Text Box: A PRELIMINARY STUDY ON UTILIZATION OF ALTERNATIVE THERAPIES IN A PEDIATRIC UNIT
Chen, T.J.1 & Mao, C.L.2
1. Chi-Mei Foundation Hospital, Tainan, Taiwan
2. San Jose State University, San Jose, CA, U.S.A.

Significance: With the increasing life expectancy, popularity of telecommunication, diversity in the community, and legitimatization of alternative therapies, alternative health care has become popular particularly with those who have diseases that are difficult to cure and symptoms that can't be fully managed.  
On the other hand, the majority of alternative therapy users do not inform health care providers of their practices.  Unreported use of alternative therapy could influence the ongoing treatment result.  For instance, interactions between herbal products and synthetic medicines have been linked to serious injuries and deaths.
Objectives: a) to explore what alternative therapies have been used in a pediatric unit and its prevalence, and b) to examine the major reasons for using alternative therapies.     
Methods: A semi-structured questionnaire is used for the data collection. Descriptive statistics and correlation co-efficiency is used in data analysis.  Implications: a) to identify the unmet needs of the caregivers for the pediatric patients, and b) to build up a framework for open communication between health care providers and caregivers of the pediatric patients.

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