Redefining the Meaning of ‘Integrative Medicine’

Integrative medicine is defined as an approach to care that seeks to integrate the best of Western scientific medicine with a broader understanding of the nature of illness, healing and wellness. But much of what is practiced as integrative medicine is not all that integrative, and can be seen as an incomplete approach to healing. A truly integrative medical approach must make use of ALL viable healing options, and aim to unify medical choices for a single comprehensive treatment plan that restores proper functioning on all levels of the body.

The Complete Medical Spectrum

In order to redefine ‘Integrative Medicine’, we first need to gain a better understanding of the numerous medical options available to a practitioner. The following graphic displays the complete medical spectrum of therapeutic healing methods.

Conventional Medicine

Dissecting the medical spectrum into the areas in which conventional medicine places all focus on, we can see that this isolated area negates a large portion. As modern conventional medicine has become more specialized, it has done so at the expense of neglecting so many other therapeutic options. And while over 95% of doctors are found in this small section of the spectrum, the hyper-attention to biochemical activity and Newtonian science has yielded sub-optimal results, as is witnessed by the great increase in chronic cases in the world (As of 2012, about half of all adults—117 million people—have one or more chronic health conditions. One of four adults has two or more chronic health conditions – SOURCE: CDC). Within this section we can find a growing number of specialties, from cardiac electrophysiologists to vascular neurologists. Often patients will be sent from one specialty to the other, each focusing on a more precise area of the body without taking in the complete picture of the body working as a whole.

Alternative Medicine

Alternative medicine encompasses a larger segment of the medical spectrum that may range from nutritional supplementation and neutraceuticals to energy work such as acupuncture. Many fields and specialties are encompassed within ‘alternative’ medicine; some focusing only on one segment of the wheel. Yet even with this widened coverage, alternative medical practitioners often dismiss conventional medicine, leaving orthodox medicine to the hospitals and specialist physicians. Many alternative modalities also take a non-inclusive approach that emphasizes only one small segment of the alternative section, making the claim that “this type of medicine” is best and is the answer to a majority of diseases, while dismissing and opposing other areas of the medical spectrum. Specialists in this realm range from chiropractors to TCM practitioners, and may vary wildly between types of treatments and treatment recommendations.

True Integrative Medicine

Entering a new age of medicine, and leaving behind an “I’m best” mentality, we can see that for each patient, something different may be helpful in their road to recovery. This is where true integrative medicine shines. Taking an all inclusive approach and providing the patient with a personalized treatment program spanning the entire medical spectrum provides the absolute best chance for resolution of dysfunctions and symptoms and complete restoration of help.

As we well know, each patient is unique;  genes, gene expressions, environmental factors, pathogens, toxic exposures, emotional traumas, and past experiences are constituents that greatly vary from person to person and make up a patient, determining their particular condition. As the complexity of conditions continues to increase, the ability to adapt to these complexities with a wide-range of therapeutic options is essential. This does not disclude the need for specialties in medicine, but this type of integrative medicine calls for a unification of these specialties and cooperative effort among all medical professions to ensure the best medical care is provided.

The Future of Integrative Medicine

The medical offices of the future must adapt to an integrative approach that encompasses all options found in the medical spectrum – this is something Innovative Medicine is helping practitioners across the world achieve. Acting as an organizing composer or all these medical options, and effectively allowing a practitioner to match treatments from all these selections to individual patients with high specificity and accuracy, Bioresonance Analysis of Health is a vital medical system for all integrative practices. Taking guesswork out of the equation, and utilizing quantum physics principles to run a mass compatibility process in a systematic and efficient manner, B.A.H. is serving to help unify medicine, and redefine the meaning of integrative medicine.