Objective: The analysis was carried out with the aim of determining whether among the ADI, Modena , patients, the use of Complementary Treatment (CAM) is applied together with treatment with official medicine.
Method: As research samples, all patients receiving third-level assistance requiring two or more weekly visits were chosen. The sample consists of 35 persons, partly assisted by NODO, partly by ADI III.
All clinical files for the period 10/12/2012 to 06/02/2013 have been examined for information concerning the use of CAM .
Results: The sample has been subdivided as follows: 23 males (65.71%), 12 females (34.29%); 30 persons assisted by NODO (85.71%) and 5 by ADI III (14.29%). From the analysis we conclude that neither the patients assisted by NODO nor those assisted by ADI III were receiving complementary therapy.
Conclusions: CAM techniques are not yet included in daily clinical practice for two fundamental reasons: the first is that patients are still under-informed and do not understand the full utility of CAM treatment; secondly, the health workers themselves have not included such therapies within their own professional spectrum.
Research towards CAM treatment has still to be consolidated, and this is itself hindered by the fact that it is difficult to examine many of these techniques with controlled random trials.
CAM work involves a holistic perspective with which it is difficult to find comparisons and contrasts, but this by no means reduces its therapeutic value.
The rise in the numbers of people who are moving towards CAM therapies, often autonomously, demonstrates that there is already considerable curiosity with regard to these “new” therapies. It is now up to the health workers to recognises this trend and update themselves in CAM methodology, in order to make such assistance as full and complete as possible.
