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Modern medicine often inspires awe. The huge gleaming
hospitals, expensive computerized equipment and
sophisticated scanning machines appear very impressive
and reassuring when you are afflicted by a disease.
However, paradoxically, even though the effectiveness
of medical technology has improved dramatically,
more patients than ever before have become dissatisfied
with their medical care today. This situation has
resulted in a move towards 'alternative' medicine,
which has become increasingly popular all over the
world. Even in the United States of America (the
bastion of high-tech scientific medicine), more
than 50 per cent of the patients have consulted
an alternative medicine practitioner, mainly because
they were unhappy with modern medical care.
There are many reasons for this unhappiness with
modern medicine. Patients increasingly feel that
medicine has become too commercial and that doctors
are too busy to spend time with them. They are unhappy
with the impersonal nature of modern medicine, especially
when the doctor spends more time looking at their
reports and scans, rather than with them. While
it is true that patients need technology, they also
need tender, loving care; after all, doctors need
to look after not only their medical problems, but
also their emotional needs! Moreover, while modern
medicine excels in certain areas (such as complex
surgery for the repair of birth defects and the
use of antibiotics for serious infections), it has
failed miserably in the areas of disease prevention
and the management of the myriad chronic illness
(such as diabetes, hypertension and heart disease)
to which modern human beings are prone to, because
of their lifestyle.
Alternative medicine, on the other hand, offers
a markedly different perspective. Rather than focussing
on a person's medical problems in isolation, alternative
medicine treats the patient as a whole; hence the
popular term, holistic medicine. Doctors practicing
alternative medicine sit down and talk to the patient;
they touch and feel him and ask many questions.
And such attention feels good, in refreshing contrast
to the modern doctor who rarely has even 15 minutes
to spend with the patient. (Often, tender loving
care and personal attention are all that alternative
medicine practitioners have to offer, but they offer
it very well indeed !) There is no doubt of the
efficacy of the placebo effect, and many ailments
will get better when the patient has someone he
can talk to. Also, the simple act of touching the
patient, can have a therapeutic effect. Alternative
medicine doctors are very good at reassuring patients,
as contrasted with the coldly scientific approach
of western medicine.
Modern medicine treats illness using science and
technology; it focuses narrowly how the doctor can
solve the problem when the patient is ill. Alternative
medicine, in a radically different approach, emphasis's
the importance of staying healthy and requires individuals
to take more responsibility for their own health.
Traditional medical wisdom (for example, ayurveda
in India) linked health to a state of harmony and
disease to a state of imbalance, and focussed on
well-being and remaining well, and not on just 'fixing'
the problem after one fell ill!
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At this stage, we need to differentiate between
alternative and complementary therapies. Since alternative
treatments are used instead of conventional regimens,
they can be medically dangerous and can delay standard
medical care. Complementary
therapies, on the other hand, are used in
conjunction with mainstream treatment and are much
more commoner. Complementary therapies become alternative
only when promoted as 'stand-alone' remedies for
serious illnesses. It is not the therapy itself,
but its goal or the intention behind its use, that
defines a regimen as alternative versus complementary.
Unfortunately, the practice of alternative medicine
in India today leaves a lot to be desired. For one,
such medicine does not have a universally accepted
scientific basis; hence, it is difficult to rigorously
analyze its claims. Since there is no need for formal
publication or peer review in alternative systems
of medicine, there is little scientific documentation
available about their efficacy or side-effects,
so that it becomes difficult to confirm claims or
dispute them. Consequently, one has to blindly trust
the doctor . Authoritative journals or texts are
difficult to find; and most publications use little
scientific rigour, being based mostly on anecdotal
case reports, with little documentation or proof.
Moreover, since there is no official monitoring
of the practitioners of alternative medicine, anyone
can make tall claims and get away with them ! Also,
since there are few formal training requirements,
anyone can practice alternative medicine, with minimal
skills or qualifications. Unfortunately, unscrupulous
practitioners have mushroomed, who are out to make
a quick buck, and malpractice's and quackery flourish.
Alternative medicine practitioners need to be made
accountable for their actions to ensure that they
are up to date with their education. Also, some
type of peer review mechanism needs to be put in
place to ensure the safety of the public. Otherwise,
the danger is that medicine can become a 'bastardised'
system (for example, homeopathic practitioners in
India who prescribe allopathic antibiotics for coughs
and colds) which can harm patients considerably.
One of the reasons for this sorry state of affairs
is that alternative medical systems receive little
official support and minimal funding. The situation
often deteriorates into a conventional versus alternative
medicine confrontation, with each system belittling
the other, and this is a real tragedy. By ignoring
alternative systems, doctors may be depriving patients
of better medical treatment options. We need to
remember that all doctors are on the same side -
all of us want our patients to get better, no matter
what system of medicine we practice !
Diverse modalities such as massage, Reiki, yoga,
ayurveda, acupressure, hypnosis, homeopathy, naturopathy
and many others can work in conjunction with each
other as part of a unified team rather than in competition.
We need to learn to combine the best of both worlds
- high technology with high touch - and this is
called integrative medicine, as pioneered by Dr
Andrew Weil of the USA. Integrative medicine neither
rejects conventional medicine nor embraces alternative
medicine uncritically - just because most alternative
medicine systems are 'natural' does not automatically
make them better ! For example, for emergency care
in the case of acute medical problems such as a
fracture, Western medicine is still the best bet.
However, for chronic diseases such as arthritis,
asthma, angina and hypertension, alternative medicine
may offer a better choice for some patients. The
most important requirement is that you need to find
a good doctor, no matter what system of medicine
you choose to follow. It is equally important that
you understand the limits and the rationale of the
system, so that you are not taken for a ride. Thus,
if an ayurvedic doctor prescribes antibiotics, you
should begin worrying!
The combined knowledge of both old and new healing
modalities is ultimately superior than a single-model
approach to health and well-being. After all, no
system of medicine can claim to have a monopoly
on knowledge! What is needed today is a clinically
responsible balance between the science of modern
medicine and the comfort of alternative medicine.
We need to combine the best of both worlds, much
like fusion music does, and physicians from both
sides can learn from each other! If Indian doctors
are willing to blend an open mind with the scientific
discipline which is needed for rigorous research,
given our immense patient population and rich traditional
medical knowledge base, they can become world leaders
in providing the best medical care to their patients.
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