Holistic Medicine and Health Prayer In Medicine

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Holistic Medicine and HealthPrayer In Medicine

• Stan Jack, D.O.
• Saint Joseph Hospital Family Practice Residency

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And the prayer offered in faith will make the
sick person well the Lord will raise him
up.James 515 NIV
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Holistic Medicine - Not to be confused with
Alternative Medicine!
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Alternative Medicine refers to techniques that
are not currently (widely) accepted by
conventional (MD or DO) practitioners.

• Herbalism
• Acupuncture
• Homeopathy
• Reiki
• Prayer???

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So then what is Holistic Medicine? One
definitionHolistic medicine is a system of
health care which fosters a cooperative
relationship among all those involved, leading
towards optimal attainment of the physical,
mental emotional, social and spiritual aspects of
health.-Canadian Holistic Medical Association
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Another definitionHolistic Health is actually
an approach to life. Rather than focusing on
illness or specific parts of the body, this
ancient approach to health considers the whole
person and how he or she interacts with his or
her environment. It emphasizes the connection of
mind, body, and spirit.-American Holistic
Health Association
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Holistic Medicine sounds pretty good! These are
admirable goals

• Physical health
• Mental emotional health
• Social health
• Spiritual health

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In TheoryMost physicians agree with a holistic
approach. Who wouldnt?!
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In PracticeSky-rocketing health care costs and
shorter doctor visits make it difficult to
address all of these issues in one visit. In
addition, while most clinicians receive training
to help you with your physical and
mental/emotional health (and even social to a
certain extent), most physicians are
uncomfortable (and have even been taught to
AVOID) issues of spirituality.
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Why have we been taught to avoid spiritual
issues?

• It is considered Alternative
• Its not POLITICALLY CORRECT! It is one thing to
  be polite, but to avoid the subject altogether. .
  .

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Things are changingThere have been MANY quality
studies done over the years that have
demonstrated that prayer is beneficial to
patients (see Duke link), but recently two
studies caught the attention of both the medical
community and the media (see MSN link).
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The first study evaluated the effects of PRAYER
on FERTILITY(Journal of Reproductive Medicine,
September 2001)

• 199 women undergoing fertility treatment
• Similar ages and fertility factors
• HALF were assigned to be prayed for
• HALF were not assigned to a prayer team
• Findings A DOUBLING of the pregnancy rate among
  women who were prayed for!

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What was especially remarkable about this
particular study?

• The women were in Korea
• The prayer groups were in the U.S., Canada, and
  Australia
• Neither the women or the prayer groups knew they
  were part of a study - they never met!

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The second study evaluated the effect of PRAYER
on patients recovering from HEART
SURGERY(American Heart Journal, November 2001)

• 150 patients
• All had coronary artery disease requiring stent
  placement
• All underwent the stenting procedure

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• Post-operatively, each patient was randomly
  assigned to one of five groups guided imagery,
  stress relaxation, healing touch, intercessory
  prayer, or no complementary therapy.
• Findings The prayed for group had fewer
  complications than any of the other patients,
  including those receiving other forms of
  complementary therapies!

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Why was this study notable?Again, prayer was
done not at the bedside, but at remote locations
- the patients and the prayer groups never met!
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Where do we go from here?Prayer has been shown
to be an effective treatment modality by
randomized controlled trials (RCTs), the most
highly regarded form of clinical research.
Physicians and other health care providers
should consider making this a routine part of
their practice.
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Tips for getting startedPatients

• Talk to your doctor about prayer
• If you want prayer to be a part of your holistic
  care, consider asking your physician to pray for
  you

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Physicians

• Talk about these studies with your patients
• Gain a better understanding of where your
  patients are spiritually
• Ask for permission before you pray for your
  patients, and respect their beliefs

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Questions?