Complementary Health Care Becomes Mainstream

Over the past fifteen years, conventional medicine has expanded its borders to encompass complementary health care options including massage therapy, chiropractic, nutritional approaches, and even traditional Asian practices like meditation, Tai Chi, and Reiki. Medical professionals are becoming more and more accepting of unconventional techniques that they once dismissed as oddball or flaky.

As complementary health care has entered the mainstream, accredited education programs have sprung up to ensure a consistently high standard of practice. Established colleges and universities are now including courses and even certificate and degree programs in massage and other complementary therapies. The best programs include clinical practicums in their chosen specialty, as well as networking opportunities and job placement assistance.

Students find themselves eligible for jobs in spas, yoga and fitness centers, and retirement communities as well as doctor's offices and even hospitals, while those already in the medical profession often seek out these programs as an addition to their more conventional skills.

As the medical profession develops a deeper understanding of the human body and the interconnection between body, mind, and spirit, complementary health care programs will continue to grow, and therapies now considered to be on the fringes of medicine will come to be accepted as cutting edge. As that happens, these new health care programs will undoubtedly incorporate them into their curriculum.