Pacific Pearl Health & Healing, La Jolla, CA 92037.
Bastyr University, Kenmore, WA.
Explore (NY). 2014 Jan-Feb;10(1):34-43. doi: 10.1016/j.explore.2013.10.003. Epub 2013 Oct 17.
High rates of complementary and alternative medicine (CAM) utilization among older adults are of interest because studies suggest relationships among CAM, self-care, and healthy lifestyle. These potential relationships are of particular interest because of the contribution of self-care in maintaining physical, emotional, and spiritual health as key strategies to successful aging. Naturopathic medicine (NM) is a type of primary care CAM used by older adults, yet little is known about older adults' use of NM or its role in healthy aging.
We sought to examine perceptions about, and utilization of, NM and the experience of addressing health and wellness as part of the aging process.
Phenomenology-based qualitative inquiry.
A total of 13 community-based clinics affiliated with a naturopathic medical school.
A total of 47 adults aged 58-100 years.
Qualitative analysis of semi-structured focus groups with quantitative analysis of clinical administrative data.
Over 2543 older adults used NM services affiliated with a natural academic clinic in Seattle in 2011 for diagnoses consistent with primary care: fatigue, anxiety, diabetes, diarrhea, and depression, in rank order. Participants reported they sought NM because it offered a different system of care aligned with their values. Themes included (1) feeling heard, (2) a focus on health education including prevention and self-care, and (3) feeling supported. Themes further distilled into optimal descriptive characteristics of patient-centered providers that may best support older adults' healthy aging. A final theme described barriers to further utilization.
老年人补充和替代医学（CAM）的高利用率引起了人们的关注，因为研究表明 CAM、自我保健和健康生活方式之间存在关系。这些潜在的关系尤其值得关注，因为自我保健在维持身体、情感和精神健康方面的贡献是成功老龄化的关键策略。顺势疗法（NM）是一种老年人使用的初级保健 CAM，但人们对老年人对 NM 的使用或其在健康老龄化中的作用知之甚少。
我们旨在探讨 NM 的认知和使用情况，以及将其作为衰老过程中健康和保健的一部分的体验。
基于现象学的定性研究。
总共 13 家附属于自然医学学校的社区诊所。
总共 47 名年龄在 58-100 岁之间的成年人。
对来自西雅图的自然学术诊所的 47 名年龄在 58-100 岁之间的成年人进行半结构化焦点小组的定性分析，并对临床行政数据进行定量分析。
2011 年，超过 2543 名老年人在西雅图的一家自然学术诊所使用了 NM 服务，用于治疗与初级保健一致的诊断：疲劳、焦虑、糖尿病、腹泻和抑郁，按排名顺序。参与者报告说，他们选择 NM 是因为它提供了一种与他们的价值观一致的不同医疗体系。主题包括（1）被倾听的感觉，（2）注重健康教育，包括预防和自我保健，以及（3）被支持的感觉。主题进一步提炼为以患者为中心的提供者的最佳描述特征，这些特征可能最能支持老年人的健康老龄化。最后一个主题描述了进一步利用的障碍。
