OtherFamily Medicine –World Perspective

How Should Complementary Practitioners and Physicians Communicate? A Cross-Sectional Study from Israel

Eran Ben-Arye, Moshe Scharf and Moshe Frenkel
The Journal of the American Board of Family Medicine November 2007, 20 (6) 565-571; DOI: https://doi.org/10.3122/jabfm.2007.06.070119

Article Figures & Data

Tables

  • Table 1.

    Characteristics of Primary Care Physicians and Complementary and Alternative Medicine Practitioners

    CharacteristicPrimary Care Physicians (n = 333)CAM Practitioners (n = 241)
    Sex* (n [%])
        Male187 (58)95 (41)
        Female134 (42)137 (59)
    Age (mean ± SD [median])47.7 ± 7.2 (48)40.2 ± 9.4 (38)
    Medical specialty† (n [%])
        Specialists265 (80)‡
        Family medicine105 (32)
        Internal medicine47 (14)
        Pediatrics9 (3)
    CAM modality (n [%])†
        Movement/manual healing124 (51)§
        Traditional Chinese medicine88 (37)
        Naturopathy29 (12)
        Homeopathy10 (4)
        Herbal medicine9 (4)
        Chiropractic8 (3)
        Healing4 (2)
        Meditation3 (1)

    • Data analysis were performed by t test. CAM, complementary and alternative medicine; SD, standard deviation.

    • * Three hundred twenty-one of 333 primary care physicians and 232 of 241 CAM practitioners reported this data.

    • † Respondents reporting any kind of medical or CAM specialty, which include one or more of the fields specified here.

    • ‡ Eighty-eight physicians (27.3%) reported having studied CAM, with experience ranging from basic introductory courses to full programs. Twenty-four physicians (7.7%) reported practicing CAM. Fifty-two percent reported having used CAM treatments over the past year.

    • § Thirty-one (13%) of the CAM practitioners were physicians.

  • Table 2.

    Areas in Which Respondents Were Interested in Collaborative Teamwork Between Conventional and Complementary and Alternative Medicines

    AreaParticipants* (n [%])P
    Primary Care Physicians (n = 328)CAM Practitioners (n = 226)
    Clinical practice226 (69)174 (77).0430
    Scientific research50 (15)95 (42)<.0001
    Medical education8 (2)61 (27)<.0001

    • Data analysis was performed by Pearson's χ2 test. CAM, complementary and alternative medicine.

    • * Three hundred twenty-eight of 333 primary care physicians and 226 of 241 CAM practitioners responded this question. Respondents were able to choose several options, thus the sum of percents exceeds 100%.

  • Table 3.

    Respondents’ Attitudes to the Question, If Complementary and Alternative Medicine Was Provided in a Primary Care Clinic, Who Should Offer Complementary and Alternative Medicine Treatment?

    CAM ProviderParticipants* (n [%])P
    Primary Care Physicians (n = 327; 327 responses)CAM Practitioners (n = 234; 264 responses)
    CAM practitioner non-MD135 (40.9)199 (75.4)<.0001
    CAM practitioner MD119 (36.1)31 (11.7)<.0001
    Family physician in the clinic48 (14.5)9 (3.4)<.0001
    Nurse6 (1.8)5 (2.1)NS
    Pharmacist4 (1.2)4 (1.9)NS
    Other15 (4.5)16 (6.1)NS

    • Data analysis was performed by Pearson's χ2 test. NS, not significant; CAM, complementary and alternative medicine.

    • * Three hundred twenty-seven of 333 primary care physicians and 234 of 241 CAM practitioners responded this question. Respondents were asked to focus on merely one option but were able to choose several options. Thus, number of responses is higher than the number of respondents. The data in the table refer to number of responses.

  • Table 4.

    Respondents’ Attitudes to the Question, How Do You Perceive Conjoint Physician–Complementary and Alternative Medicine Practitioner Teamwork?

    Team DirectorParticipants* (n [%])P
    Primary Care Physicians (n = 283; responses = 298)CAM Practitioners (n = 198; responses = 227)
    Physician†127 (42.6)43 (18.9).0007
    CAM practitioner†8 (2.7)12 (5.3)NS
    Codirected‡62 (20.8)83 (36.6).0001
    Directed by either physician or CAM practitioner§86 (28.9)60 (26.4)NS

    • Data analysis was performed by Pearson's χ2 test. NS, not significant; CAM, complementary and alternative medicine.

    • * Two hundred eighty-three of 333 primary care physicians and 198 of 241 CAM practitioners responded this question. Respondents were asked to focus on merely one option but were able to choose several options. Thus, number of responses is higher than the number of respondents. The data in the table refer to number of responses.

    • † The head of the team is a physician (or CAM practitioner) that directs and coordinates the treatment.

    • ‡ The physician and CAM practitioner have equal standing, with neither of them heading the team.

    • § The head of the team is determined by the unique characteristics of the patient and his/her illness.

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