Browsing by Subject "Integrative medicine"

Now showing 1 - 5 of 5
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    Art Therapy with Veterans: A Comprehensive Review of the Literature with Recommendations
    (2018) Davis, Heather E.; Misluk, Eileen
    Art therapy has been conducted with military servicemembers and veterans since the beginning of the profession itself. Veterans suffer from a myriad of diagnoses, some of the most prevalent being posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD), combat trauma, military sexual trauma (MST), complicated grief, substance abuse, anxiety, and depression.Research exists that underscores the unique and vital role art therapy plays in the treatment of these diagnostic concerns; however, no known comprehensive literature review on the topic exists. An integrative, systematic literature review was conducted to gain an understanding of the format, setting, directives, materials, and approaches being used to treat veterans with art therapy. A total of 85 articles and books with a primary focus on art therapy with veterans were organized using the filing method recommended by Garrard(2011). A literature matrix was used to organize26 of the publications for comparison and to identify themes among the content. Themes emerged in all categories of the matrix. Notably, it was shown that 68.6% of the 85 pieces of literature had been published in the last five years. Recommendations for future research were made in response to these themes, such as the need to identify the specific therapeutic factors of art therapy rather than simply its efficacy in comparison to more traditional talk therapy approaches. Finally, opportunities were identified to standardize and streamline the use of art therapy with this population, which would benefit both the clients and the replicability of studies to bolster the generalizability and validity of findings.
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    Characteristics and Challenges of Providing Acupuncture and Chinese Herbal Medicine in Oncology Treatment: Report of Survey Data and Experience of Five Unique Clinical Settings
    (Sage, 2024) Veleber, Susan; Cohen, Misha Ruth; Weitzman, Matthew; Maimon, Yair; Adamo, Christine A.; Siman, Jonathan; Lu, Weidong; Sajdyk, Tammy; Stone, Jennifer A. M.; Pediatrics, School of Medicine
    Acupuncture is an integrative therapy with strong evidence to support its use in the oncology setting, yet barriers exist for implementation into conventional medical clinics. Though acupuncture is recommended in clinical practice guidelines for oncology, there is little data in the literature showing how acupuncture and other related therapies, including herbal medicine are successfully implemented in some oncology clinics, while others experience barriers to care. To characterize the current use of acupuncture (ACU) and herbal medicine (HM) in oncology clinics, we collected general demographic and usage data from 5 example clinics. In addition, to better understand the barriers faced by ACU and HM clinics in implementing acupuncture as a treatment modality, a survey was deployed to 2320 members of the Society for Integrative Oncology. This article examines the characteristics of oncology settings around the world, and shares data from the survey on the use of these therapies in the field of oncology. The primary barrier to acupuncture care, as reported by providers, was cost. With just under 70% of the oncologists reporting it as the most important obstacle. Additional barriers to implementation included concerns about competency and training, accessibility and safety of herbal medicine during treatment. Though acupuncture is being incorporated into more conventional oncology settings, organized strategies for implementation involving payers and policymakers is needed.
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    The State of 21st Century Acupuncture in the United States
    (Dove Press, 2024-10-10) Smith, Clasina Leslie; Reddy, Bill; Wolf, Charis M.; Schnyer, Rosa N.; St. John, Korina; Conboy, Lisa; Stone, Jen; Lao, Lixing; Indiana Clinical and Translational Sciences Institute (CTSI), School of Medicine
    The term "acupuncture" commonly refers to a non-pharmacologic therapy that is increasingly employed by diverse segments of the population for a wide variety of complaints including pain, insomnia, anxiety, depression, frozen shoulder, and other issues. The term is also used as a short-hand for the wider medical system from which the placement of needles into the skin for therapeutic benefit and related techniques evolved. Thus "acupuncture" refers both to the therapeutic technique and the therapeutic system of Acupuncture and Herbal Medicine (AHM). The other modalities included within AHM include a wide variety of physical and mechanical manipulations, herbal medicines, dietary recommendations, and lifestyle modifications. Clinically, acupuncture is increasingly offered in a variety of conventional medical settings such as hospitals, medical school clinics, veterans' healthcare centers, oncology facilities, and rehabilitation centers, and its safety profile is excellent overall. Barriers to further incorporation of acupuncture into biomedical sites include insurance coverage of acupuncture, education of conventional medical practitioners and other stakeholders about the utility, efficacy, and evidence base of acupuncture. Acupuncturists in the United States are skilled practitioners who are highly educated in the complex therapeutic system from which acupuncture arose and in the technical aspects of its utility as a treatment modality. The training, certification, licensure, and regulation of acupuncturists is similar to that of conventional providers such has physician's assistants, advanced practice nurses, and medical and osteopathic doctors. While clinical use and acceptance of acupuncture continues to grow, there is to date no definitive composite document explaining the utility of acupuncture in various healthcare settings, the current understanding of how acupuncture works, and the training, professional regulation, and certification of acupuncture practitioners. This article will address these topics and strive to create a reference for practitioners, administrators, legislators, insurance providers, patients and their families, and other stakeholders.
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    Therapist-Delivered Versus Care Ally–Assisted Massage for Veterans With Chronic Neck Pain: Protocol for a Randomized Controlled Trial
    (JMIR, 2022-09-27) Munk, Niki; Daggy, Joanne K.; Evans, Erica; Kline, Matthew; Slaven, James E.; Laws, Brian; Foote, Trevor; Matthias, Marianne S.; Bair, Matthew J.; Health Sciences, School of Health and Human Sciences
    Background: Chronic neck pain (CNP) is prevalent, and it reduces functional status and quality of life and is associated with deleterious psychological outcomes in affected individuals. Despite the desirability of massage and its demonstrated effectiveness in CNP treatment, multiple accessibility barriers exist. Caregiver-applied massage has demonstrated feasibility in various populations but has not been examined in Veterans with CNP or compared in parallel to therapist-delivered massage. Objective: This manuscript described the original study design, lessons learned, and resultant design modifications for the Trial Outcomes for Massage: Care Ally-Assisted Versus Therapist-Treated (TOMCATT) study. Methods: TOMCATT began as a 3-arm, randomized controlled trial of 2 massage delivery approaches for Veterans with CNP with measures collected at baseline, 1 and 3 months after intervention, and 6 months (follow-up). Arm I, care ally-assisted massage, consisted of an in-person, 3.5-hour training workshop, an instructional DVD, a printed treatment manual, and three 30-minute at-home care ally-assisted massage sessions weekly for 3 months. Arm II, therapist-treated massage, consisted of two 60-minute sessions tailored to individual pain experiences and treatments per week for 3 months. The treatments followed a standardized Swedish massage approach. Arm III consisted of wait-list control. Results: Retention and engagement challenges in the first 30 months were significant in the care ally-assisted massage study arm (63% attrition between randomization and treatment initiation) and prompted modification to a 2-arm trial, that is, removing arm I. Conclusions: The modified TOMCATT study successfully launched and exceeded recruitment goals 2.5 months before the necessary COVID-19 pause and is expected to be completed by early 2023.
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    Use of complementary and alternative medicine by patients with hypermobile Ehlers-Danlos Syndrome: A qualitative study
    (Frontiers Media, 2022-12-14) Doyle, Tom A.; Halverson, Colin M. E.; Medicine, School of Medicine
    Background: Patients with hypermobile Ehlers-Danlos Syndrome (hEDS) often make use of complementary and alternative medical (CAM) techniques to manage their chronic pain and other symptoms. Nevertheless, how they use CAM, which techniques they favor, and how CAM use affects their allopathic care remain unclear. The purpose of this qualitative study was to understand patients' personal experiences with CAM and its role in their symptom management. Materials and methods: Thirty individuals living with hEDS completed a brief online survey related to their CAM use. Thereafter, in-depth interviews were conducted with 24 of the survey respondents, qualitatively investigating their experiences with CAM. Data were analyzed using thematic analysis. Results: Participants described massage therapy (N = 21), medical cannabis (N = 12), and mindfulness (N = 13) as some of the most useful CAM modalities for managing symptoms related to hEDS, but they expressed a general interest in pursuing any treatment that could potentially reduce their chronic pain. They suggested an overall trust in CAM modalities and practitioners and ascribed greater empathy to CAM practitioners than to conventional medical providers. However, they also described a critical skepticism of CAM (and conventional) therapies and recounted instances of injury from such treatments. Conclusion: Participants made extensive use of CAM therapies. They described both critical benefits as well as harms from the use of these non-conventional modalities. These results underscore the importance of clinicians maintaining communicative and compassionate relationships with their patients, and of an openness to the discussion and use of CAM treatments.