Edit: On second thought, it's likely not a typo. It doesn't have the "Spirit" keyword either, and granting a saving throw as an at-will effect is *really nice*. More likely it's a balancing thing, to make the shaman put themselves a bit more at risk when using it.
I guess but...similarly couldn't you just make a DC 15 Heal check (which would require a vastly better chance Roll-wise and also allows an adjacent ally to immediately make a saving throw)? It's a vs. Fort roll, so at Level one with a +4 Impliment attack and a Fort defense of...I dunno...14, that's a roll of 10, meanwhile my Heal skill is +9 for a roll of 6. Also you could stay at the allies back between you and the critter, rather than having to get into the thick of things and trying to zap something in melee.
I guess if that's how it is, that's how it is. I guess the possibility to do a little damage and give out a saving throw is good. It just seems really weird when the rest of the Shaman abilities are all based around Spirit Melee 1 or Ranged. Although I can't really confirm that because I don't have access to my books at the moment.