- Email: [email protected]
Bravewell Honors Early Leaders
MATTERS OF NOTE
Bravewell Honors Early Leaders ore than 600 people gathered to help the Bravewell Collaborative pay tribute to six doctors—Dean Ornish, MD, Andrew Weil, MD, Larry Dossey, MD, Jon Kabat-Zinn, PhD, Rachel Naomi Remen, MD, and James Gordon, MD—at the Inaugural Pioneers of Integrative Medicine Awards in New York City on November 8, 2007. Designed by the Bravewell Collaborative to honor the work of early leaders who helped create the first wave of transformation in our healthcare system by identifying and advancing the principles of integrative medicine, each of the awardees was given a cash gift of $25,000 to help support ongoing and future work. “Bravewell seeks to raise awareness of those things that should matter most in medicine: patient empowerment; an emphasis on healthy life-style choices to create health, wellness and healing; the individualization of care, and the importance of the doctor-patient relationship,” said Christy Mack, president of the Bravewell Collaborative. “These are all components of an integrative approach and we hope our support of these pioneers will inspire others to follow their path.”
One of the first people in this field to develop the practical foundation of mindbody medicine, James S. Gordon, MD, is the founder and director of the Center for Mind-Body Medicine in Washington, DC. Dr Gordon developed the first major text in the field, Health for the Whole Person, and his book, Manifesto for a New Medicine, sparked a personal revolution for many healthcare providers. Founded on the principle of teaching and empowering people to help themselves, Dr Gordon’s influence is felt worldwide.
Known internationally for his groundbreaking work in cardiovascular disease, Dean Ornish, MD, is founder of the nonprofit Preventive Medicine Research Institute and clinical professor of medicine at University of California, San Francisco. Dr Ornish’s clinical research demonstrated that integrative medicine interventions may reverse the progression of coronary heart disease without the use of drugs or surgery. His programs, which have inspired millions of people to change their lifestyles, are now used in hospitals throughout the United States.
Larry Dossey, MD
James Gordon, MD
Jon Kabat-Zinn, PhD
M
Larry Dossey, MD
Jon Kabat-Zinn, PhD
As an advocate for the role of the mind and spirit in health, Larry Dossey, MD, has inspired thousands of healthcare providers and medical educators to recover the soul of medicine. An international lecturer and the author of 10 books, including Meaning and Medicine, Healing Words and The Extraordinary Healing Power of Ordinary Things: Fourteen Natural Steps to Health and Happiness, Dr Dossey is also the executive editor of EXPLORE: The Journal of Science and Healing, a leading journal in the field of integrative medicine.
Jon Kabat-Zinn, PhD, is internationally known for his work in bringing mindfulness into the mainstream of medicine and society. The author of three best-selling books— Full Catastrophe Living, Wherever You Go, There You Are: Mindfulness Meditation in Everyday Life, and Coming to Our Senses: Healing Ourselves and the World Through Mindfulness—Dr Kabat-Zinn founded the Center for Mindfulness in Medicine, Health Care, and Society at the University of Massachusetts.
James Gordon, MD
554 EXPLORE November/December 2007, Vol. 3, No. 6
Dean Ornish, MD
Matters of Note
Rachel Naomi Remen, MD Rachel Naomi Remen, MD, is internationally acclaimed as one of the earliest pioneers to speak out about the role of the spirit in health and recovery from illness. Cofounder and medical director of the famed Commonweal Cancer Help Program, she is a wise and masterful storyteller who has touched thousands of people with her bestselling books, Kitchen Table Wisdom: Stories That Heal and My Grandfather’s Blessings: Stories of Strength, Refuge, and Belonging.
overall mission to make integrative medicine the standard of care by raising awareness and understanding of this approach among the public and medical community. Other programs supported by the Bravewell Collaborative include: ●
Andrew Weil, MD An internationally recognized expert on integrative medicine, medicinal plants, and mind-body interactions, Andrew Weil, MD, has devoted the past 30 years to developing, practicing, and teaching others about the principles of integrative medicine. He is the founder and director of the Program in Integrative Medicine at the College of Medicine, University of Arizona, which is helping lead the transformation of healthcare. His bestselling books—Spontaneous Healing, Eight Weeks to Optimum Health, Eating Well for Optimum Health, and Healthy Aging: A Lifelong Guide to Your Well-Being, among others—have made a tremendous impact on the ways in which people view health and healing.
About the Bravewell Collaborative The lecture series and Pioneer of Integrative Medicine Awards are just part of Bravewell’s
Dean Ornish, MD
Matters of Note
●
●
●
the establishment of a network of leading integrative medicine clinics so that best practices in integrative medicine can be developed and shared; this network includes integrative medicine clinics at the University of Maryland, Duke University, Jefferson University, and the University of California San Francisco, among others the development of the first practicebased research network in integrative medicine, located at Duke University, which will examine both the clinical and cost benefits of integrative medicine support of the Consortium of Academic Health Centers for Integrative Medicine, an organization of 38 leading medical schools working to include integrative medicine in medical school curriculum and research integrative approaches to care the creation of the Bravewell Fellowship Program in conjunction with the Program in Integrative Medicine at the University of Arizona, under the leadership of Andrew Weil, MD; to date, the Bravewell Fellowship Program has graduated over 51 fellows who have applied their learning in medical programs throughout the country, including those at the Mayo Clinic, Duke University Medical Center, Scripps Health, and the University of California, San Francisco
Rachel Naomi Remen, MD
●
the funding and production of The New Medicine, a film about integrative medicine that aired in prime time throughout the United States on PBS (public television) and effectively reached over four million people nationwide
For more information please visit http: //www.bravewell.com.
Women’s Healthcare Forum Addresses Integrative Medicine Education It’s a sign of the times. The Women’s Healthcare Forum, one of the largest continuing medical education conference series focused on improving women’s health in the country, has further validated the need to include integrative medicine in their programming for the 2008 seminar series. A program of the Foundation for Better Healthcare, Women’s Healthcare Forum promotes healthcare for women by providing patient-centered, evidence-based education and information to clinicians, researchers, organizations, and individuals. It began in 2001 under the guidance of its founder Diane Zuckerman. “In 2007, our 36-topic CME program reached over 4,000 primary care clinicians in four cities,” said Zuckerman. “We offered
Andrew Weil, MD
EXPLORE November/December 2007, Vol. 3, No. 6 555
●
In Memory of Geoffrey Cheung, PhD Geoffrey Chung died only a couple of years after he retired from decades of service to the US government—both at the National Institutes of Heath (NIH) and with the military. Geoffrey was one of the unsung heroes in these two organizations. He was a dedicated public servant and tireless worker with a heart of gold. His desire to always do the right thing and to follow the rules made him a perfect grants and contracts manager. He was also my deputy during the challenging years of the early phase of the Office of Alternative Medicine (OAM) at the NIH. Few people know the tremendous contributions that Geoff made— both to the development of the National Center for Complementary and Alternative Medicine (NCCAM) as well as to the military. He leaves a legacy that continues on today. Although credit for the development of the NCCAM at the NIH is often given to members of Congress and its leadership, to the late Dr Stephen Straus for his direction, and sometimes to myself for assisting in transforming the OAM into a center—the original idea for the center was Geoff’s. I knew very little about the NIH when I arrived in 1995. Operations, grant management, and politics were a mystery to me. Geoff had been at NIH for years. I had met him previously during a workshop at Walter Reed Army Institute of Research. It was clear to me at that time, and also proven later, that he really knew his job. The next year when I took over the directorship of the OAM, Dr Ruth Kirschstein, then deputy director of NIH, asked if I would be interested in having Geoff be my deputy. I immediately and enthusiastically accepted. As it turned out, Geoff saw long before any of us what would be required for complementary and alternative medicine to be properly
four sessions on integrative medicine and in each case, the sessions were attended by more than one-third of the participants.” Women’s Healthcare Forum’s needs assessment tool, which is based on a unique three-factor Likert scale, also points to the growing interest in integrative medicine. The methodology assesses the perceived importance of a professional competency, clinicians’ proficiency regarding that competency, and their desire to participate in an educational activity addressing that competency. “Assessments of integrative medicine competencies showed some of the most significant gaps between importance and proficiency as well as some of the highest scores on desires for education,” Zuckerman said.
positioned for success at the NIH. Offices had little authority or ability to direct research, and so he suggested— quietly but repeatedly—that I should work toward establishing the OAM as its own independent center or institute. Over the next three years, with Geoff as the brains and the internal point of contact, and me in front and the political point of contact, we steadily worked toward obtaining internal and external support for a center at the NIH. Another legacy of Geoff’s is related to the military war supplement that has been in the news recently. While serving as deputy director of the OAM at the NIH, Geoff Chung was also a reserve officer in the U. S. Army. One year, a large amount of congressional money was given to the Department of Defense (DoD) to fund breast cancer research. In the past, the DoD had not conducted such a large effort for breast cancer and looked to none other than Geoff Chung to help them set up a system for managing this research money. Geoff came to me and requested two weeks off for reserve duty, which he spent at Fort Detrick establishing the grant review and management system for the DoD Breast Cancer Research Program. This system was then adopted for prostate cancer and the congressionally mandated research program that now receives the funds in the current war supplemental legislation. Thus, in a very real way, Geoff’s expertise, dedication, passion for science, and public service continues on. It will continue to serve our country and our soldiers everyday— even as he has passed on. Wayne B. Jonas President and CEO Samueli Institute
best evidence for CAM therapies and specific pain conditions
The 2008 conference series will take place in four different cities: Anaheim, California, on March 7-8; Houston, Texas, on April 4-5; Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, on May 30-31; and Chicago, Illinois, on June 27-28. For more information, visit http://www.womenshf.com.
Mary Natschke Named Holistic Nurse of the Year Mary Natschke, RN, BAS, HN-BC, founder and manager of the Valade Healing Arts Center at St. John Hospital and Medical Center in Detroit, Michigan, has been named the 2007 Holistic Nurse of the Year by the American Holistic Nurses Association (AHNA). Natschke designed, implemented, and now manages St. John’s Healing Arts Center, which opened in 2000. The Center provides complementary and alternative therapies and classes for patients, employees, physicians, and the
Topics ranking high on the needs assessment list were: ●
● ● ●
●
clinician/patient communication concerning use of complementary and alternative medicine (CAM) for disease prevention and treatment potential benefits and current research of mind-body medicine dietary supplements for prevention and treatment of disease potential risk/benefits of CAM treatment for CVD and identifying heart disease risk factors integrating CAM and conventional therapies for pain management
556 EXPLORE November/December 2007, Vol. 3, No. 6
Mary Natschke, RN, BAS, HN-BC.
Matters of Note
community, as well as a unique, integrated cancer program at no charge to patients. A long-time member of AHNA, Natschke is a practitioner of several complementary modalities, including Reiki, aromatherapy, and reflexology. Most recently, as a result of her work, all hospitals in the St. John’s system will be integrating the BirchTree model of healthcare transformation. “Mary Natschke is a dedicated and visionary holistic nurse,” says Jeanne Crawford, MA, MPH, executive director of AHNA. “She transforms institutions and individuals, and is truly an inspiration to all of us.” For more information please visit http:// www.ahna.org.
Key World Health Statistics Published The World Health Organization has recently published World Health Statistics 2007, which highlights its 193 member countries and the trends in 10 of the most closely watched global health statistics. Also available as an online database, the volume shows: ●
● ● ● ●
●
how much money is currently spent on health in comparison with regional burdens of disease projected patterns of major causes of death for 2030 gaps in reliable information, and how estimates of maternal mortality are made the diseases that are killing people, and those that make them sick the extent to which people can access treatment, the major risk factors for illhealth, and the human resources underpinning health systems health outcomes in the context of demographic and socioeconomic status of individual countries
World Health Statistics 2007 can be accessed online at http://www.who.int/whosis. Matters of Note is written and compiled by Bonnie J. Horrigan, editorial director for EXPLORE and author of Voices in Integrative Medicine: Conversations and Encounters (Elsevier 2003).
Matters of Note
A Tribute and Reflection on the Death of Stephen Straus, MD I attended the memorial service of Dr Stephen E. Straus, clinician, and National Institutes of Health (NIH) scientist who died recently of a glioblastoma. The memorial was a wonderful tribute to a man who dedicated himself to patient care and scientific research at the NIH for several decades. Director after director took the podium and commented on the tremendous intellectual power, compassion, and dedication of a man who had a long career at NIH. Although most recently known as the director of the National Center for Complementary Alternative Medicine (NCCAM), Dr Straus had a stellar career in virology, making seminal discoveries in areas such as herpes infection, Epstein-Barr virus, and others. In his role as director of NCCAM, his accomplishments included turning a divided and controversial center into a solid institution at the NIH, conducting normal science. As the former director of the Office of Alternative Medicine (OAM), and one who shepherded in the creation of the legislation for the NCCAM, I knew Steve had a tremendous challenge ahead of him when taking over that center. Yet, he was the perfect man at the perfect time to create a solid foundation for complementary medicine. I met with Steve soon after he took over the Center to discuss recommendations I had given to the leadership of the NIH when I left the OAM to return to military service in 1999. He was inheriting an area full of controversy. On one side were extreme advocates of alternative medicine who believed that “the establishment” had a conspiracy against them. On the other side were extreme skeptics of alternative medicine who believed that NCCAM money was a waste of resources. I spent most of my time at the OAM trying to create a middle path and defend against these two extremes—lecturing both sides on the essential nature of objectivity and science. When Steve took over the Center, he had the credentials of an established virologist and an internal NIH scientist and the ability to bring together diverse groups. He challenged them to move to a higher level of science for the benefit of society. Some thought he would ignore the alternative community, but the five-year plan he produced for the NCCAM showed that he had been listening—not only to my recommendations, but to many others who knew alternative medicine from both a practice and a research perspective. Concepts such as energy medicine, whole systems research, health services research, consciousness, herbal synergy, and others are within the five-year plan and
part of the next working agenda that Steve left behind. Steve wisely avoided some of the most controversial aspects of complementary and alternative medicine—something I was never able to do. One, which continues to be problematic, is the investigation of alternative practitioner claims of cures for serious diseases. For example, herbal treatments, off-label pharmaceutical agents, and various biologics are still widely used among cancer patients. My first month at the OAM was marked by the closure of the Burzynski Antineoplaston Trial for Glioblastoma and Astropsychoma at the Mayo Clinic and Sloan-Kettering. This trial was closed because of social controversy and disagreement among the investigators and the CAM practitioner over modifications in the study design and how they should be implemented. After one million dollars of effort, the study was shut down and the vital information needed to determine whether antineoplastons could benefit glioblastoma was never obtained. Another example was the best case series presented to the early CAPCAM Committee (a combined committee of NCCAM and the National Cancer Institute), examining the use of a homeopathic preparation for cancer. The CAPCAM recommended that future investigation be conducted in the Indian clinic from which the cases came. This effort was also never completed. In a strange twist of irony, the Indian clinic had also presented glioblastoma cases. Here are two potential treatments for the disease from which Steve died that have never been satisfactorily investigated, not because science doesn’t have the ability to determine whether these treatments work or not—but because the management of the social controversy around complementary medicine treatments still remains inadequate. Steve Straus was an outstanding scientist and clinician who transformed the chaotic early National Center for Complementary and Alternative Medicine into a solid scientific base while carefully avoiding some of the major pitfalls that lurked in the alternative medicine worlds. My hope is that we will find a way to honor Steve and his work by developing successful ways to address some of the most challenging social and scientific aspects of research on complementary and alternative medicine. Steve, you built the foundation upon which we now can build the appropriate place of CAM in healthcare. Wayne B. Jonas President and CEO Samueli Institute
EXPLORE November/December 2007, Vol. 3, No. 6 557
Bravewell Honors Early Leaders ore than 600 people gathered to help the Bravewell Collaborative pay tribute to six doctors—Dean Ornish, MD, Andrew Weil, MD, Larry Dossey, MD, Jon Kabat-Zinn, PhD, Rachel Naomi Remen, MD, and James Gordon, MD—at the Inaugural Pioneers of Integrative Medicine Awards in New York City on November 8, 2007. Designed by the Bravewell Collaborative to honor the work of early leaders who helped create the first wave of transformation in our healthcare system by identifying and advancing the principles of integrative medicine, each of the awardees was given a cash gift of $25,000 to help support ongoing and future work. “Bravewell seeks to raise awareness of those things that should matter most in medicine: patient empowerment; an emphasis on healthy life-style choices to create health, wellness and healing; the individualization of care, and the importance of the doctor-patient relationship,” said Christy Mack, president of the Bravewell Collaborative. “These are all components of an integrative approach and we hope our support of these pioneers will inspire others to follow their path.”
One of the first people in this field to develop the practical foundation of mindbody medicine, James S. Gordon, MD, is the founder and director of the Center for Mind-Body Medicine in Washington, DC. Dr Gordon developed the first major text in the field, Health for the Whole Person, and his book, Manifesto for a New Medicine, sparked a personal revolution for many healthcare providers. Founded on the principle of teaching and empowering people to help themselves, Dr Gordon’s influence is felt worldwide.
Known internationally for his groundbreaking work in cardiovascular disease, Dean Ornish, MD, is founder of the nonprofit Preventive Medicine Research Institute and clinical professor of medicine at University of California, San Francisco. Dr Ornish’s clinical research demonstrated that integrative medicine interventions may reverse the progression of coronary heart disease without the use of drugs or surgery. His programs, which have inspired millions of people to change their lifestyles, are now used in hospitals throughout the United States.
Larry Dossey, MD
James Gordon, MD
Jon Kabat-Zinn, PhD
M
Larry Dossey, MD
Jon Kabat-Zinn, PhD
As an advocate for the role of the mind and spirit in health, Larry Dossey, MD, has inspired thousands of healthcare providers and medical educators to recover the soul of medicine. An international lecturer and the author of 10 books, including Meaning and Medicine, Healing Words and The Extraordinary Healing Power of Ordinary Things: Fourteen Natural Steps to Health and Happiness, Dr Dossey is also the executive editor of EXPLORE: The Journal of Science and Healing, a leading journal in the field of integrative medicine.
Jon Kabat-Zinn, PhD, is internationally known for his work in bringing mindfulness into the mainstream of medicine and society. The author of three best-selling books— Full Catastrophe Living, Wherever You Go, There You Are: Mindfulness Meditation in Everyday Life, and Coming to Our Senses: Healing Ourselves and the World Through Mindfulness—Dr Kabat-Zinn founded the Center for Mindfulness in Medicine, Health Care, and Society at the University of Massachusetts.
James Gordon, MD
554 EXPLORE November/December 2007, Vol. 3, No. 6
Dean Ornish, MD
Matters of Note
Rachel Naomi Remen, MD Rachel Naomi Remen, MD, is internationally acclaimed as one of the earliest pioneers to speak out about the role of the spirit in health and recovery from illness. Cofounder and medical director of the famed Commonweal Cancer Help Program, she is a wise and masterful storyteller who has touched thousands of people with her bestselling books, Kitchen Table Wisdom: Stories That Heal and My Grandfather’s Blessings: Stories of Strength, Refuge, and Belonging.
overall mission to make integrative medicine the standard of care by raising awareness and understanding of this approach among the public and medical community. Other programs supported by the Bravewell Collaborative include: ●
Andrew Weil, MD An internationally recognized expert on integrative medicine, medicinal plants, and mind-body interactions, Andrew Weil, MD, has devoted the past 30 years to developing, practicing, and teaching others about the principles of integrative medicine. He is the founder and director of the Program in Integrative Medicine at the College of Medicine, University of Arizona, which is helping lead the transformation of healthcare. His bestselling books—Spontaneous Healing, Eight Weeks to Optimum Health, Eating Well for Optimum Health, and Healthy Aging: A Lifelong Guide to Your Well-Being, among others—have made a tremendous impact on the ways in which people view health and healing.
About the Bravewell Collaborative The lecture series and Pioneer of Integrative Medicine Awards are just part of Bravewell’s
Dean Ornish, MD
Matters of Note
●
●
●
the establishment of a network of leading integrative medicine clinics so that best practices in integrative medicine can be developed and shared; this network includes integrative medicine clinics at the University of Maryland, Duke University, Jefferson University, and the University of California San Francisco, among others the development of the first practicebased research network in integrative medicine, located at Duke University, which will examine both the clinical and cost benefits of integrative medicine support of the Consortium of Academic Health Centers for Integrative Medicine, an organization of 38 leading medical schools working to include integrative medicine in medical school curriculum and research integrative approaches to care the creation of the Bravewell Fellowship Program in conjunction with the Program in Integrative Medicine at the University of Arizona, under the leadership of Andrew Weil, MD; to date, the Bravewell Fellowship Program has graduated over 51 fellows who have applied their learning in medical programs throughout the country, including those at the Mayo Clinic, Duke University Medical Center, Scripps Health, and the University of California, San Francisco
Rachel Naomi Remen, MD
●
the funding and production of The New Medicine, a film about integrative medicine that aired in prime time throughout the United States on PBS (public television) and effectively reached over four million people nationwide
For more information please visit http: //www.bravewell.com.
Women’s Healthcare Forum Addresses Integrative Medicine Education It’s a sign of the times. The Women’s Healthcare Forum, one of the largest continuing medical education conference series focused on improving women’s health in the country, has further validated the need to include integrative medicine in their programming for the 2008 seminar series. A program of the Foundation for Better Healthcare, Women’s Healthcare Forum promotes healthcare for women by providing patient-centered, evidence-based education and information to clinicians, researchers, organizations, and individuals. It began in 2001 under the guidance of its founder Diane Zuckerman. “In 2007, our 36-topic CME program reached over 4,000 primary care clinicians in four cities,” said Zuckerman. “We offered
Andrew Weil, MD
EXPLORE November/December 2007, Vol. 3, No. 6 555
●
In Memory of Geoffrey Cheung, PhD Geoffrey Chung died only a couple of years after he retired from decades of service to the US government—both at the National Institutes of Heath (NIH) and with the military. Geoffrey was one of the unsung heroes in these two organizations. He was a dedicated public servant and tireless worker with a heart of gold. His desire to always do the right thing and to follow the rules made him a perfect grants and contracts manager. He was also my deputy during the challenging years of the early phase of the Office of Alternative Medicine (OAM) at the NIH. Few people know the tremendous contributions that Geoff made— both to the development of the National Center for Complementary and Alternative Medicine (NCCAM) as well as to the military. He leaves a legacy that continues on today. Although credit for the development of the NCCAM at the NIH is often given to members of Congress and its leadership, to the late Dr Stephen Straus for his direction, and sometimes to myself for assisting in transforming the OAM into a center—the original idea for the center was Geoff’s. I knew very little about the NIH when I arrived in 1995. Operations, grant management, and politics were a mystery to me. Geoff had been at NIH for years. I had met him previously during a workshop at Walter Reed Army Institute of Research. It was clear to me at that time, and also proven later, that he really knew his job. The next year when I took over the directorship of the OAM, Dr Ruth Kirschstein, then deputy director of NIH, asked if I would be interested in having Geoff be my deputy. I immediately and enthusiastically accepted. As it turned out, Geoff saw long before any of us what would be required for complementary and alternative medicine to be properly
four sessions on integrative medicine and in each case, the sessions were attended by more than one-third of the participants.” Women’s Healthcare Forum’s needs assessment tool, which is based on a unique three-factor Likert scale, also points to the growing interest in integrative medicine. The methodology assesses the perceived importance of a professional competency, clinicians’ proficiency regarding that competency, and their desire to participate in an educational activity addressing that competency. “Assessments of integrative medicine competencies showed some of the most significant gaps between importance and proficiency as well as some of the highest scores on desires for education,” Zuckerman said.
positioned for success at the NIH. Offices had little authority or ability to direct research, and so he suggested— quietly but repeatedly—that I should work toward establishing the OAM as its own independent center or institute. Over the next three years, with Geoff as the brains and the internal point of contact, and me in front and the political point of contact, we steadily worked toward obtaining internal and external support for a center at the NIH. Another legacy of Geoff’s is related to the military war supplement that has been in the news recently. While serving as deputy director of the OAM at the NIH, Geoff Chung was also a reserve officer in the U. S. Army. One year, a large amount of congressional money was given to the Department of Defense (DoD) to fund breast cancer research. In the past, the DoD had not conducted such a large effort for breast cancer and looked to none other than Geoff Chung to help them set up a system for managing this research money. Geoff came to me and requested two weeks off for reserve duty, which he spent at Fort Detrick establishing the grant review and management system for the DoD Breast Cancer Research Program. This system was then adopted for prostate cancer and the congressionally mandated research program that now receives the funds in the current war supplemental legislation. Thus, in a very real way, Geoff’s expertise, dedication, passion for science, and public service continues on. It will continue to serve our country and our soldiers everyday— even as he has passed on. Wayne B. Jonas President and CEO Samueli Institute
best evidence for CAM therapies and specific pain conditions
The 2008 conference series will take place in four different cities: Anaheim, California, on March 7-8; Houston, Texas, on April 4-5; Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, on May 30-31; and Chicago, Illinois, on June 27-28. For more information, visit http://www.womenshf.com.
Mary Natschke Named Holistic Nurse of the Year Mary Natschke, RN, BAS, HN-BC, founder and manager of the Valade Healing Arts Center at St. John Hospital and Medical Center in Detroit, Michigan, has been named the 2007 Holistic Nurse of the Year by the American Holistic Nurses Association (AHNA). Natschke designed, implemented, and now manages St. John’s Healing Arts Center, which opened in 2000. The Center provides complementary and alternative therapies and classes for patients, employees, physicians, and the
Topics ranking high on the needs assessment list were: ●
● ● ●
●
clinician/patient communication concerning use of complementary and alternative medicine (CAM) for disease prevention and treatment potential benefits and current research of mind-body medicine dietary supplements for prevention and treatment of disease potential risk/benefits of CAM treatment for CVD and identifying heart disease risk factors integrating CAM and conventional therapies for pain management
556 EXPLORE November/December 2007, Vol. 3, No. 6
Mary Natschke, RN, BAS, HN-BC.
Matters of Note
community, as well as a unique, integrated cancer program at no charge to patients. A long-time member of AHNA, Natschke is a practitioner of several complementary modalities, including Reiki, aromatherapy, and reflexology. Most recently, as a result of her work, all hospitals in the St. John’s system will be integrating the BirchTree model of healthcare transformation. “Mary Natschke is a dedicated and visionary holistic nurse,” says Jeanne Crawford, MA, MPH, executive director of AHNA. “She transforms institutions and individuals, and is truly an inspiration to all of us.” For more information please visit http:// www.ahna.org.
Key World Health Statistics Published The World Health Organization has recently published World Health Statistics 2007, which highlights its 193 member countries and the trends in 10 of the most closely watched global health statistics. Also available as an online database, the volume shows: ●
● ● ● ●
●
how much money is currently spent on health in comparison with regional burdens of disease projected patterns of major causes of death for 2030 gaps in reliable information, and how estimates of maternal mortality are made the diseases that are killing people, and those that make them sick the extent to which people can access treatment, the major risk factors for illhealth, and the human resources underpinning health systems health outcomes in the context of demographic and socioeconomic status of individual countries
World Health Statistics 2007 can be accessed online at http://www.who.int/whosis. Matters of Note is written and compiled by Bonnie J. Horrigan, editorial director for EXPLORE and author of Voices in Integrative Medicine: Conversations and Encounters (Elsevier 2003).
Matters of Note
A Tribute and Reflection on the Death of Stephen Straus, MD I attended the memorial service of Dr Stephen E. Straus, clinician, and National Institutes of Health (NIH) scientist who died recently of a glioblastoma. The memorial was a wonderful tribute to a man who dedicated himself to patient care and scientific research at the NIH for several decades. Director after director took the podium and commented on the tremendous intellectual power, compassion, and dedication of a man who had a long career at NIH. Although most recently known as the director of the National Center for Complementary Alternative Medicine (NCCAM), Dr Straus had a stellar career in virology, making seminal discoveries in areas such as herpes infection, Epstein-Barr virus, and others. In his role as director of NCCAM, his accomplishments included turning a divided and controversial center into a solid institution at the NIH, conducting normal science. As the former director of the Office of Alternative Medicine (OAM), and one who shepherded in the creation of the legislation for the NCCAM, I knew Steve had a tremendous challenge ahead of him when taking over that center. Yet, he was the perfect man at the perfect time to create a solid foundation for complementary medicine. I met with Steve soon after he took over the Center to discuss recommendations I had given to the leadership of the NIH when I left the OAM to return to military service in 1999. He was inheriting an area full of controversy. On one side were extreme advocates of alternative medicine who believed that “the establishment” had a conspiracy against them. On the other side were extreme skeptics of alternative medicine who believed that NCCAM money was a waste of resources. I spent most of my time at the OAM trying to create a middle path and defend against these two extremes—lecturing both sides on the essential nature of objectivity and science. When Steve took over the Center, he had the credentials of an established virologist and an internal NIH scientist and the ability to bring together diverse groups. He challenged them to move to a higher level of science for the benefit of society. Some thought he would ignore the alternative community, but the five-year plan he produced for the NCCAM showed that he had been listening—not only to my recommendations, but to many others who knew alternative medicine from both a practice and a research perspective. Concepts such as energy medicine, whole systems research, health services research, consciousness, herbal synergy, and others are within the five-year plan and
part of the next working agenda that Steve left behind. Steve wisely avoided some of the most controversial aspects of complementary and alternative medicine—something I was never able to do. One, which continues to be problematic, is the investigation of alternative practitioner claims of cures for serious diseases. For example, herbal treatments, off-label pharmaceutical agents, and various biologics are still widely used among cancer patients. My first month at the OAM was marked by the closure of the Burzynski Antineoplaston Trial for Glioblastoma and Astropsychoma at the Mayo Clinic and Sloan-Kettering. This trial was closed because of social controversy and disagreement among the investigators and the CAM practitioner over modifications in the study design and how they should be implemented. After one million dollars of effort, the study was shut down and the vital information needed to determine whether antineoplastons could benefit glioblastoma was never obtained. Another example was the best case series presented to the early CAPCAM Committee (a combined committee of NCCAM and the National Cancer Institute), examining the use of a homeopathic preparation for cancer. The CAPCAM recommended that future investigation be conducted in the Indian clinic from which the cases came. This effort was also never completed. In a strange twist of irony, the Indian clinic had also presented glioblastoma cases. Here are two potential treatments for the disease from which Steve died that have never been satisfactorily investigated, not because science doesn’t have the ability to determine whether these treatments work or not—but because the management of the social controversy around complementary medicine treatments still remains inadequate. Steve Straus was an outstanding scientist and clinician who transformed the chaotic early National Center for Complementary and Alternative Medicine into a solid scientific base while carefully avoiding some of the major pitfalls that lurked in the alternative medicine worlds. My hope is that we will find a way to honor Steve and his work by developing successful ways to address some of the most challenging social and scientific aspects of research on complementary and alternative medicine. Steve, you built the foundation upon which we now can build the appropriate place of CAM in healthcare. Wayne B. Jonas President and CEO Samueli Institute
EXPLORE November/December 2007, Vol. 3, No. 6 557