CAM Education

Thoughts on CAM from Czech pharmacy students

Pharmacy students at Charles University in Prague, The Czech Republic were surveyed for their views of CAM.

First, the details.

  • The CAM Health Belief Questionnaire was translated from English to Czech and administered to 250 first-year and 187 third-year students.

And, the results.

  • The students held positive attitudes toward CAM.
  • Vitamins, herbs, massage, and relaxation were the most commonly used therapies among students.
  • There was low use of evidence-based CAM resources.
  • 90% of pharmacy students surveyed would recommend CAM.
  • 89% believed pharmacists should be knowledgeable of CAM.
  • 91% of first-year and 78% of third-year students supported CAM education.

The bottom line?
The findings are not unique to pharmacy students in The Czech Republic. A survey of pharmacy students in Australia revealed a positive view of CAM and supported including it in their education. Medical students in the US and Wales and Canada have similar thoughts on CAM.

Here are the 3 key principles that 15 National Center for Complementary and Alternative Medicine (NCCAM)-funded education programs found useful when developing CAM coursework.

5/22/08 21:59 JR

Hi, I’m JR

John Russo, Jr., PharmD, is president of The MedCom Resource, Inc. Previously, he was senior vice president of medical communications at www.Vicus.com, a complementary and alternative medicine website.