Credentialing complementary practitioners in a large academic cancer center.

One of the key obstacles to the complete integration of complementary and integrative medicine (CIM) into standard care in the United States is the lack of between-state and between-institution standards for credentialing. Also, a formal framework for the scope of CIM practitioner's practice is not available for assessing CIM integration into conventional patient care. Although many cancer centers do have some CIM programming under way, the scope of practice for CIM practitioners who may or may not fall within any formal licensing body and for non-CIM practitioners continues to vary among centers. This variation can result in inconsistent outcomes, difficulties in educating cancer patients about the role CIM can play in their cancer care, and a lack of true integration of CIM therapies into conventional treatment planning for the patient and those who care about and for them.