tailieunhanh - Researching Complementary and Alternative Medicine

The rise of complementary and alternative medicine (CAM) – a whole array of practices, products and approaches to health and illness1 – can certainly no longer be characterised as cultural fad or fashion. Changes in the use of titles (from ‘unscientific’ and ‘marginal’ to ‘complementary’ and ‘integrative’) reflect a more substantive relocation and transformation of many of these medicines from the fringe to the mainstream of both community and professional health-care discourse and practice (Tovey et al. 2004). The most recent reports from various late modern societies suggest the use of CAM is a widespread phenomenon amongst patient groups (Girgis et al. 2005) and the general public (Adams et. | Researching Complementary and Alternative Medicine Edited by Jon Adams Researching Complementary and Alternative Medicine Complementary and alternative medicine CAM has become big business around the world. Alongside the growing consumption and provision of CAM has emerged a small but growing body of research exploring the area. Nevertheless research on this topic is still in its infancy and there is a real and urgent need to investigate CAM further. Researching Complementary and Alternative Medicine brings together leading researchers from Australia Canada Germany New Zealand Norway the UK and the USA and constitutes a valuable and timely resource for those looking to understand initiate and expand the investigation of CAM. Contributors draw upon their own CAM research work and experience to explain and review a range of methods and research issues pertinent to the contemporary field of CAM and its future development such as the issues facing practitioners who wish to conduct research how and why qualitative methods should be used alongside quantitative methods how the randomised-control trial method relates to CAM the potential of developing consumer involvement in research the challenges of conducting CAM systematic reviews. This book will be essential reading for students and academics in CAM health studies health social science and public health. The book will also be relevant reading for medical students and CAM medical and other healthcare professionals. Jon Adams is Senior Lecturer at the School of Population Health University of Queensland and Visiting Research Fellow at the School of Healthcare Studies University of Leeds UK. Jon has researched and published extensively on aspects of CAM and he is Associate Editor for the journal Complementary Therapies in .