A patient asks the nurse, "What is the major difference between traditional Western medicine and complementary and alternative therapies (CAM)?" The best reply for the nurse to make is that traditional Western medicine:

Question

a. focuses on what is done to the patient, and CAM focuses on body-mind interaction in an actively involved patient.
b. treats illnesses and is symptom specific, whereas CAM is holistic and focused more on health promotion than illness treatment.
c. is controlled by doctors and the health care industry, but CAM is the people's medicine and not motivated by profit.
d. has been tested by research and is regulated, but CAM is religiously based and not nearly as regulated.

Answer 1

A
Traditional Western medicine focuses primarily on curative actions implemented on a mostly passive patient, whereas CAM focuses more on the mind-body aspects of health, along with the active involvement of the patient. Western medicine is largely grounded in scientific research, and its various components are heavily regulated; the opposite tends to be true of CAM. Some forms of CAM have their roots in religious or cultural practices, but this is not characteristic of CAM as a whole. Both Western medicine and CAM can focus on health promotion and treatment of illness. Although critics express concern about the role of profit in Western medicine, the profit motive can also apply in CAM.