Integrated Approach of Conventional Medicine and Complementary Alternative Medicine. Background Information and Future Directions at International, European and National Level

The range of treatments offered currently by healthcare providers worldwide is very fragmented, and should be replaced with a system in which integrated therapies, both complementary and conventional, are concentrated in health-delivery organisations following a patient-centred approach. The first part of this article portrays the regulatory framework of Complementary Alternative Medicine (CAM) at international level. The second part describes the role of the European Union in this process. In the third part, a specific case study on the German health care system contributes to offers some suggestions for the pursuit of this work. The study increases the understanding of the relevance of an integrative approach both for medical and for non-medical practitioners.