CAM Training Provides Health Care Students with Balanced Outlook
July 2nd, 2009
According to a national consumer survey conducted by the National Center for Complementary and Alternative Medicine (NCCAM), almost two-thirds of people have used some form of complementary and alternative medicine (CAM).
CAM training for conventional health care students can result in a balanced outlook which improves their ability to provide objective, evidence-based advice to patients.
Dr. Evelin Tiralongo, a lecturer in Griffith University’s School of Pharmacy, has found that CAM education and training can rationalize health care students’ attitudes when integrated into the curriculum.
“A survey and interviews of more than 100 pharmacy students in second, third and fourth years at Griffith found that students with a more positive attitude to CAM at the start of their degree changed to a more careful assessment of CAM therapy. Students who began studies with a more negative attitude towards CAM eventually realized that CAM therapies are based on significant evidence,” says Tiralongo.
“We found that CAM education encouraged students to look for evidence of effectiveness, evaluate that evidence and then make informed decisions in the best interests of their patients,” Tiralongo says.
Health care professionals and patients should have sufficient information and access to all useful therapies, both conventional and complementary and alternative. Use of CAM is widespread among the U.S. public. CAM therapies include: Acupuncture, herbal remedies, naturopathy, massage therapy, homeopathy, biofeedback, energy healing, chiropractic, and hypnosis.
In the survey, 96 percent of students indicated they believed they should be equipped to advise patients about CAM and 90 percent said it should be a core part of their educational curriculum.
“Health professionals have a responsibility to understand CAM, given that more than half of the population utilizes herbal medicines, vitamins and minerals, and therapies such as acupuncture,” says Tiralongo. “We need to ensure health care graduates have a reasonable knowledge of CAM and the ability to find the best options for patient care.”
Patients receiving CAM therapies experience fewer hospitalizations, undergo fewer surgeries and use considerably fewer pharmaceuticals than patients who receive only traditional medical care. Conditions CAM-oriented physicians may treat range from upper respiratory tract infections and allergies to headaches, orthopedic and other medical conditions.
For information about acupuncture treatment for health and wellness call Dr. Richard Browne, Acupuncture Physician, at (305) 595-9500.
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