A qualitative study of naturopathy in rural practice: A focus upon naturopaths' experiences and perceptions of rural patients and demands for their services

Wardle, JL; Adams, J; Lui, CW

A qualitative study of naturopathy in rural practice: A focus upon naturopaths' experiences and perceptions of rural patients and demands for their services

Wardle, JL

Adams, J

Lui, CW

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Publication Type:: Journal Article
Citation:: BMC Health Services Research, 2010, 10
Issue Date:: 2010-07-01

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Field	Value	Language
dc.contributor.author	Wardle, JL https://orcid.org/0000-0001-8813-3542	en_US
dc.contributor.author	Adams, J https://orcid.org/0000-0002-9901-5717	en_US
dc.contributor.author	Lui, CW	en_US
dc.date.available	2010-06-28	en_US
dc.date.issued	2010-07-01	en_US
dc.identifier.citation	BMC Health Services Research, 2010, 10	en_US
dc.identifier.uri	http://hdl.handle.net/10453/15659
dc.description.abstract	Background. Complementary and alternative medicine (CAM) use - of which naturopathy constitutes a significant proportion - accounts for approximately half of all health consultations and half of out-of-pocket expenditure in Australia. Data also suggest CAM use is highest amongst rural Australians. Unfortunately little is known about the grass-roots reality of naturopathy or other CAM use in rural regions. Methods. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with 20 naturopaths practising in the Darling Downs region of South-East Queensland to assess their perceptions and experiences of rural patients and demand for their services. Results. Naturopaths described strong demand in rural areas for their services and perceived much of this demand as attributable to cultural traits in rural communities that served as pull factors for their naturopathic services. Such perceived traits included a cultural affinity for holistic approaches to health and disease and the preventive philosophy of naturopathy and an appreciation of the core tenet of naturopathic practice to develop closer therapeutic relationships. However, cost and a rural culture of self-reliance were seen as major barriers to naturopathic practice in rural areas. Conclusions. Demand for naturopathic services in rural areas may have strong underlying cultural and social drivers. Given the apparent affinity for and increasingly large role played by CAM services, including naturopathic medicine, in rural areas it is imperative that naturopathic medicine and the CAM sector more broadly become a core focus of rural health research. © 2010 Wardle et al; licensee BioMed Central Ltd.	en_US
dc.relation.ispartof	BMC Health Services Research	en_US
dc.relation.isbasedon	10.1186/1472-6963-10-185	en_US
dc.subject.classification	Health Policy & Services	en_US
dc.subject.mesh	Humans	en_US
dc.subject.mesh	Naturopathy	en_US
dc.subject.mesh	Adult	en_US
dc.subject.mesh	Health Personnel	en_US
dc.subject.mesh	Rural Health Services	en_US
dc.subject.mesh	Patient Acceptance of Health Care	en_US
dc.subject.mesh	Queensland	en_US
dc.subject.mesh	Female	en_US
dc.subject.mesh	Male	en_US
dc.subject.mesh	Interviews as Topic	en_US
dc.title	A qualitative study of naturopathy in rural practice: A focus upon naturopaths' experiences and perceptions of rural patients and demands for their services	en_US
dc.type	Journal Article
utslib.citation.volume	10	en_US
utslib.for	1117 Public Health and Health Services	en_US
utslib.for	0807 Library and Information Studies	en_US
utslib.for	1110 Nursing	en_US
dc.location.activity	ISI:000280400800002	en_US
dc.location.activity	Sydney, AUSTRALIA
pubs.embargo.period	Not known	en_US
pubs.organisational-group	/University of Technology Sydney
pubs.organisational-group	/University of Technology Sydney/Faculty of Health
pubs.organisational-group	/University of Technology Sydney/Strength - CHSP - Health Services and Practice
utslib.copyright.status	open_access
pubs.publication-status	Published	en_US
pubs.volume	10	en_US

Abstract:

Background. Complementary and alternative medicine (CAM) use - of which naturopathy constitutes a significant proportion - accounts for approximately half of all health consultations and half of out-of-pocket expenditure in Australia. Data also suggest CAM use is highest amongst rural Australians. Unfortunately little is known about the grass-roots reality of naturopathy or other CAM use in rural regions. Methods. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with 20 naturopaths practising in the Darling Downs region of South-East Queensland to assess their perceptions and experiences of rural patients and demand for their services. Results. Naturopaths described strong demand in rural areas for their services and perceived much of this demand as attributable to cultural traits in rural communities that served as pull factors for their naturopathic services. Such perceived traits included a cultural affinity for holistic approaches to health and disease and the preventive philosophy of naturopathy and an appreciation of the core tenet of naturopathic practice to develop closer therapeutic relationships. However, cost and a rural culture of self-reliance were seen as major barriers to naturopathic practice in rural areas. Conclusions. Demand for naturopathic services in rural areas may have strong underlying cultural and social drivers. Given the apparent affinity for and increasingly large role played by CAM services, including naturopathic medicine, in rural areas it is imperative that naturopathic medicine and the CAM sector more broadly become a core focus of rural health research. © 2010 Wardle et al; licensee BioMed Central Ltd.

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