NATIONAL CENTER FOR COMPLEMENTARY AND INTEGRATIVE HEALTH (NCCIH)

· Founded in 2014 in the National Institutes of Health.

· The Federal Government’s lead agency for scientific research on complimentary and integrative health care.

· Preceded by the National Center for Complementary and Alternative Medicine (1998)

· The goals of the the agency:

· Advance the science and practice of symptom management.

· Develop effective, practical, personalized strategies for promoting health and well-being.

· Enable better evidence-based decision making regarding complementary and integrative health approaches and their integration into healthcare and health promotion.

To explore more, visit the NCCIH’s webpage at:  https://www.nccih.nih.gov/ (Links to an external site.)

The use of complimentary and integrative therapies has grown rapidly in last decades. Reasons people use complimentary and integrative therapies:

1. Dissatisfaction with modern medicine. Patients are not satisfied with allopathic care because it is seen as ineffective, it produces adverse effects, or it is impersonal, too costly, or too technological.

2. Need for personal control. The providers of alternative therapies are less authoritarian and more empowering, as they offer the patient the opportunity to have autonomy and control in their healthcare decisions.

3. Philosophical congruence. The alternative methods of therapy are compatible with the patients’ values, worldview, spiritual philosophy, or beliefs regarding the nature and meaning of health/health and illness/illness. These therapies are now frequently used by patients with cancer, arthritis, chronic back or other pain, stress-related problems, AIDS, gastrointestinal problems, and anxiety.