Abstract
There is growing interest by government, clinicians and the public in the health and economic benefits offered by the combined use of mainstream and complementary medicine (integrative care). This interest has been stimulated in part by concern about our ability to effectively manage chronic disease and escalating health costs in the context of an ageing population. Whilst some documented examples exist, there is no current profile of integrative care initiatives in Australia, nor is information collected on a regular and agreed basis to enable trends to be monitored and comparisons of health and cost benefits to be made. Yet this information is required to inform both clinical practice and research. This is increasingly important given the known high rate of mixed use, with some 35% of patients who use Chinese herbal medicine co-utilise pharmaceuticals and 84% of breast cancer patients under conventional medical care use complementary medicines for reasons relevant to their disease.
Original language | English |
---|---|
Place of Publication | Penrith, N.S.W. |
Publisher | National Institute of Complementary Medicine |
Number of pages | 35 |
Publication status | Published - 2009 |
Keywords
- alternative medicine
- chronic diseases
- integrative medicine
- Australia