Suggested curriculum guidelines on complementary and alternative medicine: recommendations of the Society of Teachers of Family Medicine Group on Alternative Medicine.
OBJECTIVE
The widespread use of alternative and complementary therapies by the public provides a new challenge to medical education. No standardized curriculum is available for medical educators in this field. Providing an adequate background on these therapies and reliable, useful information to our learners was a task addressed by the Society of Teachers of Family Medicine (STFM) Group on Alternative Medicine over the past 2 years.


METHODS
The group met at conferences and communicated via e-mail to develop a consensus of recommended knowledge, skills, and attitudes in complementary and alternative medicine for incorporation into the family practice residency training curriculum.


CONCLUSIONS
This article suggests guidelines as developed by this STFM group to assist programs wishing to include formal training in complementary and alternative medicine in residency training.
Kligler
B
B
Beth Israel Department of Family Medicine, Albert Einstein College of Medicine, USA. benklig@aol.com
Gordon
A
A
Stuart
M
M
Sierpina
V
V
D001291:Attitude of Health Personnel; D002983:Clinical Competence; D000529:Complementary Therapies / Q000193:education*; D003195:Computer Communication Networks; D003226:Congresses as Topic; D003479:Curriculum; D005194:Family Practice / Q000193:education*; D006801:Humans; D007396:Internship and Residency; D016730:Program Development; D013663:Teaching