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Complementary and Alternative Health Care (Alternative Medicine…
Complementary and Alternative Health Care
Conventional (Allopathic) Medicine:
Dominant form of medicine
Allopathy:
A descriptive name often given to conventional medicine.
Received great boost in mid-19th century
Theoretical Base:
Disease is a result of an imbalance in the body; to restore balance, something must be given or taken away. To decide on a course of action, the doctor observed the symptoms and prescribed something to produce an opposite effect to those symptoms.
Application of laboratory since to medical practice was a feature of the development of conventional medicine
Modern medicine was created from a combination of allopathic theory, a focus on the body, empirical clinical experience, and laboratory science
Became dominant model because it had a better cure rate than other forms of medicine; rather, its practitioners were better organized
Successfully restricted or surpassed the activities of the more popular healers, such as apothecaries and homeopaths
In most countries only conventional doctors can formally diagnose disease, recommend medical treatment, and sign birth certificates
Alternative Medicine
Encompasses a wide spectrum of therapeutic practices, approaches, and beliefs
CAM: Refers to the diagnosis, treatment, and/or prevention that complements mainstream medicine
"Healing resources that encompasses all health systems, modalities, and practices and their accompanying theories and beliefs" that are not intrinsic to the dominant health system of society
A socially constructed and dynamic entity that is historically and culturally variable
Holistic: Considers all aspect of the individual as interrelated and must be treated as such
Assumes healing is innate to the human body
Patient is considered an active participant in the management of illness and needs to take personal responsibility for health
Patient-practitioner relationship is an intimate one
Main focus: Disease prevention & fostering well-being
Categories of CAM
Alternative medical systems
Mind-body interventions
Biologically based therapies
Manipulative & body-based methods
Energy therapies
CAM is the interrelation of the body, mind, and lifestyle
Reasons behind CAM's popularity
The Search for Meaning
CAM therapies provide individuals with emotional support as well as give attention to physical concerns
Distrust of Science
Science is no longer seen as the solution but instead is frequently seen as part of the problem
The Personal Healer-Patient Relationship
CAM practitioners provide personalized service
The Search for Control over One's Life
CAM supports individualized & subjective understandings of health & disease
The Nature of Illness
CAM is typically an effective treatment for chronic illnesses
Integrative Medicine
The merging of both conventional medicine and CAM
Generally refers to health practitioners with different backgrounds and training working together, although the precise meaning is contested