Abbott Northwestern studies effects of holistic therapies on patient care

Article by: MAURA LERNER , Star Tribune
Updated: July 1, 2011 - 1:14 AM

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At Abbott Northwestern Hospital, it's not unusual for patients to get a massage or acupuncture in addition to surgery.

The Minneapolis hospital has been offering an array of holistic therapies, for free, to patients since 2003.

Now it's won a $2.4 million grant from the National Institutes of Health to study the effect on patient care.

In the past, studies have shown that stress-relief techniques, such as deep-breathing exercises, can ease pain and improve moods, said Jeffery Dusek, director of integrative medicine at the Center for Healthcare Innovation at Allina Hospitals & Clinics, Abbott's parent company.

The goal of the new research, he said, is to find out whether alternative therapies can reduce the need for powerful painkillers and which patients are most likely to benefit.

It's not a matter of choosing between surgery or aromatherapy, he added, but combining the two. "We think the integrative approach is the best of both worlds."

Last year, a study at Abbott found that alternative treatments reduced pain levels by a reported 56 percent. Dusek and his colleagues surveyed more than 1,800 patients, asking them to rate their pain from 0 to 10 (10 being excruciating) before and after some form of holistic therapy. Afterwards, the average pain score dropped from 4 to 2.

Now, he said, the researchers plan to dig deeper, following up to 4,000 patients over the next four years. Among the questions they hope to answer:

How long does the pain relief last? One hour? Five?

And "are there specific patients for whom we should be providing certain therapies?" Dusek said. "It might be that spinal surgery patients respond better to acupuncture."

If they can control pain with fewer drugs, patients may recover faster, and that could have an impact on the bottom line.

"We're hoping," he said, "to actually reduce cost, if we can improve patient care and have people discharged sooner."

maura.lerner@startribune.com