Abstract
The authors surveyed 191 allopathic physicians (MDs), registered nurses (RNs),
and allied health professionals (AI-ll's) regarding their opinions toward osteopathic
medicine and alternative therapies. A self-administered questionnaire was distributed to these healthcare professionals practicing in a rural region of west-central Vermont. Participants responded to six questions concerning osteopathic
medicine and 18 types of alternative therapies. These questions addressed safety
issues, efficacy, personal experience, patient referrals, interest in learning
more about alternative medicine, and whether alternative medicine should be provided at the regional hospital. The number of positive responses was totaled as
a positive opinion score (POS) for each respondent. Survey results indicated
that MDs' general acceptance of osteopathic medicine was less than that of
relaxation techniques, massage therapy, self-help groups, and acupuncture. Allopathic physicians' opinions toward osteopaths mirrored that shown toward
chiropractors. Nevertheless, MDs responded more positively to osteopathy than
did RNs and AHPs. Overall, RNs had a higher opinion of alternative therapies
(mean POS 50.4) than did AI-ll's (mean POS 41.7) or MDs (mean POS 36.0;
F = 4.98; P-value = 0.009). Among MDs, primary care providers averaged a POS
of 41.1, while specialists had a mean POS of 24.0 (F = 6.85; P-value = 0.012).
Overall, female respondents had a mean POS of 45.7 and men had a mean
POS of 37.0 (F =3.91; P-value = 0.051). The POS did not correlate with age (Pearson's r test; r = - 0.105).