Complementary Therapies: A Report on their Role in Healthcare

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Table of Contents
Introduction................................................................................................................................................1
LO 1............................................................................................................................................................2
Alexander technique.............................................................................................................................2
Reflexology............................................................................................................................................3
Hydrotherapy.........................................................................................................................................3
LO 2............................................................................................................................................................5
Anorexia.................................................................................................................................................5
Ulcerative colitis....................................................................................................................................6
Sciatica...................................................................................................................................................7
Critical analysis.....................................................................................................................................7
LO 3............................................................................................................................................................9
3.1...........................................................................................................................................................9
3.2.........................................................................................................................................................10
3.3.........................................................................................................................................................11
LO 4..........................................................................................................................................................12
4.1.........................................................................................................................................................12
4.2.........................................................................................................................................................13
Conclusion...............................................................................................................................................14
Reference................................................................................................................................................15
Introduction
Complementary therapies are very famous due to increasing awareness of the harm caused by
the intake of chemicals given in the orthodox method of treatment for a longer period of time.
Complementary systems and therapies are also known as alternative modes of treatment as
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they complement the orthodox mode of treatment and have less evidence of curing the disease
completely (Lindquist et al.,2018). Few trivial conditions have evidence of complete cure by
complementary therapies. In cases where the patient is suffering from a severe long-standing
medical condition, these therapies help the patient to cope up with the effect of symptoms and
side effect of the medication by relaxing the mind and body and maintaining the natural balance
of the body.
Complementary therapies include reflexology, Alexander technique, hydrotherapy, chiropractic
etc. the main difference between the orthodox method of treatment and alternative treatment
claims to treat the person as a whole and merely treat the symptoms of the disease. This helps
in managing the severe effects of life-threatening disease on at the physical and mental level.
These treatments are usually effective when taken for a long period of time, unlike orthodox
treatment that is to be taken till the symptoms last which may vary depending on the disease. In
this assignment role of various therapies in various conditions will be discussed and the scope
of complementary therapies will be discussed. Critical analysis of the reforms required for the
treatment in the field alternative medicine and recommendation will be given along with the
conclusion of the article.
LO 1
Alexander technique
Alexander technique is mainly focused to improve the way of life, by feeling better and moving
consciously in a natural, relaxed and comfortable way. This technique teaches how to identify
and lose the harmful hit and adopt a healthy way of life. Alexander technique is more of a
technique included in the complementary therapies. It helps to train the mind to move in a
conscious manner utilizing the right muscles and hence make the body more relaxed and
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comfortable. It helps to reduce stress on the mind and body and hence make the person feel
relaxed and more mindful of their movement. In this technique relationship between the head
and the spine is the key as these are the core support of the neuromusculoskeletal system and
facilitate movement of the body (MacPherson et al.,2015).
This technique has very good scope in all the musculoskeletal complaints but its benefits in
other fields do not hold any evidence. This technique is given by a teacher trained in this
profession and it includes learning various exercises. This can be learned in a short span of
time but has to be implemented for a lifetime, to gain maximum benefit at the mental and the
physical level (Khanna and Greeson., 2013). This technique helps to regain the correct
movement and posture and make it a habit to keep away the muscular pain and ache. Another
scope of the Alexander technique is for musicians to help them open the vocal cords and
improve the air flow.
Reflexology
Reflexology is a technique under the branch of alternative medicine also known as
pseudoscience. In this treatment, the pressure is applied to various points on hands and feet.
These points are said to be connected to certain functions of the brain and the body. The
advantages of this treatment according to the Chinese medicine is that they believe these spots
are connected to the functions of the body and applying pressure improves the circulation of
blood to these organs and hence improve the functioning. It can also help to reduce stress,
pain, and help to restore the natural balance of the mind and body. Reflexology is mainly known
to reduce stress there is no medical proof that this treatment can treat a medical condition as it
is based on pseudo-scientific methods. Massage of the hand and foot can alleviate stress
(Smith et al.,2018).
The therapist would usually access the patient after the first visit and then plan the consecutive
visit. One session might last 30 minutes to 60 minutes including discussion and therapy. The
treatment is usually given till the patient feels better and wants to willingly leave the treatment.
Reflexology is used by patients usually in anxiety disorders, and diseases that are associated
with pain. There is no evidence of the reduction in pathology involved in the disease but it
definitely helps to reduce pain in certain areas by applying pressure to the concerned points on
the foot and hand (McVicar et al.,2016).
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Hydrotherapy
As the name suggests hydrotherapy uses water to relieve pain and stress. It is another branch
of complementary treatment that is used by the physiotherapist and in occupational therapy. In
this therapy, the physical properties of water are used for pain relief and other benefits given by
this therapy. The physical properties of water are used in various combinations, such as its
temperature, solubility, and pressure (Mooventhan and Nivethitha., 2014). Hydrotherapy is
given by partial or complete immersion of the body or its part in water, as required by the
complaint. This technique is mainly used for hot and cold bath, irrigation of the wound or as a
cleansing agent.
The disease that has evidence of improvement with hydrotherapy is arthritis, an exercise in a
warm and cold pool and other rheumatic complaints. The types of hydrotherapy include sitz
bath, watsu, and warm water bath. One session of hydrotherapy lasts for around 30-40 minutes,
just like other complementary therapies hydrotherapy is also used to improve the quality of life
and reduce the impact of disease on the body along with other orthodox treatment. The benefits
of hydrotherapy depend on the effects of the cold and hot water on the body, along with the
other healing properties of the water. The property of water reduces the actual weight of the
body and hence helps in increasing the threshold of muscle training as well as warm water as a
soothing effect on the muscles. It mainly helps in relaxing the body reduce discomfort and
promote general well being (Deng et al.,2013).
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LO 2
Anorexia
Anorexia nervosa is a psychiatric illness in which a person has an intense fear of gaining weight
and hence there is a refusal to eating and maintains their weight below normal. Those suffering
from anorexia nervosa have a distorted body image, they feel they look heavier than their actual
weight and might starve themselves or do intense physical exercise (Lock and Le Grange.,
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2015). Anorexia nervosa is an eating disorder usually associated with depression, anxiety, and
other behavioral faults. Diagnosis is made on overall personality and behaviors of the patient,
their eating habits, exercise and approach towards the physical health. The ideal treatment for
such patient is counseling, nutritious diet, and positive attitude towards self. Counseling is only
to motivate the patient to eat well, nutritious food is the basic requirement in returning to health
in these patients.
The best approach is the one that the patient can accept well, the approach is not only the
patient must start eating well but also understand the importance of eating and good health. The
best approach is when the family is involved in making the patient understand the harmful
effects of the pattern that they follow they could take the help of an expert psychotherapist if
they cannot help the patient. Then there must introduction of a good nutritious diet and a
positive attitude towards life. Such patients need an integrated approach, what their body is
lacking is the source of energy and only food can supplement it. Hence good diet selection is
immensely important in treating anorexia and reversing the patient condition (Zipfel et al.,2015).
Ulcerative colitis
Ulcerative colitis is a chronic disease that causes inflammation of the bowels and hence
improper digestion. In this condition usually, the innermost lining of the large intestine is
affected. Research has shown that ulcerative colitis may be present as a precursor of colon
cancer. The symptoms include bloody diarrhea, loose stool, irregular stool and mucus in stool
(Celikbilek et al.,2013). The main cause of ulcerative colitis is an opportunistic infection due to
decreased immunity. The first step of treatment given by orthodox medicine is anti-inflammatory
drugs. The role of complementary therapies in this condition is mainly to maintain the balance of
mind and body as the patient is usually demotivated due to long-standing diarrhea, dysentery,
and weakness. They acquire intense fear of eating due to this condition and hence need to relax
the mind and body while taking the treatment.
The herbal medicine can be very helpful in the patient suffering from these diseases as the
source of herbal medication is usually plants and hence there is no harmful effect on the body
which helps to avoid further damage to the system. In the method of treatment with herbal
therapies the patient is treated as a whole and hence this treatment would also them to relax
their mind and not only the body (Awaad et al.,2013). This treatment is from Indian origin and
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still widely practiced in many parts of the world. It is also known as Ayurvedic method of
treatment. The principle of Ayurvedic system is based on Sanskrit literature and learning.
Sciatica
Sciatica is a neuromuscular disorder due to compression of the nerves that originate from the
spinal cord. This causes irritation of the sciatic nerve and the pain arising due to this is known
as sciatica. A patient might usually have unilateral or bilateral pain depending upon the
compression and irritation of the nerves. This nerve supplies the muscles of the gluteal region
and the major part of the lower limb and hence irritation of this nerve causes a radiating pain in
the entire limb. This is usually causing post accident fall, injury, recent studies show that obesity
can also lead to sciatica, as obesity cause reduction of the mineral density of the bone and lose
musculature (Selby and Smith-Osborne.,2013). The orthodox medicine manages this condition
by giving analgesic to reduce that pain and anti-inflammatory to reduce the irritation of the
nerve.
Reflexology is a complementary method of treatment that mainly focus on relieving pain and
relaxing the body by applying appropriate pressure on the spot that corresponds to the affected
body part in the hand and feet. There has been any evidence of the effectiveness of this therapy
in reducing pain and treating the condition unless the cause is a lifestyle disorder. This has good
scope in the disease of the musculoskeletal system. The only contraindication is when the
disease is in an advanced stage where the only relaxation would not help the patient and
involvement of surgery is necessary (Shatzer and Choi., 2017).
Critical analysis
The approach of the orthodox system of medicine and the complementary therapies is; in
orthodox system the patient is a system of organs and each pathology or physiological disorder
is separately judges unless they emerge to be a disorder, each system has its own level of
specialization and hence the patient might need several doctors at the same time. Whereas in
the complementary system of medicine the patient is treated as a whole, all this complaints and
suffering and feeling are taken into consideration and then the medicine is prescribed, but this
system promises the therapist to understand the entire human body which is quite challenging.
People in the UK are not fully aware of the scope of complementary therapies. With the little
knowledge of the therapies that are permitted to practice the people unaware of its scope and
limitation. And those who are completely against the side effects of the chemicals due to the
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orthodox medicine do not wish to take orthodox treatment and hence opt for various
complementary therapies.
Complementary therapies act on the person in a holistic manner and hence the treatment is
usually gradual. For those who understand the beneficial effects of this system they would be
happy to wait to see the problems go but for those who have opted for complementary therapy
only because the orthodox treatment could not do much benefit would feel cheated and
demotivated in search of quick results this would further make them make fixed idea about the
system. The ideal way of treatment would be when both the systems that are the orthodox
medicine and the alternate mode of treatment are taken hand in hand. This requires the
practitioner to be aware of the effectiveness of each system and then educate and guide people
to opt for the appropriate treatment. This type of integrated practice must be motivated by the
government.
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LO 3
3.1
Social media plays an important role in creating awareness about various issues related to
health or otherwise. But unfortunately, all sources of information are not reliable. There are
many sources through which any information can reach to the masses, out of this source the
most popular ones are the social media. This is because the human mind might forget what they
read but they do not forget what they see or hear. Audio-visual is one of the strongest types of
memory. Complementary medicines are not used by many people and hence before these
methods could be tested for effectiveness based on the data, it has to be understood by the
audience. To access the reliability of information available about the efficient usage and
research being conducted on the herbal medicine three media source were evaluated.
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The BBC new has produced a documentary which is about the new sources of herbal medicine
being explored (Kennedy et al.,2013). In a health magazine of the UK, there is a discussion on
how home remedies helped a child to recover severe sinusitis without the orthodox treatment
(Wink, M., 2015). And another source of information in the social media is the interview of a
physician who is practicing in Asia and educating many practitioners all over the world since 35
years (Bone and Mills., 2013). These sources of information are usually reliable only when the
data shown is directly from the first party. In the given articles the interview is direct of the user
and hence there are lesser chances of it being untrue. But information can be manipulated in
any manner for some amount of monetary gains and therefore the exact result can be known
only when the evaluation is done directly by the government of the UK; where the user and
therapist are directly interviewed.
3.2
The scope of the herbal medication is in all the conditions where the disease is at the level of a
physiological level, with or without the involvement of severe pathology. In cases such as
fractures, shock or burn, such emergency and a life-threatening situation where the life of the
patient is at risk are to be taken to the hospital where quick orthodox treatment is available to
save the life of the patient (Kennedy et al.,2013). In cases where the patient has time and the
disease is deadly to the patient has to take lifetime medication irrespective of the method of
treatment in such cases, herbal medicine can be used. In such cases, there is loss gradual loss
of vital function due to the disease but the ineffectiveness of the medication or morbidity of the
disease the patient losses hope. In such a condition, the support of herbal medication can give
peaceful death to the patient. Wherein when the death approaches the patient, they would have
a balanced mind and body.
The death would not be under the knife due to extensive procedure pain and intolerance but
merely due to the lack of the body to carry the required life functions. Herbal treatment treats the
person as a whole and hence acts on the mind and the body calms the patient and gives a
positive outlook towards life (Wink, M., 2015). Also in the trivial condition where the symptom is
due to alteration of the physiology and no underlying pathology, e.g. when a patient comes with
acidity on a daily basis. Regular intake of antacid would affect the liver in the long run. But
treatment with herbal medicine can help to solve the problem without affecting the liver and
improve the digestion of the person.
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3.3
Herbal medicine is the branch of alternative medicine in which the remedies are prepared from
natural sources and hence the amount of damage done to the body after ingestion of such
remedies is minimal. The only drawback of this method is not many people know about its
effectiveness scope and limitation. If a patient is claimed to be treated by a quack for a certain
condition which is under limitation, the quack therapist is not blamed but the system. Therefore
proper education the practitioner in the public health and social sector and the public is
necessary to make an informed decision and to guide the patient to gain correct advice. Since
there are no policies to safeguard the practice and there are no regulations and legislation.
Because of this, there are more amounts of illegal practice and hence poor results (Chen et
al.,2014).
This is a vicious cycle that can be broken by the involvement of the government and the
practitioners. There is worldwide usage of this therapy and it is widely used in the Asian
countries, therefore there are many proved results of the effects do the therapy. Hence, it
should be med available to the public, if there is no benefit there would be no harm to the body
but, the body will be enriched with various medicinal herbs. Infect if proper awareness is created
and the government allows the practice of herbal therapy along with the orthodox medicine it
can help the patients attain faster results without any harmful effects of the chemicals on the
body. There are proven results that these medicine act wonderfully in an integrated manner.
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LO 4
4.1
To ensure safe practice for the benefit of the patients it is necessary to follow rules, regulations,
and legislation given by the government. Legislation helps to safeguard the public and protect
their rights. There is an organization named as The Therapy Agency (TTA) that registers
various conventional therapies after complete verification and analysis of its documented
benefits. Various practitioners have to attain permission from this organization in order to
practice in the country. Osteopathy and Chiropractic are the most widely used therapies and
therefore too much in demand by the public (Brami et al.,2016). These therapies are legally
practiced in the UK and hence many organizations have attached complementary therapy clinic,
this helps to provide better services to the patients in an integrated fashion under one roof. In
case of any harm to the patients during or due to effects of the therapy legal action can be taken
against the practitioner through TTA.
In the light of the demand of the therapies and providing better services to the patients; the
therapist is given quality education and trained well before they could do register themselves for
practicing their respective therapies. The organization also helps the therapist to find
themselves an authentic therapist and not waste their money in unauthentic services. Every
complementary therapy must have documented and tested reports to prove its effectiveness
and no harm to the human being, then only they can be registered as a legal practice. Currently,
in the UK, there is no support from the government for certain therapies, many times the
documented work is submitted but yet there are no regulations from the government (Fogarty et
al.,2013).
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