title: Complementary and alternative medicine practitioners' standard of care: responsibilities to patients and parents.
abstract: In this article we explain (1) the standard of care that health care providers must meet and (2) how these principles apply to complementary and alternative medicine practitioners. The scenario describes a 14-year-old boy who is experiencing back pain and whose chiropractor performed spinal manipulation but did not recognize or take steps to rule out serious underlying disease-in this case, testicular cancer--either initially or when the patient's condition continued to deteriorate despite treatment. We use chiropractic care for a patient with a sore back as an example, because back pain is such a common problem and chiropracty is a common treatment chosen by both adult and pediatric patients. The scenario illustrates the responsibilities that complementary and alternative medicine practitioners owe patients/parents, the potential for liability when deficient care harms patients, and the importance of ample formal pediatric training for practitioners who treat pediatric patients.
authors: Osgoode Hall Law School, York University, Toronto, Ontario, Canada.
authors: Joan
authors: J
authors: Gilmour
authors: Christine
authors: C
authors: Harrison
authors: Leyla
authors: L
authors: Asadi
authors: Michael H
authors: MH
authors: Cohen
authors: Sunita
authors: S
authors: Vohra
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D001416:Back Pain / Q000150:complications / Q000209:etiology; D002170:Canada; D002648:Child; D002684:Chiropractic / Q000941:ethics / Q000331:legislation & jurisprudence; D000529:Complementary Therapies / Q000193:education / Q000941:ethics / Q000331:legislation & jurisprudence / Q000592:standards*; D033161:Government Regulation; D006801:Humans; D007258:Informed Consent; D016365:Liability, Legal; D008297:Male; D026882:Manipulation, Chiropractic / Q000941:ethics; D061214:Patient Safety; D010372:Pediatrics; D059039:Standard of Care / Q000941:ethics / Q000331:legislation & jurisprudence; D013736:Testicular Neoplasms / Q000150:complications / Q000175:diagnosis; D014481:United States