Supporting integrative medicine research through an Australasian practice-based research network

Integrative Medicine (IM) where evidence-based traditional, natural and complementary medicine is combined with conventional medicine is widely practiced in both Australia and New Zealand, mostly in the primary care setting. Whilst IM incorporates a number of practices, Integrative Medical Practitioners is a term that is generally used in Australasia to describe medical practitioners who integrate conventional and complementary medicine to provide holistic, patient-centred, multidisciplinary care. There is a paucity of research in both countries and internationally describing current practice and clinical outcomes of IM. This paper presents the case for establishing the first practice based research network (PBRN) for self-identified Australasian IM practitioners and IM clinics. The network would aim to link IM healthcare providers with academics to undertake relevant research able to inform clinical practice and policy. The opportunities, challenges and lessons learnt from other PBRNs are discussed and a way forward is proposed.