News Release
More Than 80% of Military Health Facilities Now Offer Complementary and Alternative Medicine Treatments
Aug 9, 2017
This report presents the results of the first systemwide survey on the availability, documentation and coding, credentialing and privileging practices, and demand for complementary and alternative medicine (CAM) services fielded in 142 military treatment facilities across three branches of service (Army, Air Force, and Navy) and the National Capital Region Medical Directorate (e.g., Walter Reed).
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Complementary and alternative medicine (CAM) comprises a large number of therapies (e.g., acupuncture and chiropractic) that developed outside the conventional biomedical model of care. About one-third of the general population report using CAM either on their own (e.g., yoga) or through the services of a CAM provider (e.g., massage). While CAM is offered within the military health system, no systemwide data are available on its use. RAND conducted an environmental scan (CAM survey) of military treatment facilities (MTFs) to understand the availability of CAM, the conditions for which CAM is being used, and the types and process of credentialing and privileging of CAM providers.
Most MTFs (83 percent) offer CAM services, usually up to eight different types, with relaxation therapy, acupuncture, progressive muscle relaxation, guided imagery, and chiropractic being the most common. Lack of provider availability was the primary reason reported for not offering CAM. These services are most often used for chronic pain, stress, anxiety, and sleep disturbance. There is variability across MTFs and types of CAM in the process and criteria used for credentialing and privileging providers. While most MTFs reported that CAM use is usually documented in a patient's electronic medical record, there was variation in the availability and use of procedure codes.
Standardization of CAM coding would allow consistent tracking of CAM providers and use for better manpower management, and easier data collection for future comparison studies. Standardization of CAM provider credentialing and privileging would ensure that providers are properly trained and have clear practice requirements.
Chapter One
Background
Chapter Two
Methodology
Chapter Three
CAM Prevalence Across MTFs
Chapter Four
Conditions and Diagnoses for Which CAM Is Used
Chapter Five
Demand for CAM Services at MTFs
Chapter Six
Practitioners Who Provide CAM at MTFs
Chapter Seven
CAM Coding and Documentation
Chapter Eight
Summary and Recommendations
Appendix A
Acupuncture at a Glance
Appendix B
Chiropractic at a Glance
Appendix C
Diet Therapy at a Glance
Appendix D
Mindfulness Meditation at a Glance
Appendix E
Stress Management/Relaxation Therapy at a Glance
This research was sponsored by the the Defense Center of Excellence for Psychological Health and Traumatic Brain Injury (DCoE) and conducted within the Forces and Resources Policy Center of the RAND National Defense Research Institute, a federally funded research and development center sponsored by the Office of the Secretary of Defense, the Joint Staff, the Unified Combatant Commands, the Navy, the Marine Corps, the defense agencies, and the defense Intelligence Community.
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