The rise of complementary medicine is one of the most important developments in health over the past three decades. This popular text outlines the history and philosophy behind holistic therapies and examines the role they have to play in contemporary health systems. This fully updated new edition of Holism and Complementary Medicine offers a systematic overview of traditional healing practices, the development of the Western biomedical model from the ancient Egyptians and Greeks to the present, and the holistic philosophy which is the basis of complementary and alternative medicine in the West.
It includes a new chapter covering developments over the last fifteen years, including an increased focus on integrative medicine and public health. New sections focus on the new material on traditional and indigenous medicines is incorporated into the Introductory Chapter (Seeds for a future medicine- with a new section on Ayurvedic Medicine) and Chapter 1. (Beginnings: Deep roots, broad branches with a new section introducing medical anthropology and indigenous Australian medicine). Exploring the differences between holistic and conventional biomedical traditions and approaches, and acknowledging the strengths of each, it also addresses key practice issues, explaining the place holistic principles have in the therapeutic relationship.
Holism and Complementary Medicine is an accessible guide for students, practitioners and anyone interested in the origins and core principles of natural therapies.
The rise of complementary medicine is one of the most important developments in health over the past three decades. This popular text outlines the history and philosophy behind holistic therapies and examines the role they have to play in contemporary health systems.
Introduction: Seeds for a future medicine, Part One: The origins, 1:
Beginnings: Deep roots, broad branches, 2: Middle times - the gathering
light, 3: Into modernity: The temple of promise, Part Two: Principles, 4:
Pointing to the moon: Promise gained or promise lost?, 5: Holism and
reductionism in medicine: Reconciling the opposites, 6: The healing
relationship: Reflections on the clinical encounter, 7: The therapeutic aims
of holistic medicine: Restoring the body, empowering the mind, 8: Turning the
medicine wheel: Between paradigms, 9: Ways of knowing: Confirming the
foundations, 10: Through a glass darkly: Approaching renewal, References
Vincent Di Stefano has been a practitioner of and educator in osteopathic medicine, naturopathic medicine and acupuncture for over four decades. He has lectured extensively in the history and philosophy of medicine, western herbal medicine, osteopathy, and anatomy in a number of tertiary institutions. During the 1980s, he served as founding editor of the first peer-reviewed journal of natural medicine in Australia.
