Providing proof for the skeptics
Providing proof for the skeptics
Building a case for complementary therapies
To help educate senior management at Grant-Riverside Methodist Hospitals in Columbus, OH, about complementary therapies, Cheryl Rapose, MA, MSW, LISW, health and wellness consultant for the Elizabeth Blackwell Center, a community center for women’s health within the Grant-Riverside health system, began to compile evidence through diligent research. "I wanted to show how alternative or complementary care was not some kind of fringe effort. I was trying to make a case to show all the ways that it was mainstream," she explains. Following is an overview of the steps she took:
• Tally efforts by the National Institutes of Health (NIH).
Rapose began gathering information on the NIH’s National Center for Complementary and Alternative Medicine. She created a list of the alternative medical practices the NIH had established as a core category for funded research. She also provided descriptions of the key centers the NIH was working with and what they were researching.
• Discover what the literature says.
A literature review helped her find what the medical journals were publishing on complementary medicine. "I was basically looking at what is going on in terms of trends, hospital systems, and managed care as far as insurance coverage," says Rapose.
• Examine curricula at medical schools.
Rapose looked at the curriculum development of some of the leading medical education institutions around the country. She made note of how many were embracing a broad range of specific intensive studies in complementary therapies. She also noted those institutions that were simply offering modules on complementary therapies in general.
• List methods of integration.
The last step in the research Rapose conducted was to list what medical facilities were doing to integrate complementary therapies into the medical system. Without going into detail, she noted those that had training for staff and/or provisions for patient populations. She also listed those that had developed plans for offering complementary therapies as an option for the people they serve.
"I was trying to make a case for how massive a movement this is and that it is consumer-driven. I proposed that our system give serious consideration to moving in this direction," says Rapose.
Since she conducted the research two years ago, Grant-Riverside Methodist Hospitals gained a physician champion for complementary therapies. The health care system now has a committee that is trying to begin the integration process.
For more information about researching complementary therapies, contact:
• Cheryl Rapose, MA, MSW, LISW, Health and Wellness Consultant, Elizabeth Blackwell Center, Grant-Riverside Methodist Hospitals, Columbus, OH. E-mail: crapose@ ohiohealth.com.
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