The 130th Annual Meeting of APHA

Abstract #38964

Vincent M. B. Silenzio, MD, MPH, Center for Family Medicine and Department of Sociomedical Sciences, Columbia University, 630 W. 168th St., VC 12-217, New York, NY 10032, 212-305-9107, vs146@columbia.edu

The acknowledged use of complementary and alternative medicine (CAM) and health practices in the US demonstrates its significant role in the treatment of chronic diseases. [1-3] The range of complaints and illnesses for which these therapies are used represents the full spectrum of challenges facing the public health sector. As these illnesses collectively carry a significant public health impact [4], may be preventable through CAM practices, and often represent illnesses for which there do not exist a wide range of therapeutic or palliative options, CAM may represent a potential contribution to public health. Using an interdisciplinary team of investigators drawn from medicine, epidemiology, sociology, psychology, medical anthropology, philosophy, and ethics, our research frame conceptualizes CAM practices as ethnomedical system(s) in a culturally-specific and sensitive context. The specific aims of this project include: 1) implementation of a novel multi-method, focused ethnographic approach [5] to screen potentially effective primary or adjunctive CAM therapies for lethal or debilitating illnesses, 2) creation of a permanent website for ongoing data collection and information exchange regarding the state-of-the-art in the area of potentially useful CAM therapies, and 3) evaluate the suitability of the focused ethnographic approach as a screening method and it’s reproducibility in other settings.

Learning Objectives:

At the conclusion of this session, participants will be able to
• Articulate the rationale for studying CAM practices as an ethnomedical system
• Discuss the use of focused ethnographic research methods in public health research
• Analyze the core epistemological and ontological challenges in designing and conducting scientific studies of CAM

Keywords: Research, Alternative Medicine/Therapies

Presenting author's disclosure statement:
Organization/institution whose products or services will be discussed: Columbia University
I do not have any significant financial interest/arrangement or affiliation with any organization/institution whose products or services are being discussed in this session.