Dr. Patrick J. Mansky

The National Center for Complementary and Alternative Medicine has launched the Complementary and Integrative Medicine Consult Service at the Clinical Center. The service is available to CC staff to advance the understanding of the benefits and limitations of the integration of complementary and alternative medicine (CAM) approaches into the research and practice of medicine.

The service will provide physicians, nurses and other members of the health care team the opportunity to discuss CAM therapies with knowledgeable medical staff and learn how various CAM practices might complement or interact with a patient’s care as a research participant.

The consult service will also offer support and guidance on credentialing issues of CAM practitioners and an educational program for NIH staff on CAM and integrative medicine. In addition, the service will be developing and building a research program to establish and implement research tools and outcome parameters to advance the understanding and evidence base for the complementary use of botanicals, mind-body approaches and manipulative/body-based techniques in clinical medicine.

The director of the consult service is Dr. Patrick J. Mansky, a clinical oncologist and researcher at NCCAM. “I am pleased with the creation of the Complementary and Integrative Medicine Consult Service, so that we can provide the best possible integrated care for patients,” he said. “It is our hope that this service will benefit the entire NIH intramural community.”

Mansky received his medical degree from Witten/Herdecke University Medical School in Germany, where he also gained experience and received instruction in anthroposophical medicine including herbal therapies, art therapies and physical applications. Currently, he conducts research on the application of CAM interventions in the care and treatment of cancer patients and survivors.

For more on the service, visit www.nccam.nih.gov/consultservice.