From Web MD
The Appeal of Integrative Medicine
“What makes integrative medicine appealing? Advocates point to deep dissatisfaction with a health care system that often leaves doctors feeling rushed and overwhelmed and patients feeling as if they're nothing more than diseased livers or damaged joints. Integrative medicine seems to promise more time, more attention, and a broader approach to healing -- one that is not based solely on the Western biomedical model, but also draws from other cultures.
"Patients want to be considered whole human beings in the context of their world," says Esther Sternberg, MD, a National Institutes of Health senior scientist and author of The Balance Within: The Science Connecting Health and Emotions.”
If you haven’t heard of integrative medicine, you will. Populations are getting sicker and it is evident within the medical community, change is needed.
Conventional vs. Integrative
Conventional Medicine – has no model for health/well-being. It focuses on disease suppression and it is reactive.
Integrative Medicine – Designed to treat the person, not just the disease. Both doctors and patients alike are bonding with the philosophy of integrative medicine and its whole-person approach.
See the illustration below
If you can’t find an integrative doctor in your area, look for these keywords in a medical practice, as they are the next best thing.
• Complimentary (I switched from an Endo practice to a “complimentary” practice)
• Alternative
• Healing
• Functional
I was always under the impression conventional doctors were primarily in the business of wellness/healing until I began working in the medical field. And then, it wasn’t until I acquired a chronic disease did this newfound knowledge had become my reality. What I’ve learned behind the scenes is that insurance companies, medical associations and big pharma are the ones dictating our healthcare. This means doctors are required to adhere to all of the industry’s respective guidelines when it comes to your health….meanwhile, you keep getting sicker.
If you’ve been treated with radiation or had your thyroid removed, but still not feeling any better…you’ve probably asked your Endo to check other things, like your hormone levels, T3, vitamin and mineral levels, but they’ve refused. If this has happened to you, it is possible that this could be the reason:
Your doctor (primarily a specialist, like the Endocrinologist) has to follow the medical “gold standard of care” guidelines set forth by the “powers that be” for thyroid care, if they don’t they could be subject to:
• Insurance Claims Denials – Doctors won’t get paid for their service; they would have to “eat” the cost of serving the patient.
• A reprimand
• Criminal charges – If doctors continue to prescribe tests/treatments that are deemed not a “medical necessity” they could be brought on fraud charges.
BUT THERE’S GOOD NEWS!
Remember my analogy in the last blog post. Math, Science and English teachers must teach those subjects according to the guidelines of their associations, but the Social Studies teacher could technically teach all three subjects, without a reprimand.
The integrative doctor is just like the social studies teacher. They have a bigger canvas to paint on and it’s accepted.
Isn’t it silly that all you have to do is call yourself something else and the insurance companies and others will not deny the patient’s treatment? Perhaps this is why “integration” is growing in popularity.
For emergent immediate needs to “stop the bleeding” so to speak, a conventional doctor may be ideal in some cases, but for on-going chronic conditions that the conventional doctor can’t/won’t address, an integrative doctor may be worth looking into.
Click here to find a doctor in your area who practices integrative medicine in the U.S.
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