Geriatric Mental Health Disaster and Emergency Preparedness

214 Geriatric Mental Health Disaster and Emergency Preparedness
are used in conjunction with conventional medicine, and alternative interventions
are used in place of conventional interventions. While often described
as new age, CAM modalities include healing practices that have
been used for over 3,000 years such as acupuncture, meditation, rituals,
prayer, and herbs. CAM modalities tend to be holistic — for example, viewing
mind, body, and spirit as intrinsically connected.
There is an extensive range of treatments under the CAM rubric. In
a 2005 survey, the Institute of Medicine listed 100 CAM therapies, practices,
and systems. The National Institutes of Health’ s Complementary
and Alternative Medicine Program categorizes CAM models and interventions
as the following:
n Alternative medical systems
n Mind/body interventions
n Biologically based therapies
n Manipulative and body-based methods
n Energy therapies
Alternative medical systems fundamentally differ from the diagnoseand-treat
model of Western medicine. Ancient alternative systems include
Indian Ayurvedic medicine, traditional Chinese medicine, and homeopathy.
Mind/body interventions incorporate meditation, prayer, and cognitive
and creative therapies. Biologically based therapies use herbs, vitamins,
and food. Manipulative therapies comprise massage and chiropractic
medicine. Energy therapies include Reiki, chi gong, and magnetic fields
(National Institutes of Health, 2009).
As it targets symptom relief, CAM is especially appropriate for older
persons and those with chronic conditions. Four out of 10 U.S. adults have
used at least one form of CAM in the past 12 months according to a 2007
study released by the NCCAM division of the National Institutes of Health
(Barnes, Bloom, & Nahin, 2008). In a 2000 study of 848 adults over age
50, nearly 70% of the respondents used at least one CAM modality, with
44% reporting using curative CAM and 58% reporting using preventive /
curative CAM (Montalto, Bhargava, & Hong, 2006). In a large survey, researchers
found that 88% of those over 65 years old used CAM (Ness,
Cirillo, Weir, Nisly, & Wallace, 2005). In another survey, it was noted that
individuals age 40 – 64 had the highest rates of CAM use (Tindle, Davis,
Phillips, & Eisenberg, 2005). CAM services are generally low risk, low cost,
and appeal to culturally diverse populations. Targeting symptom relief
and using a holistic approach, these modalities address the multifaceted