GPs’ attitudes to complementary medicine

The Facts:
* In a New Zealand study to investigate the use of complementary or alternative medicine among GPs, 20% of GPs used CAM and 95% had referred their patients to practitioners.
* Acupuncture and chiropractic treatment were the most commonly used therapies.
* Only 1/3 of GPs had received formal training in complementary therapies whereas 2/3 believed that alternative treatments should be included in standard medical training.

Shaun’s comment: It is great to have some local research into the use of alternative medicines and the newspapers widely reported the fact that nearly every GP referred patients to one or more forms of complementary and alternative medicine. This is despite most GPs having no formal training in CAM. Given the increase in complementary and alternative medicine research and publications such as this one which highlight evidence-based natural health, my prediction is that the lines between Western and alternative health will become more blurred. Health professionals will recommend treatments that work, regardless of their origin or classification.

Study reference:
http://www.nzma.org.nz/journal/abstract.php?id=2361