Integrative Medicine
Integrative medicine is an approach to medical care that combines conventional therapies with complementary and alternative approaches. By using an integrative approach to patient care, we can address all aspects of patients’ physical, mental, and spiritual needs and better facilitate health and healing.
There is much evidence showing integrative medicine approaches are effective in treating a wide variety of medical conditions. However, these treatments are not always readily available to under-resourced populations. Our research aims to address these gaps in care and bring evidence-based integrative medicine to all our patients. We strive to enhance access to safe, high-quality integrative medicine embedded within our primary care services, with a focus on those from medically under-resourced groups. Our research initiatives work to support this goal.
Research areas include:
- Integrative medicine group visits for chronic pain: Our team has conducted significant research in evaluating the benefits of medical group visits that combine mindfulness techniques and other integrative medicine as an adjunct to medications, especially for diverse under-resourced patients who have limited access to non-pharmacological therapies.
- Use of acupuncture to promote health equity: This work is focused on demonstrating the safety, acceptability and beneficial contributions of acupuncture in health care, especially within under-resourced populations, and to build support for integrating acupuncture into a variety of treatment settings.
- Use of integrative medicine in pediatric chronic pain: We are studying the use of integrative approaches in pediatric patients with chronic pain.
- Integrative medicine collaborations: We routinely work with faculty in other departments to research the benefits of integrative approaches in all types of patient care. Examples include investigating the effectiveness of a remotely delivered tai chi intervention for patients with knee osteoarthritis and using acupuncture to address fear of cancer recurrence among breast cancer survivors.