CAM Therapies on the Rise in Hospitals
Published: Friday, December 05, 2003
According to the American Hospital Association's (AHA's) 2003 complementary and alternative medicine (CAM) survey, nearly 27 percent of hospitals use some form of CAM therapy including treatments such as massage, pastoral counseling, stress management and yoga. In addition, pharmacies in 13 percent of the hospitals reported offering herbs or supplements.
Last year, AHA's survey revealed that 15 percent of hospitals used CAM; in 1998, 6 percent reported using CAM therapies.
The Chicago-based AHA sent its survey to 6,105 hospitals; 1,007 hospitals (16.5 percent) responded. "The purpose of the survey was to delve deeper and determine what types of programs and services hospitals are offering in response to consumer demand,” states Sita Ananth, project director for CAM at AHA. "We are watching the rapid growth of CAM in hospitals with great interest.”
The American Massage Therapy Association, which contributed questions to the survey, notes that massage was the most prevalent CAM offering in the hospitals.