Paper
Thursday, July 22, 2004
East Meets West: Advanced Practice Nurses' Views Regarding Complementary Medicine
Cathy St.Pierre, PhD, ARNP, FNP, Christine E. Lynn College of Nursing, Christine E. Lynn College of Nursing, Florida Atlantic University, Boca Raton, FL, USA
| Learning Objective #1: Describe advanced practice nurses’ knowledge and beliefs regarding complementary medicine
|
| Learning Objective #2: Identify the types of complementary medicine currently being recommended to patients by advanced practice nurses (APNS)
|
Purpose: This descriptive survey examined nurses’ knowledge and beliefs regarding complementary medicine today. The focus of this research was on the provider's knowledge, professional recommendation and personal use of complementary therapies. Methods: An exploratory research design was utilized and a 29-item questionnaire was developed and distributed to a convenience sample of 500 nurses. Areas addressed within the survey included: herbal medicine, vitamins, acupuncture, homeopathy, Reiki, chelation and meditation. Findings, Survey results were based on a sample size of N=295. The sample was representative of five New England states and four ethnic groups. Two-thirds of the respondents were advanced practice nurses (APN). 93% of the nurses sampled believe that complementary medicine should be utilized in health care today. Over half of all participants are currently recommending some type of complementary therapy to their patients. Of interest, 62% of the sample is currently using a type of complementary therapy for their own health. Areas of complementary medicine that APNs feel most comfortable with are vitamin and herbal therapy. In contrast, the areas that APNs’ feel least comfortable with are bee venom and chelation therapy. Conclusions: Complementary medicine is quickly becoming a part of mainstream medicine today. The results of this survey clearly demonstrate that APNs’ are using and recommending complementary therapies to their patients. But it is also clear, that these recommendations are not always based on strong scientific data. Advanced practice nurses must seek out educational opportunities to enhance their knowledge and expertise of complementary medicine. This enhanced expertise will allow them to engage in a meaningful dialogue with their patients regarding the best choice of therapies, either traditional or complementary.
Back to Advanced Nursing Practice
Back to 15th International Nursing Research Congress
Sigma Theta Tau International
July 22-24, 2004