Featured NESH Alumnus: Jan De Wachter, MD
Jan De Wachter, MD – Antwerp, Belgium
From childhood I became fascinated by natural medicine, in large part because the book “The Nature Doctor” by Dr. Vogel.
At the start of my medical studies I also undertook a course in the Netherlands on “latrosophy” where Classical Homeopathy also was discussed and the course included a lecture by the well-known Swiss homeopath Dr. Voegeli. For me, this was the signal to continue my studies with a critical eye whilst looking for training possibilities in classical homeopathy.
Immediately after MD graduation I was fortunate to be able to follow a 3-year, full time, training program at the Clinical Training Center for Homeopathy under the direction of Dr. Geukens in Hechtel .
Later, at the end of the nineties, I met with Paul Herscu in Belgium when he was lecturing together with Hennie Heudens-Mast. I was impressed and have avidly participated at the many annual seminars in CH, Germany, Italy, and UK since then. The item that struck me most in Paul’s lecturing was his consistency as well as the solid foundations upon which his system of Cycles and Segments was constructed (as extensively described in his Herscu Letters).
This approach was further evidenced in his webinars during the Covid-19 pandemic where he meticulously advised, from the very beginning, the to do’s and the don’ts in handling this pandemic. His years of study and his vast experience with infectious diseases allowed him to predict the course of the pandemic; needless to say what great help that meant for us therapists and for our patients.
Then came retirement in 2022! Still, retirement was not the end of my work as homeopath. Sure, no longer on daily basis but on occasion for family, friends, and some patients. Retirement also has given me the opportunity to spend more time with family (3 children and 8 grand-children 😊) and for hobbies such as gardening, cycling, and walking … and projects. (I restored an old greenhouse and use it to grow tomatoes 😊)
From Paul Herscu: I am not sure where to begin here, so I guess I begin with my overview. I know I should start with his excellence in homeopathy, with his multigenerational view of homeopathy and education, having seen and been part of some of the multiple iterations of homeopathy. This is true from the early years of studying in depth with Alfons, Vithoulkas, etc., always seeking to perfect the art of medicine. However, I put all that aside for now.
Ever since I met Jan , I thought to myself, this is why I am glad to be in this species, to be associated with this person. Even though we do not have enough time together, meeting a couple of times a year, for decades, I have thought to myself that I wished more people were like him, that I was more like him. Here, I am speaking about the quality of the person, and here, selfishly, I am thinking about the effect a person has upon others. And here, even more, during the times that we live in, even more than ever. As our societies are being pulled apart by everyone sure of what is right and wrong, leaving a path of disintegration, there are those people that somehow create community, not by doing anything in particular, but by who they are. Jan is one such person. In every interaction I have seen, he seems to think about how he might add to the greater good, rather than anything else. (I think he would probably be embarrassed by me saying this, so I will stop. But first wanted to say that his patients have been lucky to have such a physician, and homeopaths since Hechtel onward have been glad to call him a colleague. And I have been glad to call him a friend.)
I was at Jan ‘s house once, and there was this picture, a family picture, that had SO MANY generations, and people in it. And I thought to myself, ‘of course’ it would be this sort of picture. Perfect!
Professional Highlights:
• 1978: Diploma in Medical Chemistry (Laboratory Technics)
• 1987: Diploma Medical Doctor (University Antwerp)
• 1990: Diploma Clinical training centre for Homeopathy (Dr. Geukens)
• 1993: Diploma Athenian School of Homeopathic Medicine (Prof. Vithoulkas)
• 1987-1996: Training and teaching in the Homeopathic center of Dr. Geukens
• 1996-2022: Worked in my own private practice as homeopath
• 1996-2022: Continued education in Homeopathy in seminars and webinars by Paul Herscu
• 2022: retirement
Jan is our August 2024 Featured Alumnus. Return to NESH Alumni Spotlight page to learn about other distinguished NESH alumni.