title: Documentation of prescriptions and clinical outcomes in a homeopathic hospital setting in West Bengal, India.
abstract: Documentation of prescriptions and clinical outcomes in routine homeopathic practice is a prerequisite for conducting targeted research in homeopathy. Six homeopathic physicians participated in methodical data collection over a 3-month period in 6 outpatient departments of Mahesh Bhattacharyya Homeopathic Medical College and Hospital, West Bengal, India. A specifically designed Microsoft Excel spreadsheet enabled recording of consecutive appointments-date, patient identity, medical condition/complaint, whether chronic/acute, new/follow-up case, patient-assessed outcome (7-point Likert-type scale: -3 to +3), prescribed homeopathic medication, and whether other medication/s being taken for the condition. Spreadsheets were submitted monthly for data synthesis and analysis. A total of 1972 patients' follow-up generated data of 2905 appointments, of which 2272 (78.2%) were positive, 183 (6.3%) negative, and 450 (15.5%) showed no change. Strongly positive outcomes (scores of +2/+3) were recorded in osteoarthritis, piles, cough, dysfunctional uterine bleeding, chronic suppurative otitis media, and conjunctivitis. This systematic recording short-listed promising areas of future homeopathic research.
authors.affiliation: Clinical Research Unit (Homeopathy), Siliguri, Central Council for Research in Homeopathy, Government of India drsubhranilsaha@hotmail.com.
authors.forename: Subhranil
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Saha
authors.affiliation: Clinical Research Unit (Homeopathy), Siliguri, Central Council for Research in Homeopathy, Government of India.
authors.forename: Munmun
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Koley
authors.affiliation: Mahesh Bhattacharyya Homeopathic Medical College and Hospital, Government of West Bengal, Howrah, West Bengal, India.
authors.forename: Shubhamoy
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Ghosh
authors.affiliation: Mahesh Bhattacharyya Homeopathic Medical College and Hospital, Government of West Bengal, Howrah, West Bengal, India.
authors.forename: Mohan
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Giri
authors.affiliation: Mahesh Bhattacharyya Homeopathic Medical College and Hospital, Government of West Bengal, Howrah, West Bengal, India.
authors.forename: Asim
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Das
authors.affiliation: Mahesh Bhattacharyya Homeopathic Medical College and Hospital, Government of West Bengal, Howrah, West Bengal, India.
authors.forename: Rachna
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Goenka
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D002648:Child; D002675:Child, Preschool; D003625:Data Collection; D011307:Drug Prescriptions / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D005260:Female; D006705:Homeopathy / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D006761:Hospitals; D006801:Humans; D007194:India / Q000453:epidemiology; D007223:Infant; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D016896:Treatment Outcome; D055815:Young Adult
keywords: India; homeopathy; patient-reported outcomes; systematic data collection