Evaluation of the Tzu Chi Institute for Complementary and Alternative Medicine's Integrative Care Program.
OBJECTIVE
There are an increasing number of clinics providing integrative health care using new and innovative delivery models. The purpose of this study was to quantitatively and qualitatively evaluate the Integrative Care Program offered at the Tzu Chi Institute for Complementary and Alternative Medicine, Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada.


METHODS
At enrollment, data are collected on demographics, health history, current health concerns and diagnoses, quality of life/health status (SF-36) and patient satisfaction. The measures are repeated 6 months into the program. Descriptive analysis was used to summarize the data. Focus groups were also included as part of the study design.


RESULTS
Patients seeking integrative care are a highly complex population living with numerous comorbid chronic conditions. Although their baseline scores on the SF-36 are lower than Canadian population norms across all subscales, significant improvement occurred from baseline to 6 months. Qualitative data support that patients were pleased with the clinical care they received and aligned with the philosophical underpinnings of the program.


CONCLUSIONS
This is one of the first studies to evaluate integrative health care. Studies like this are needed to develop appropriate methods to assess models of integrative health care delivery.
D000328:Adult; D001955:British Columbia; D000529:Complementary Therapies; D019033:Delivery of Health Care, Integrated; D005260:Female; D017144:Focus Groups; D006304:Health Status; D006305:Health Status Indicators; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D017063:Outcome Assessment, Health Care; D010342:Patient Acceptance of Health Care / Q000523:psychology; D017060:Patient Satisfaction; D011785:Quality Assurance, Health Care; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires