Belief, attitude and self-use of complementary and alternative medicine (cam) among allopathic doctors: where are we?

Author: 
Manoj K Gupta., Dinesh Sharma., Gurpreet Singh., Sudhir Pasricha., Kapil Pandya and Barun B Patel

Background: Holistic care is imperative to Universal Health Coverage in India.
Objectives: To estimate knowledge, attitude and self-use of CAM among allopathy doctors.
Methodology: Five domains were assessed using structured questionnaire viz. participant characteristics, knowledge, attitude, self-use and practices related to CAM.
Results: A total of 220 doctors participated. Median age of study participants was 30 years. Majority (90%) had heard about CAM. Most commonly quoted CAM modalities were Ayurveda (88%) and Homeopathy (78%). Majority (80%) opined simultaneous CAM use bypatients. Mean Attitude Score was 71.5 ± 10.98 (95% CI 70.05–72.96). Self-use of CAM was reported by 39%. Respiratory, musculoskeletal and gastrointestinal disorders were most common reasons for self-use. Integration of CAM in medicine curriculum was suggested by 48% doctors.
Conclusion: Attitude towards CAM was favourable.Limited knowledge and dilemma regarding scientific correctness were major barriers towardsuse of CAM modalities among doctors.

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DOI: 
http://dx.doi.org/10.24327/ijcar.2018.12842.2271
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