Our Position

The blended knowledge of mainstream medical practices and alternative medicine is preferable to a single-model approach to health and wellness. The NCIMS mission is to provide educational opportunities to practitioners as well protect the rights of practitioners to treat patients with the best health care modalities available. If you have any questions about NCIMS, please feel free to contact us.

THE NORTH CAROLINA INTEGRATIVE MEDICAL SOCIETY

Integrative Medicine is a medical practice model that blends the least toxic, least invasive, and most effective concepts and treatments from mainstream medical practice and alternative medical practice. The primary goal of Integrative Medicine is to augment the body's natural healing potential to enable a person to experience his or her optimal health and wellness.

What is Integrative Medicine?

Integrative Medicine is not to be confused with complementary and alternative medicine. Alternative medicine is about treatments not currently taught in conventional medical schools and that are not part of conventional treatment protocols. Integrative Medicine is a combination of mainstream medical practices and alternative medicine and tries to incorporate the best complementary and alternative medical ideas and practices into comprehensive treatment plans. The primary goal of Integrative Medicine is to maximize each individual's ability to experience optimal health and wellness and strives to work with the body's own natural healing potential.

From the text "Integrative Medicine", by David Rakel, M.D., an Assistant Professor of the Department of Family Medicine at the University of Wisconsin Medical School, some comments on Integrative Medicine include:

Integrative Medicine is healing oriented and emphasizes the centrality of the doctor-patient relationship. It focuses on the least invasive, least toxic, and least costly methods to help facilitate health by integrating both conventional and complementary therapies.
Integrative Medicine involves using the best possible treatments from both complementary and alternative medicine and conventional medicine, based on the patient's individual needs and condition.
Integrative Medicine encourages more time and effort on disease prevention instead of waiting to treat disease once it develops.
Components of Integrative Medicine include:
1. Provides relationship centered care
2. Integrates conventional and complementary methods of treatment and prevention.
3. Involves removing barriers to activate the body's healing response.
4. Uses natural, less invasive intervention before costly, invasive ones when possible.
5. Engages mind, body, spirit, and community to facilitate healing.
6. Healing is always possible, even when curing is not.

The North Carolina Integrative Medical Society believes that the combined knowledge of mainstream medical practices and alternative medicine is ultimately superior to a single-model approach to health and wellness. We think this integrated approach will ultimately lead to safer, faster, more affordable, and more effective healthcare.

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	Our Position The blended knowledge of mainstream medical practices and alternative medicine is preferable to a single-model approach to health and wellness. The NCIMS mission is to provide educational opportunities to practitioners as well protect the rights of practitioners to treat patients with the best health care modalities available. If you have any questions about NCIMS, please feel free to contact us. THE NORTH CAROLINA INTEGRATIVE MEDICAL SOCIETY Integrative Medicine is a medical practice model that blends the least toxic, least invasive, and most effective concepts and treatments from mainstream medical practice and alternative medical practice. The primary goal of Integrative Medicine is to augment the body's natural healing potential to enable a person to experience his or her optimal health and wellness. What is Integrative Medicine? Integrative Medicine is not to be confused with complementary and alternative medicine. Alternative medicine is about treatments not currently taught in conventional medical schools and that are not part of conventional treatment protocols. Integrative Medicine is a combination of mainstream medical practices and alternative medicine and tries to incorporate the best complementary and alternative medical ideas and practices into comprehensive treatment plans. The primary goal of Integrative Medicine is to maximize each individual's ability to experience optimal health and wellness and strives to work with the body's own natural healing potential. From the text "Integrative Medicine", by David Rakel, M.D., an Assistant Professor of the Department of Family Medicine at the University of Wisconsin Medical School, some comments on Integrative Medicine include: Integrative Medicine is healing oriented and emphasizes the centrality of the doctor-patient relationship. It focuses on the least invasive, least toxic, and least costly methods to help facilitate health by integrating both conventional and complementary therapies. Integrative Medicine involves using the best possible treatments from both complementary and alternative medicine and conventional medicine, based on the patient's individual needs and condition. Integrative Medicine encourages more time and effort on disease prevention instead of waiting to treat disease once it develops. Components of Integrative Medicine include: Provides relationship centered care Integrates conventional and complementary methods of treatment and prevention. Involves removing barriers to activate the body's healing response. Uses natural, less invasive intervention before costly, invasive ones when possible. Engages mind, body, spirit, and community to facilitate healing. Healing is always possible, even when curing is not. The North Carolina Integrative Medical Society believes that the combined knowledge of mainstream medical practices and alternative medicine is ultimately superior to a single-model approach to health and wellness. We think this integrated approach will ultimately lead to safer, faster, more affordable, and more effective healthcare.