Turkish general practitioners and complementary/alternative medicine

Abstract

Background: Complementary and alternative medicine (CAM) is in the spotlight of society. However, what is the position of physicians at this point?

Objectives: To determine general practitioners' (GP) knowledge, attitudes, and approaches to CAM.

Methods: All GPs (n = 521) practicing in Bursa Province, Turkey were surveyed by a questionnaire.

Results: Responses from 49% of GPs were analyzed. Alltogether, most of our physicians (96.5%) had not received any education about CAM, wanted to learn more (74.4%), and their knowledge levels were low (60.8%). About half of them (51%) believed in the efficiency of CAM, whereas 38.0% did not. GPs desire more information about herbal medicine and acupuncture. Only 29% of GPs were using some type of CAM for themselves.

Conclusions: GPs are aware of the subject's importance and want to learn more about CAM and improve their knowledge. It would be reasonable to provide training possibilities for GPs, primarily for the CAM types highly used by the population and most requested by the physicians.