Department of Family Medicine, Boston University School of Medicine, Boston, MA, USA.
Complement Ther Med. 2012 Feb-Apr;20(1-2):70-2. doi: 10.1016/j.ctim.2011.09.005. Epub 2011 Nov 1.
Acupuncture use remains common in the United States, yet little is known of its utilization by minority and underserved populations. Herein we report first visit data capturing patient profiles, types of conditions presented, and self-reports of their experience and satisfaction with acupuncture accessed at a free care clinic with in a large urban safety net hospital.
Sixty-one adult, English-speaking acupuncture patients were given a 20 min survey after their first visit to a free care acupuncture clinic.
Patients were from 12 different countries. Fifty-six percent of the participants were minorities. Sixty-five percent of respondents were female. Average age was 42.1. Eighty percent were acupuncture naïve. Patients' health complaints were similar to those of other surveyed mainstream patients with 57% reporting musculoskeletal conditions. Ninety-three percent would recommend a friend or family for acupuncture, 97% rating their overall experience with the acupuncture clinic as either very good or good.
When made available to a diverse population of patients, acupuncture is utilized and perceived to be helpful. In this survey, patients sought treatment for musculoskeletal conditions and were satisfied with their first visit. Future research is warranted.
在美国，针灸的应用仍然很普遍，但对于少数民族和服务不足的人群的针灸使用情况知之甚少。在此，我们报告了首次就诊数据，这些数据记录了患者的个人资料、就诊的病症类型，以及他们对在一家大型城市医疗服务网络医院的免费医疗诊所接受的针灸治疗的体验和满意度的自我报告。
61 名成年、讲英语的针灸患者在首次就诊免费针灸诊所后接受了 20 分钟的调查。
患者来自 12 个不同的国家。56%的参与者是少数族裔。65%的受访者为女性。平均年龄为 42.1 岁。80%的患者是针灸新手。患者的健康问题与其他接受调查的主流患者相似，57%的人报告有肌肉骨骼疾病。93%的人会向朋友或家人推荐针灸，97%的人对针灸诊所的整体体验评价为非常好或好。
当向不同种族的患者提供针灸服务时，他们会接受并认为这种治疗方法是有帮助的。在这项调查中，患者因肌肉骨骼疾病寻求治疗，并对他们的首次就诊感到满意。未来有必要进行进一步的研究。
