Nurses' knowledge and attitudes toward complementary therapies for cancer: A review of the literature

Abstract

Complementary therapies (CTs) are nonconventional supportive therapies, which are used by the patients with cancer. The use of CTs has been known to alleviate symptoms as a result of chemotherapy and to improve quality of life. However, if CTs are inappropriately used, there may be adverse reactions or no effect resulting in poor support of the cancer treatment. Nurses play an important role in supporting patients with cancer who often seek information regarding CTs. Within their scope of practice, it is expected that nurses have sufficient knowledge about the safety and effective use of CTs, and positive attitudes toward supporting patients who wish to use CTs. This review aims to examine existing literature regarding nurses’ knowledge and attitudes toward CTs for patients with cancer. English language articles obtained from recognized nursing and midwifery databases such as CINAHL, Google Scholar, Medline, ProQuest Central, and Scopus for the period between 2002 and 2015 were searched. A total of 96 articles were retrieved using the search terms with only 13 eligible articles meeting the inclusion criteria. Three major themes were identified by the thematic analysis of reviewed studies: nurses’ knowledge about CTs, nurses’ attitudes toward CTs, and sources information about CTs. The majority of studies investigating nurses’ knowledge and attitudes toward the use of CTs for oncology was conducted in developed countries. Overall, it was identified that nurses need to improve their knowledge and skills about CTs so that they were more confident to assist patients in integrating conventional treatment and CTs for cancer management.

Unmasking the Practices of Nurses and Intercultural Health in Sub-Saharan Africa: A Useful Way to Improve Health Care?

“…1 , 4 The National Center for Complementary and Integrative Health recently classified CHT under wide-ranging parent modalities: biologically based therapies (such as herbal medicines and nutritional supplements), mind-body approaches (such as meditation and yoga), manipulative therapies (such as chiropractic and massage), energy therapies (such as biofeedback technique, therapeutic touch, and reiki) and whole medical methods (such as naturopathy and ayurveda). 5 , 6 These approaches of CHT are being accessed in dealing with a variety of disease burden and to manage health among populations. CHT improves emotional and physical well-being, vitalizes immunity, reduces the side effects of some conventional therapies, and also improves life satisfaction 7 , 8 and therefore have implications for public health in sub-Saharan Africa (SSA).…”

Opinions of Midwives and Nurses About Complementary and Integrated Applications Used for Premenstrual Syndrome

“…Cristina ve ark.nın yaptığı çalışmada, uygulamaların, hemşireler ve hastalara yöntemleri daha önce kullanım deneyiminin sorgulanmasının önemli olduğunu vurguladıkları belirlenmiştir. 31 Araştırmamızda, hastalara, "uygulamalardan yararlanıp yararlanmadığı sorulmalıdır." ifadesine ebe ve hemşirelerin katıldığı (%15,7), yarısına yakının da kararsız (%46,0) kaldığı belirlenmiştir.…”

First Steps in the Development of an Expertise-Based Anthroposophic Complex Intervention for Oncological Treatment in Primary Care: A Qualitative Study

“…This is even more valuable, since there is evidence that patients who make use of complementary therapies may have lower healthcare costs 25 , 26 , 54 and better quality of life. 5 , 7 …”

“…CIM therapies are used by a growing number of oncological patients. 5 - 7 The use of CIM of the Dutch population (seeing or having seen a CIM healthcare provider at least once in their life) has increased from 15.7% in 2003, 8 to an estimated 23% in 2016. 9 However, Dutch conventional and integrative/complementary care givers do not cooperate on a structural basis yet, and CIM therapies are not included in oncological guidelines yet.…”

“…17 In integrative oncology, conventional care and CIM are integrated in a patient-centered, safe, and effective approach. 5 CIM approaches mostly aim at health promotion, quality of life, and self-regulation, rather than at treating the cancer itself, 5 , 7 but there are indications that they may also contribute to that. 18 - 24 Moreover research has shown that patients from Dutch primary care physicians who are additionally trained in CIM have lower healthcare costs, mainly caused by less hospitalization, and lower use of medication.…”