Knowledge of and Attitude Toward Holistic Medicine Practices Among Pre-Nursing and Graduating Nursing Students

Purpose: There has been a rise in the use of holistic medicine practices over the last two decades (Barnes & Bloom, 2008, Tindle, Davis, Russell & Eisenberg, 2005). The Center of Disease Control (CDC) reported an increase in use of these practices specifically for pain management and mind body therapies (Barnes & Bloom, 2008). Studies have been published that involved medical students in Ireland (Loh, Ghorab, Clarke, Conroy, & Barlow, 2013), pharmacology students in Malaysia (Hasan, et. al, 2011), medical students in the United Kingdom (Jahan, Al-Ward, Siddiqui, & Al-Khouri, 2015), and in Ghana (Ameade, Amalba, Helegbe, & Mohammed, 2015). However, there is a lack of studies looking into the knowledge of and attitude towards holistic medicine practices among undergraduate students in the health professions. Our project aims to fill this information gap by inviting pre-nursing and graduating nursing students to participate in an anonymous online survey.

Methods: Starting in Spring 2018 pre-nursing and graduating nursing students were invited to participate in anonymous online survey that was approved by the Institutional Review Board (IRB) of our university. The survey probes respondents’ general attitude towards holistic medicine, which holistic medicine practices they have heard of or have personal experience with, whether they expect to learn about holistic medicine practices in their major, and which practices they plan on integrating into their future careers as health professionals. The survey was administered during Spring and Fall semester 2018, and Spring semester 2019. Data collection will continue during the Fall semester 2019.

Results: Preliminary results indicate that the vast majority of pre-nursing and nursing students have heard of at least one holistic medicine practice and have personal experience with at least one holistic medicine practice. Both groups have a positive attitude toward holistic medicine practices and close to half of respondents in both groups are very interested in learning about practices while in a nursing program. Almost three-quarters of pre-nursing and nursing students indicate that they plan on making holistic medicine practices a part of their career.

Conclusion: Teaching of holistic medicine practices should an integral part of the nursing curriculum.