Use of complementary and alternative medicine (CAM) is widespread in the United States. Education in traditional medical schools and residencies has not kept pace with this shift in the health care paradigm. Patients with a virtually limitless array of medical problems seek the care of family physicians, who are often the first point of contact in the traditional medical system. To provide optimum health care to patients and the community, family physicians need training in complementary and alternative medicine. The main purpose of the 30-month project described in this proposal is to design, implement and evaluate an educational program in CAM for family practice residents at Maine Medical Center. The project will focus on development of a curriculum that describes the principles, safe use and appropriate referral for selected CAM therapies and facilitates effective communication with patients about their choices in complementary and alternative health care. In carrying out this project, the project personnel will build attitudes, knowledge and skills among faculty, residents, and staff of the residency program, build collaborative relationships with community practitioners of CAM, and promote an environment that is conducive to the integration of conventional medicine with complementary and alternative modalities. The teaching and learning strategies of this project will include curriculum development, didactic presentations, and an experiential component. The four main goals of the project are to: 1. Develop, implement, and evaluate a CAM curriculum for Maine Medical Center family practice residents, which will serve as a model institution-wide and for other family practice residency programs. 2. Engage a physician, fellowship-training in integrative medicine as a faculty expert, to provide in-house expertise and formal training in CAM for faculty, residents, and patients. Develop skills, knowledge and attitudes of four physician residency faculty leaders in four areas of CAM: acupuncture, manipulative therapies, herbal remedies/homeopathy, and mind-body interventions. 3. Facilitate collaborative relationships between family practice residents and faculty with local CAM providers, both for patient care and for education. 4. Promote an environment conductive to establishing partnerships between physicians and patients regarding the integration of conventional medicine with CAM therapies.
