Focus on Alternative and Complementary Therapies
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Focus Alternat Complement Ther©2005 Pharmaceutical Press
Focus Altern Complement Ther 1998; 3: 183
Demands for complementary medicine (CM) are increasing worldwide. The reasons for this phenomenon are only partly known. In epidemiological studies carried out to date it has been shown that patients in Germany have personal motivations for using CM treatments. Additionally, CM patients are more demanding with regard to establishing a good patient/doctor relationship. We investigated the personal characteristics and personal attitudes/views of patients making use of homeopathy (HO) or conventional medicine (reference group, RG).
Between September 1997 and April 1998 a total of 1024 patients (response rate: 40.4%; n = 414) were approached in the offices of homeopathic practitioners (n = 220) or general practitioners (n = 194) in the area around Nuremberg (Bavaria, Germany), and asked to complete questionnaires for an epidemiological study. The items in the questionnaire covered socio-economic, illness-related and psychological parameters.
HO patients differed significantly from the RG. The former had a higher level of education (p = 0.002), smoked less (p = 0.012) and were more frequently on a diet (p < 0.001). Furthermore, HO patients were more often chronically ill (p < 0.001) and more often dissatisfied with conventional treatment (p < 0.001) in comparison with the RG. In addition, HO patients set a greater store on a personal commitment on the part of the doctor (52%) than did the RG (39%).
HO patients differ from the RG both in terms of personality data and personal attitudes towards a good doctor/patient relationship. The present epidemiological study confirms earlier results showing that patients turn to CM for personal reasons and because they attack greater importance to having a good doctor/patient relationship.
