Attitudes/beliefs towards CAM among Croatian healthcare professionals

Purpose: Croatian healthcare system has seen an ever increasing number of patients seeking opinion and advice on complementary and alternative treatment options. For years only some of the traditional treatments had been practiced in local communities though, but on the verge of law and mostly in rural areas. Post-socialist settings and transition processes have facilitated and strengthened the pluralism of the healthcare system. However, despite recommendations of the European Commission (EC, 1997) and WHO, Croatia has insofar failed to regulate CAM by law. This study brings the results of the attitudes and believes of healthcare professionals: physicians, nurses/paramedics and physiotherapists towards CAM. Methods: The study was carried out on a sample of 325 healthcare professionals affiliated with either private or public healthcare facilities divided into three groups based on their professional and educational background, gender, the number of years in service and their responses to IMAQ (Integrative Medicine Attitude Questionnaire) items. Results: Our study proved the existence of differences in CAM-related attitudes expressed by physicians as opposed to nurses and physiotherapists (F=7.853921 ; p=0.000) ; however, differences in attitudes expressed by nurses and physiotherapists failed to be found (=1.531 ; p=1.000). This study failed to reveal any gender-based (T=-1.411 ; p=0.159), education al background-based (F=2.372303 ; p=0.095) and years-in-servicebased (F=0.833 ; p=0.436) differences in CAM-related attitudes expressed by healthcare providers under study. The most striking differences in attitudes were found to arise on the grounds of various professional backgrounds of healthcare providers comprised by the study. Significant differences in CAM-related attitudes were proven to exist between physicians and nurses/physiotherapists (F=7.853921, p=0.000), but not between nurses and physiotherapists (=1.531, p=1.000). Conclusion: Physicians are far less prone to support alternative and spiritual treatment practices than nurses/paramedics and physiotherapists. The reason should probably be sought in the traditional formal education and curricula of academic institutions educating Croatian healthcare professionals with the lack of formal CAM education.