- Title
- Nurses' attitudes towards complementary therapies: a systematic review and meta-synthesis
- Creator
- Hall, Helen; Leach, Matthew; Brosnan, Caragh; Collins, Melissa
- Relation
- International Journal of Nursing Studies Vol. 69, Issue April 2017, p. 47-56
- Publisher Link
- http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.ijnurstu.2017.01.008
- Publisher
- Elsevier
- Resource Type
- journal article
- Date
- 2017
- Description
- Background: The use of complementary therapies is becoming increasingly prevalent. This has important implications for nurses in terms of patient care and safety. Objective: The aim of this meta-synthesis is to review critically, appraise and synthesize the existing qualitative research to develop a new, more substantial interpretation of nurses' attitudes regarding the, use of complementary therapies by patients. Data sources: A search of relevant articles published in English between, January 2000 and December 2015 was conducted using the following, electronic databases; MEDLINE, CINAHL and AMED. Reference lists of selected papers and grey literature were also interrogated for pertinent, studies. Design: This review is reported according to the Enhancing Transparency in Reporting the Synthesis of Qualitative Research (ENTREQ) guidelines. Data were extracted and analysed using a thematic synthesis process. Results: Fifteen articles were included in this review. Five analytical themes emerged from the data relating to nurses' attitude towards complementary therapies: the strengths and weaknesses of conventional medicine; Complementary therapies as a way to enhance nursing practice; patient empowerment and patient-centeredness; cultural barriers and enablers to integration; and structural barriers and enablers to integration. Discussion: Nurses' support for complementary therapies is not an attempt to challenge mainstream medicine but rather an endeavour to improve the quality of care available to patients. There are, however, a number of barriers to nurses' support including institutional culture and clinical context, as well as time and knowledge limitations. Conclusion: Some nurses promote complementary therapies as an opportunity to personalise care and practice in a humanistic way. Yet, nurses have very limited education in this field and a lack of professional frameworks to assist them. The nursing profession needs to consider how to address current deficiencies in meeting the growing use of complementary therapies by patients.
- Subject
- complementary medicine; complementary therapies; complementary and alternative medicine; meta-synthesis; systematic review; nurse
- Identifier
- http://hdl.handle.net/1959.13/1352736
- Identifier
- uon:30946
- Identifier
- ISSN:0020-7489
- Language
- eng
- Reviewed
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