornerstone. Asias traditional medical systems have relied on comprehensive theoretical frameworks and thousands of years of experience as a basis for validating knowledge. This is true for Tibetan medicine, a holistic medical system with centuries of history in Asia and, more recently, increasing practice, production, and consumption in Western countries. In order to enhance understanding and expand the development of methodological and epistemological approaches appropriate for the study of this traditional and holistic medical system in Western and Asian contexts, Professor Claudia Witt, Professor Sienna Craig and Dr. Mingji Cuomu initiated an interdisciplinary consensus process in spring 2010 at the Charité University Medical Center in Berlin. Experienced Tibetan medicine doctors, Tibetan medicine manufacturers from Asia and the West, medical anthropologists and clinical research methodologists participated in this two-day workshop. Tibetan Medicine Research presents the consensus document produced through this event in three languages (English, Tibetan, Chinese) as well as relevant articles on the production and evaluation of clinical evidence, manufacturing and training regulations and methodological aspects of conducting clinical research on Tibetan therapeutics.
