Use of complementary and alternative medicine at Norwegian and Danish hospitals

Abstract

BackgroundSeveral studies have found that a high proportion of the population in western countries use complementary and alternative medicine (CAM). However, little is known about whether CAM is offered in hospitals. The aim of this study was to describe to what extent CAM is offered in Norwegian and Danish hospitals and investigate possible changes in Norway since 2001.MethodsA one-page questionnaire was sent to all included hospitals in both countries. The questionnaire was sent to the person responsible for the clinical activity, typically the medical director. 99 hospitals in the authority (85%) in Norway and 126 in Denmark (97%) responded. Given contact persons were interviewed.ResultsCAM is presently offered in about 50% of Norwegian hospitals and one-third of Danish hospitals. In Norway CAM was offered in 50 hospitals, 40 of which involved acupuncture. 19 hospitals gave other alternative therapies like biofeedback, hypnosis, cupping, ear-acupuncture, herbal medicine, art therapy, homeopathy, reflexology, thought field therapy, gestalt therapy, aromatherapy, tai chi, acupressure, yoga, pilates and other. 9 hospitals offered more than one therapy form. In Denmark 38 hospitals offered acupuncture and one Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing Light Therapy. The most commonly reported reason for offering CAM was scientific evidence in Denmark. In Norway it was the interest of a hospital employee, except for acupuncture where the introduction is more often initiated by the leadership and is more based on scientific evidence of effect. All persons (except one) responsible for the alternative treatment had a medical or allied health professional background and their education/training in CAM treatment varied substantially.ConclusionsThe extent of CAM being offered has increased substantially in Norway during the first decade of the 21st century. This might indicate a shift in attitude regarding CAM within the conventional health care system.

The Clinical and Histological Skin Changes After the Cupping Therapy (Al-Hijamah)

“…Yet, dermatologists are still unfamiliar with it and most of them have some misconceptions. The popularity of CAM continued to grow in developed countries such as USA, Norway during the first decade on the 21st century [11,12,13]. This might indicate a shift in attitude regarding CAM within the conventional health care system.…”

O Ensino da Acupuntura na Escola Médica: Interesse e Desconhecimento

“…Embora a acupuntura seja reconhecida como especialidade médica pelo Conselho Federal de Medicina desde 1995 1 , seja indicada pela Organização Mundial da Saúde para uma grande gama de patologias 2 e tenha sido observado um aumento no número de adeptos, por parte tanto dos profissionais como dos pacientes [3][4][5][6][7] , no Brasil o seu ensino nas escolas médicas ainda é reduzido, mesmo após a publicação da Portaria 971, que criou a Política Nacional de Práticas Integrativas e Complementares no Sistema Único de Saúde 8 . As Práticas Integrativas e Complementares (PIC), previamente conhecidas como Medicina Alternativa, em geral adotam uma abordagem do processo saúde-doença-cuidado mais holística que a medicina ocidental contemporânea 8 .…”

“…A acupuntura, uma das terapêu-ticas da MTC, data de mais de três mil anos e baseia-se na existência de um equilíbrio energético corporal, em que as doenças são encaradas como desequilíbrios, e o tratamento, como devolução deste equilíbrio pela modulação dos fluxos energéticos [9][10] . Atualmente, na Noruega e Dinamarca, respectivamente, 40% e 25% dos hospitais oferecem acupuntura a seus pacientes, sendo este serviço o mais relevante dentro das PIC naqueles países 3 . Nos EUA, observou-se um aumento significativo na procura desse tipo de tratamento, especialmente em decorrência da falta de acesso aos tratamentos convencionais ou em casos em que estes não atenderam às necessidades dos pacientes, assumindo, então, a acupuntura papel complementar 4 .…”

Use of complementary and alternative medicine in Danish hospitals as reported by charge nurses at department level

“…A similar difference applies to Danish conditions; the Danish-Norwegian study found that CAM was used in 31% of Danish hospitals, distributed among two CAM modalities, when the chief physicians at hospital management level were asked. However, massage was not included as a CAM modality in the Danish-Norwegian study [12] . If the use of massage is precluded from the current study, CAM is used in 33.8% of the Danish hospitals, represented by 23 different CAM modalities.…”