Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
. 2011:2011:790951.
doi: 10.1093/ecam/nen079. Epub 2011 Jun 18.

Complementary and Alternative Medicine: Comparison of Current Knowledge, Attitudes and Interest among German Medical Students and Doctors

Karsten Münstedt  1 , Hildegard Harren, Richard von Georgi, Andreas Hackethal
Affiliations

Complementary and Alternative Medicine: Comparison of Current Knowledge, Attitudes and Interest among German Medical Students and Doctors

Karsten Münstedt et al. Evid Based Complement Alternat Med. 2011.

Abstract

Although it has been agreed that complementary and alternative medicine (CAM) should be included in the German medical curriculum, there is no consensus on which methods and how it should be taught. This study aimed to assess needs for CAM education by evaluating current knowledge, attitudes and interests of medical students, general physicians and gynecologists. Two instruments based on established and validated questionnaires were developed. One was given to seventh semester medical students and the other to office-based doctors. Data were analyzed by bivariate correlation and cross-tabulation. Altogether 550 questionnaires were distributed-280 to doctors and 270 to medical students. Completed questionnaires were returned by 80.4% of students and 78.2% of doctors. Although 73.8% (160/219) of doctors and 40% (87/217) of students had already informed themselves about CAM, neither group felt that they knew much about CAM. Doctors believed that CAM was most useful in general medicine, supportive oncology, pediatrics, dermatology and gynecology, while students believed that dermatology, general medicine, psychiatry and rheumatology offered opportunities; both recommended that CAM should be taught in these areas. Both groups believed that CAM should be included in medical education; however, they believed that CAM needed more investigation and should be taught "critically". German doctors and students would like to be better informed about CAM. An approach which teaches fundamental competences to students, chooses specific content based on evidence, demographics and medical conditions and provides students with the skills they need for future learning should be adopted.

PubMed Disclaimer

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Sources of information regarding CAM.
Figure 2
Figure 2
Perceived knowledge of various CAM methods.
Figure 3
Figure 3
Objections to various CAM methods.
Figure 4
Figure 4
Areas of conventional medicine in which use of CAM are perceived to be reasonable.
Figure 5
Figure 5
The perceived importance of CAM education in areas of conventional medicine.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

Similar articles

See all similar articles

Cited by

See all "Cited by" articles

References

    1. Münstedt K, Kirsch K, Milch W, Sachsse S, Vahrson H. Unconventional cancer therapy—survey of patients with gynaecological malignancy. Archives of Gynecology and Obstetrics. 1996;258(2):81–88. - PubMed
    1. Münstedt K, Schröter C, Brüggmann D, Tinneberg HR, von Georgi R. Complementary and alternative methods in obstetrics—results from a survey in Germany. Forsch Komplementarmed Klass Naturheilkd. In press. - PubMed
    1. Stratton TD, Benn RK, Lie DA, Zeller JM, Nedrow AR. Evaluating CAM education in health professions programs. Academic Medicine. 2007;82(10):956–961. - PubMed
    1. Nedrow AR, Istvan J, Haas M, et al. Implications for education in complementary and alternative medicine: a survey of entry attitudes in students at five health professional schools. Journal of Alternative and Complementary Medicine. 2007;13(3):381–386. - PubMed
    1. Gaylord SA, Mann JD. Rationales for CAM education in health professions training programs. Academic Medicine. 2007;82(10):927–933. - PubMed

LinkOut - more resources