Dr Merrell points out some critical changes that need to occur in American medical care and in our personal behaviors. Physicians focus today on diagnosising and treating disease but spend little time on preventing disease and promoting wellness. I am a believer that the paradigm will ultimately change from “Diagnosis and Treat” to “Predict and Prevent.” As he points, the vast majority of our health care dollars go to treating complex, chronic diseases that are often preventable. Our behaviors of poor nutrition, obesity, lack of exercise, stress, and tobacco use all lead to diseases like diabetes, heart failure, chronic lung disorders and cancer. One of the best ways to reduce health care costs would be for Americans to adjust their behaviors – hard to do of course but worth the effort. It would mean better health, longer lives and more quality of life. And it would mean there would be far less need for powerful drugs that have unwanted side effects.

I was just so thrilled to read this Dr. Merrell, that I had to write to thank you for improving my day! I am a clinical musicologist and LCSW in private practice in Louisville, KY and am really struggling right now. I have poured thousands of dollars into creating some wireless, pre-programmed headphones for delivering slow, soft, steady, soothing, instrumental usic during surgery and was just sure they would take off like a rocket! I've gotten lots of interests but apparently people are concerned that they won't get enough anesthesia and might actually feel more pain!

The sooner than integrative and complimentaru therapies are understood, accepted, and utilized by the mainstream, the healthier we'll all people, physically and fiscally!!

Thanks for this good news!

Alice Cash

I have a problem with the term “integrative medicine,” and I’m glad to report that I wasn’t alone. On day one a number of the 650 diverse practitioners at this IOM conference chimed in about the lack of inclusiveness in that terminology. Dr. Beverly Malone, the CEO of the National League for Nursing, voiced a strong statement that the term was not inclusive and requested that “integrative health care” be used instead. She reminded everyone of the historically critical role nursing and other health care professionals have played in the development of this model of care. By the end of the meeting the consensus was that the field should be called integrative health—not CAM, not integrative medicine. We’ll see.