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Integrative Medicine — Its Emerging Acceptance In The Medical CommunityOrlando G. Florete, Jr., M.D. |
| For years, the medical community viewed alternative medicine
as quackery. However, the rising costs of health care in the United States and the
public's demand for safer, less expensive treatment modalities lead the American public to
use less traditional ways in maintaining health and treating diseases. Patients and their
families are getting dissatisfied with traditional medicine because it tends to overlook
the emotional and psychological aspects of healing. The method of integrating the mind and
body is an attractive alternative since it puts the human touch back into medical
treatment. Traditional medicine has evolved to the extent that modern technology takes
over the previous role of the health care provider in predicting, preventing, and
reversing various disorders. On the other hand, alternative or holistic medicine stresses
on the human touch, utilizing natural, non-invasive techniques to promote health and treat
disease. Dr. Eric Weiss, a major proponent of holistic medicine once said: "I think
it's being a human being, acting like a human being, and expressing love for your patient
that leads to health. That's the most important thing holistic medicine should
offer". Even with the acceptance of alternative medicine by the general public, physicians are still very slow in incorporating this method of health maintenance and disease management in their practice. The term alternative medicine has always been viewed with grave suspicion by traditional health care practitioners, thus the term complementary medicine was introduced to indicate that it does not necessarily go against conventional medical practice, but rather adds to or "complements" our approach in achieving health and eliminating diseases. Other physicians prefer the term "integrative medicine" rather than alternative or complementary, since an integrative approach indicates treating the patient as a whole, taking into consideration the mind and body in the whole scheme of things. The time has come for complementary or integrative medicine to become part of the conventional medical practice. It is in this spirit that the editorial board of Jacksonville Medicine decided to publish an issue dealing with this subject. Known practitioners of the art in the local community were invited to submit articles of interest. I hope that this issue will provide a glimpse of what is available in our community, educate our traditional health care providers, and hopefully, promotes acceptance and endorsement of the concepts, philosophies, and techniques that were once considered far flung and ridiculous. Jacksonville Medicine / January, 2000What's New
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Northeast Florida Medicine Journal ·
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