Denham, A.

Green, J.

Hawkey, S.

Ingram, J.

WestminsterResearch

Not on my own: women's experience of herbal practice as participants in a randomised controlled trial

"Not on my own": women's experience of herbal practice as participants in a randomised controlled trial

     WestminsterResearch http://www.westminster.ac.uk/westminsterresearch    “Not on my own”: women's experience of herbal practice as participants in a randomised controlled trial  Julia Green1,* Sue Hawkey2 Jennifer Ingram3 Alison Denham4  1 Herbal Practitioner, Bristol 2 School of Health and Bioscience, University of East London 3 Bristol Research & Development Support Unit 4 Department of Nursing, University of Central Lancashire * Julia Green now works within the School of Life Sciences, University of Westminster   This electronic document relates to a poster presented at the “Celebrating Primary Care Research Conference”, 15 March 2007, Avon Primary Care Research Collaborative, Bristol.    The WestminsterResearch online digital archive at the University of Westminster aims to make the research output of the University available to a wider audience.  Copyright and Moral Rights remain with the authors and/or copyright owners. Users are permitted to download and/or print one copy for non-commercial private study or research.  Further distribution and any use of material from within this archive for profit-making enterprises or for commercial gain is strictly forbidden.      Whilst further distribution of specific materials from within this archive is forbidden, you may freely distribute the URL of WestminsterResearch (http://www.westminster.ac.uk/westminsterresearch).  In case of abuse or copyright appearing without permission e-mail repository@westminster.ac.uk. Celebrating Primary Care Research Conference ~ Bristol, 15th March 2007  Title: “Not on my own”: women’s experience of herbal practice as participants in a randomised controlled trial Authors: Green J, Hawkey S, Ingram J, Denham A Affiliation: (J Green presenting author) Member of the National Institute of Medical Herbalists Abstract Aims To identify predominant themes in the experience of participants during the treatment process of menopausal problems by herbal practitioners.  Methods   “Not on my own” is a nested qualitative study within “Changing with Herbs” (a pragmatic randomised controlled pilot study of the effectiveness of treatment of menopausal symptoms by herbal practitioners).  Treatment consisted of a 5 month individually tailored, holistic course of treatment from 1 of 3 local members of the National Institute of Medical Herbalists, and was found to be effective. Treatment by herbal practitioners is multi-faceted and develops over time within a therapeutic relationship.  To examine this complex system in greater depth, participants completed feedback questionnaires at the end of treatment.  A sub-sample of 8 participants from the treatment arm was interviewed about their experiences of herbal treatment during this trial.  Interviewees (mean age 57) were predominately white professionals; 3 had never previously taken herbal medicines and 5 had. Interviews were recorded, and transcripts were subject to thematic analysis by 2 researchers. This poster discusses the experience of the participants receiving a package of care from qualified herbal practitioners for menopausal symptoms. Results Themes emerging of the participants’ experience of treatment by herbal practitioners include: satisfaction with the treatment outcomes, holistic nature of the consultation, patient centred nature of the process, development of the therapeutic relationship, empowerment from changing behaviour such as diet, management techniques and connections with wider agencies in appropriate referral. Negative themes were few, including the taste of herbal medicine and the perceived expense were it not provided by the NHS. Conclusion The treatment package from herbal practitioners for menopausal symptoms was acceptable to the participants in the study, who felt it should be a choice supported by the NHS.  The whole treatment system was complex, responsive to individual need and evolved over time. Trial registration ISRCTN42406364 Acknowledgements We thank the Spence Group Practice, the herbalists and the women involved in this study, and the Bristol CAM research group for their support. This study was funded by a grant from Avon Primary Care Research Collaborative.  The original randomised controlled pilot study was funded by grants from the National Institute of Medical Herbalists Education Fund (charity no: 262584) and the National Institute of Medical Herbalists, administered via the University of Central Lancashire, as research sponsor   Authors Julia Green, Herbal Practitioner, 286 Ashley Down Road, Bristol, BS7 9BQ  Julia.green@ukonline.co.uk  Sue Hawkey, Lecturer in Herbal Medicine, School of Health and Bioscience, University of East London, Romford Road, London E15 4LZ   Jennifer Ingram, Primary Care Research Facilitator, Bristol Research & Development Support Unit, Bristol Royal Infirmary, Marlborough Street, Bristol BS2 8HW.  Alison Denham, Senior Lecturer in Herbal Medicine, Department of Nursing, University of Central Lancashire, Preston, PR1 2HE  