Integrative Medicine Consult Service Established
at the NIH Clinical Center
The National Center for Complementary and Alternative Medicine
(NCCAM) has established an Integrative Medicine Consult Service
at the National Institutes of Health (NIH) Clinical Center, the
world’s largest hospital devoted to research. This service will
provide physicians, nurses, and other members of the Clinical Center
health care team the ability to discuss complementary and alternative
medicine (CAM) therapies with knowledgeable medical staff from
the consult service and learn how various CAM practices might complement
or interact with a patient's care as a research participant at
the Clinical Center.
CAM is a group of diverse medical and health care systems, practices,
and products that are not presently considered to be part of conventional
medicine, such as herbal supplements, meditation, chiropractic
manipulation, and acupuncture. Integrative medicine combines treatments
from conventional medicine and CAM for which there is high-quality
evidence of safety and effectiveness.
The 2002 National Health Interview Survey showed that more than
one-third of all American adults use some form of CAM. And a recent
consumer survey of older Americans revealed that less than one-third
of those who had used CAM discussed this information with their
physicians. Since patients at the Clinical Center are participating
in research studies, it is important to know what CAM therapies
are being used and how they might affect the treatments being studied.
“Volunteers who participate in clinical research at the NIH Clinical
Center are partners in medical discovery. We are committed to providing
excellent care for them,” said John I. Gallin, M.D., Director of
the Clinical Center. “This new consult service will help enhance
the care they receive and the research conducted here.”
CAM is not a new concept at the NIH Clinical Center. The Clinical
Center’s Pain and Palliative Care Service and the Rehabilitation
Medicine Department offer acupuncture, Reiki, hypnosis, guided
imagery, massage therapy, acupuncture, tai chi, and qi gong training.
The Pharmacy Department consults on herbals and herb/drug interactions
and has conducted research in these areas. The Integrative Medicine
Consult Service will coordinate the resources of these existing
services to meet the needs of the Clinical Center staff and its
patients. In addition to offering clinical consultation regarding
CAM therapies, the service will establish a research program embedded
in NIH’’s clinical and translational research structure and provide
CAM education for NIH staff, patients, and their families.
The director of the consult service will be Patrick J. Mansky,
M.D., a clinical oncologist and researcher at NCCAM. Dr. 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. After a postdoctoral
research fellowship in immunogenetics at Memorial Sloan-Kettering
Cancer Center, New York, NY, he completed clinical residency training
in pediatrics and internal medicine at Case Western Reserve University
in Cleveland, OH. Dr. Mansky joined NIH in 1997 as a clinical and
research fellow in pediatric hematology/oncology and medical oncology
at the National Cancer Institute.
“I am delighted that Dr. Mansky accepted the position of head
of the consult service. This service will provide a focal point
for CAM evaluation, research, and education in the NIH intramural
community,” said Robert B. Nussenblatt, M.D., Acting Scientific
and Clinical Director of NCCAM’s Division of Intramural Research. “I
hope the larger medical community will find this an important new
addition to the evaluation and treatment of our patients.”
In 2001, Dr. Mansky joined NCCAM as a staff clinician and clinical
investigator leading the Oncology Program in NCCAM’s Division of
Intramural Research. He conducts research on the application of
CAM interventions in the care and treatment of cancer patients
and survivors, such as electroacupuncture for nausea from chemotherapy,
use of mistletoe in combination with gemcitabine for treating advanced
cancers, and effects of tai chi and exercise in cancer survivors.
“We are pleased with the creation of the Integrative Medicine
Consult Service and the role we hope it will play in providing
Clinical Center patients with the best possible integrated care,” said,
Ruth L. Kirschstein, M.D., Acting Director of NCCAM. “Dr. Mansky’s
blend of clinical and research experience at the crossroads of
the CAM and conventional medicine fields makes him an excellent
choice to lead this consult service.”
The National Center for Complementary and Alternative Medicine’s
mission is to explore complementary and alternative medical practices
in the context of rigorous science, train CAM researchers, and
disseminate authoritative information to the public and professionals.
For additional information, call NCCAM’s Clearinghouse toll free
at 1-888-644-6226, or visit nccam.nih.gov.
The National Institutes of Health (NIH) — The Nation's
Medical Research Agency — includes 27 Institutes and
Centers and is a component of the U.S. Department of Health and
Human Services. It is the primary federal agency for conducting
and supporting basic, clinical and translational medical research,
and it investigates the causes, treatments, and cures for both
common and rare diseases. For more information about NIH and
its programs, visit www.nih.gov.
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