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In Australia, 34% of
Patients Have Been to a Chiropractor
A recent study, commissioned by the publication,
Australian Doctor and the drug company Pfizer Australia
showed chiropractic was by far the most popular of what
they termed alternative therapies surveyed. The study
was a national survey of 1250 patients in Australia. The
results showed that 34% of patients had visited a
chiropractor. Additionally the study showed that 18% had
used acupuncture, 16% had taken megavitamins, and 13%
had used homeopathy.
In all, the study noted that more than half of
Australian patients have used what they termed as
alternative therapies. The researchers in this study
were puzzled by the results as they consider these forms
of care to be unscientific. Dr. Craig Hassed,
complementary medicine researcher and senior lecturer in
the department of general practice at Melbourne
Australia's Monash University, explained why so many
people are using non-medical forms of care by saying,
"That search for holistic health care is one of the main
drivers behind the growth of complementary therapies."
Dr. Hassed also said that some patients actually
distrust science. He noted, "Some people are very
suspicious of science. It might be that a lot of these
do have a scientific basis and there is research
patients might not have come across. They might trust
that people have used these for a long time so there
must be something in it." He continued, "But they don't
trust research anyway because [they believe] it must
have been driven by pharmaceutical companies trying to
make a buck."
The article noted that a report on cancer care released
by the Senate Community Affairs Committee the previous
month showed that other factors motivating patients to
turn to what they grouped together as "complementary
therapies" were, "holistic views, dissatisfaction with
medical outcomes, a desire for improved health and
increased access to health information, as well as
growth in research-based evidence supporting the
effectiveness of complementary medicine."
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