Healthcare at a Crossroads
The last century saw an unprecedented leap forward in medical knowledge, with technology and science bringing profound change and improvement to medicine. Nonetheless, chronic diseases continue to be a scourge to modern Western society. In fact, most of our healthcare resources are devoted, with only limited success, to dealing with these problems.
U.S. Healthcare Spending
- Less than 2% of U.S. healthcare dollars go into promoting health and preventing disease
- Chronic disease accounts for 70% of deaths and 75% of healthcare costs in the U.S.
- Overall spending is reaching $2 trillion per year—two to three times more per capita than that of other developed countries Persons in the U.S. have a lower life expectancy than those of many other countries.
A report from the Institute of Medicine states: “Our present efforts [to improve healthcare delivery] resemble a team of engineers trying to break the sound barrier by tinkering with a model T Ford. We need a new vehicle or, perhaps, many new vehicles. The only unacceptable alternative is not to change.” (“Leadership by Example: Coordinating Government Roles in Improving Health Care Quality,” The National Academies Press, p 24.)
Looking Beyond Boundaries
The imperative for change is clear too in the American public. Over 40% of adults now supplement their mainstream care with complementary therapies. Yet this popular movement reflects more than a need for new therapies. Research shows that most of these people seek complementary forms of care out of a desire for a “whole person” approach, valuing mind, body, and spirit. They also want a central role in decision-making related to their care and more ways to help themselves.
Motivated by public interest and by the growing number of health professionals committed to “whole person” care, academic and community health centers around the country have created programs focused on integrative medicine.
With the establishment in 1992 of an Office of Alternative Medicine (now the National Center for Complementary and Alternative Medicine) at the National Institutes of Health (NIH), a funding mechanism for rigorous scientific investigation of complementary therapies was put in place. As the body of research in this field grows, new models of patient care and medical education are being developed. The potential for integrative medicine to improve health and wellness and reduce healthcare costs appears significant.
Inventing a New Vehicle for Healthcare
The NIH in its roadmap for medical research, and the Institute of Medicine in its reports both on quality of healthcare delivery and complementary medicine, have called for discarding the old “silo mentality” of conventional medicine. Scientists and clinicians are encouraged to move beyond the confines of their own disciplines to collaborate on new models for team science and care. At the same time, in an increasingly multi-cultural society, we have recognized that addressing the complexity of human beings requires the knowledge and healing traditions of diverse cultures.
It is the goal of the Institute for Integrative Health to provide an environment for innovative thinking and action in health and healthcare, to foster collaborations, and to facilitate the testing and implementation of novel solutions.