Common sense suggests that alluding to the naive politician played by Jimmy Stewart in Mr. Smith Goes to Washington to describe a decision by the founder of Priceline, billionaire Jay Walker, is awfully wrong-headed. Yet there is blunt idealism in the 46-year-old Walker's language
about re-positioning the social-intellectual-scientific-policy-business
venture called TEDMED to
the nation's capital. The movie in which Walker is directing and acting
-- "curating" is his preferred term -- is shaping up as a contradictory
mix of money and mission ... Walkers's words are music to the ears of anyone who believes that
the path to meaningful reform is actually a transformation toward a
health-focused system. A potent incentive structure would need to
support it. This is the truly great question begged by Walker's comments -- the great ethical question for capitalist
medicine. And here is where the cognitive dissonance of TEDMED's "no-agenda" screeches at high enough decibels to make a dog howl. More
"Midwives have a central focus in our strategic
plan. We are hoping
Washington State can double out-of-facility births in the next two or
three years." The speaker was Jeff Thompson, M.D., MPH, chief medical
officer of
the state of Washington's Medicaid program. He spoke in a taped
interview for Symposium 2012 -- Certified Professional Midwives and
Midwifery Educators: Contributing to a New Era in Maternity Care. The
gathering took place at Warrenton, Va.'s Airlie Center on March 18, 2012
... Go here to access the article at the Huffington Post.
I published the first Integrator Blog News and Reports in March 2006. Since then: 97 issues and over 600 postings; 53 Round-ups reflecting 1060 short articles; over 3-million page views; and 3 dozen Integrator Alerts and Special Reports. From the beginning, the Integrator
was produced via a partnership with three individuals whose commitment
to the field provided most of the funding that allowed the work: Lou
Sportelli, DC, Richard Sarnat, MD and Peter Amato. I have entered a time
of transition in my professional work. This will be reflected in what Integrator readers will see going forward in the Integrator.
Here is an update on what you can expect, a report on accomplishments
in these 6 years, notes on new directions and a hearty thanks to those
who made these six years possible. More
March 14, 2012
The
patient-centered move toward interprofessional education (IPE) and team
care represents a terrific portal for entering closer dialogue about
appropriate integration of the licensed complementary and alternative
healthcare professions with conventional practice. However, the infamous
health professions silos inside of large academic health centers are
mere metaphor compared to those in which the licensed fields of
chiropractic medicine, naturopathic medicine, acupuncture and Oriental
medicine, massage therapy and midwifery. This is an invited piece
written for the blog-site of the Canadian Interprofessional Health
Collaborative. More
No one doubts whether the
Bravewell Collaborative's new mapping study added useful understanding
of the nation's health system-sponsored and academiac health
center-sponsored integrative clinics. But do these thumbnails, reports
and tables on these 29 clinics capture what the title suggests: Integrative Medicine in America: How Integrative Medicine is Being Practiced in the United States? I posed the question. Here are responses from: public health acupuncturist and researcher Beth Sommers, MPH, LAc, PhD; holistic
medical doctor Bill Manahan, MD; Integrator columnist Michael Levin;
rehab specialist and past American Association of Medical Acupuncturists
board member Mitchell Prywess, MD; an anonymous integrative MD;
National University of Health Sciences president Jim Winterstein, DC;
and senior editor of the Textbook of Functional Medicine Sheila Quinn. I conclude with my own speculations on what might be different in community-based integrative medicine. More
March 12, 2012
Patient-Centered Outcomes Research Institute draft plan comment period ends March 15: No CAM-IM presently included
International
Dana Ullman, MPH: Swiss government finds homeopathy cost-effective, covers in national health plan
Update: Marilyn Allen and the advancing effort to place TCM in World Health Organization's ICD11 codes
Integrative Centers
Bravewell publishes landmark Integrative Medicine in America (but does the subject matter reflect the title?)
University of Minnesota's Center for Spirituality and Health sets sights on "whole systems healing"
Academic Health
Six profession organization enters the team care/interprofessional education space: from dictatorship to oligarchy?
Consortium of academics in licensed fields of chiropractic, AOM, naturopathic medicine, massage and midwifery receive a breakthrough $100,000 grant from the Westreich Foundation
Costs & Coverage
Aetna's mind-body programs developed in partnership with Duke, Viniyoga and e-Mindful
Swiss analysis finds those with CAM services cost the same or less than conventional care, with higher patient satisfaction
Insurance coverage of alternative therapies on the rise ... for pets!
Professions
NCQA to "score" Vermont's naturopathic doctors in medical homes, according to report from Vermont's Lorilee Schoenbeck, ND
American Chiropractic Association House of Delegates chastise some chiropractors in effort to position the profession for primary care role
Notes from the 2010 annual report from the National Certification Commission for Acupuncture and Oriental Medicine (NCCAOM)
Effort underway to revitalize National Association of Nurse Massage Therapists
Foot Levelers, major donor to chiropractic PR effort, pledges additional million dollars
Business
Global Advances in Health and Medicine, launched by veteran team, to focus on case reports
The Joint ... a chiropractic place: Massage Envy franchise model developed to offer low-cost adjustments
An early peer-reviewed publication in this space, Alternative Medicine Review, faces challenges
People
Kara Kelly, MD elected to presidency of Society for Integrative Oncology
Christine Goertz, DC, PhD honored as Chiropractor of the Year
Botanical resource from Roy Upton and the American Herbalist Pharmacopoeia honored by the American Botanical Council
A draft plan is on the books for a major research
initiative that many in the integrative practice community believe is
potentially more aligned with whole system integrative approaches. The
initiative is the Patient Centered Outcomes Research Institute (PCORI). Integrator
adviser Taylor Walsh, an integrative medicine policy wonk, has been
tracking this movement since it broke as "comparative effectiveness
research." Walsh filed this excellently written report after PCORI's
day-long hearing on its draft plan and a PCORI Board of Governors meeting
on which he listed in. I close with some ideas of key talking points. Click in here and offer public comment. More
March 2, 2012
The publication by the Bravewell Collaborative of Integrative Medicine in America: How
Integrative Medicine Is Being Practiced in Clinical Centers Across the United
States proved successful in generating substantial media attention
for the emerging field. Yet the report looked only at the services in 29
clinics sponsored by health systems. Most are associated with academic
health centers. However, the vast majority of consumer experience of
"integrative medicine in America" is through community-based practices
of holistic and integrative medical doctors, naturopathic doctors,
functional medicine practitioners, holistic nurses, board scope
chiropractors and others. Does this report correctly represent the
field? Does it misrepresent? What would be different if a report focused on community-based practices? All responses will be included in an Integrator forum.Send to
More
February 22, 2012
Reading through Bravewell's report,
"Integrative Medicine in America: How Integrative Medicine is Being
Practiced in the United States," opens a treasure trove of riches for
those intrigued by the emerging field. One wanders through one display
after another on how medical directors in 29 health system-sponsored
integrative medicine clinics see value in their models of care. At the same time, it was clear during the media briefing and from some responses since
that this report from the Bravewell Collaborative of philanthropists in
integrative medicine is not the document to convince the skeptical. Click the title or here for the rest of the article at the Huffington Post. Please comment there.
A bit of integrative medicine history was made on January X, 2012 when the U.S. Indian Health Service (IHS) quietly announced
that licensed naturopathic doctors, acupuncturists and chiropractors
would be included in 2012 in the IHS' student loan repayment programs.
The announcement magnetized students and recent graduates. Was this
finally an end to what they view as discriminatory exclusion and a
long-overdue chance to relieve their debt burden? The inclusion was immediately celebrated by
the American Association of Naturopathic Physicians (AANP). The AANP
had targeted such inclusion as its top federal priority for the last
decade. The American Chiropractic Association followed suit with a release to their own their members. Click here for the rest of the article at the Huffington Post. Please comment!
A remarkable, integrated set of 60 leaders converged in late 2010 as the Stakeholder
Conference on Integrated Healthcare Reform.
The group, organized by the Integrated Healthcare Policy Consortium
(IHPC), explored the opportunities for integrated health care in the
Affordable Care Act. Earlier this month, IHPC published the
ambitious set of strategic directions. IHPC then advertised for a new
executive director - the opportunity of a lifetime for the right
individual. The challenge is how to take the puer aeternis
that is the integrative practice community when it come to policy -
with its non-stop dreams of transforming U.S. health care and its
limited commitment to lobbying - into a responsible participant in
changing the nuts-and-bolts of U.S. policy. The table is set. The
blueprint is in the report. Time to wake up and engage the
nuts-and-bolts policy work so well laid out in this report. More
