TY - JOUR
T1 - Delivery of acupuncture in clinical trials
T2 - Research acupuncturists’ perspectives
AU - Anastasi, Joyce K.
AU - Capili, Bernadette
AU - Neumaier, Jessica
AU - Hackett, Londa
N1 - Funding Information:
Research reported in this manuscript was supported in part by the National Institute of Nursing Research of the National Institutes of Health (No. R01-NR017917). The content is solely the responsibility of the authors and does not necessarily represent the official views of the National Institutes of Health.
Funding Information:
This study was funded by the National Institute of Nursing Research of the National Institutes of Health (No. R01-NR017917).
Publisher Copyright:
© 2023
PY - 2023/7
Y1 - 2023/7
N2 - Delivery of acupuncture in the setting of a clinical trial is a unique practice that diverges significantly from the delivery of acupuncture in a real-world clinical setting. Research acupuncturists, particularly those trained in traditional Chinese medicine (TCM), are often required to set aside valued precepts of traditional care, including diagnosing imbalances, individualizing treatment, and forging a therapeutic relationship with patients. TCM-trained acupuncturists express mixed feelings about participating in clinical trials. Many are eager to play a vital role in the advancement of acupuncture science and appreciate the need for strict protocol adherence to minimize bias. However, the acupuncturist(s) may also have concerns about clinical trial methodology, including but not limited to the delivery of a control condition, e.g., sham acupuncture. Investigators should anticipate certain questions and even a level of resistance to the requirements of research among acupuncturists and be prepared to address them. This manuscript presents a brief review of the subjective experience of the research acupuncturist within the available scientific literature as it pertains to the delivery of active and sham clinical research protocols. Our goals are to better understand the perspectives of acupuncturists who may participate in clinical research, so that their concerns may be addressed in study design and methodology. To that end, we suggest the creation of a novel training program specifically for clinical trial acupuncturists, intended for qualified TCM- and Western-trained practitioners, that would help to standardize the research acupuncturist's role and help to strengthen the design and execution of acupuncture studies. Please cite this article as: Anastasi JK, Capili B, Neumaier J, Hackett L. Delivery of acupuncture in clinical trials: Research acupuncturists’ perspectives. J Integr Med. 2023; 21(4):315–319.
AB - Delivery of acupuncture in the setting of a clinical trial is a unique practice that diverges significantly from the delivery of acupuncture in a real-world clinical setting. Research acupuncturists, particularly those trained in traditional Chinese medicine (TCM), are often required to set aside valued precepts of traditional care, including diagnosing imbalances, individualizing treatment, and forging a therapeutic relationship with patients. TCM-trained acupuncturists express mixed feelings about participating in clinical trials. Many are eager to play a vital role in the advancement of acupuncture science and appreciate the need for strict protocol adherence to minimize bias. However, the acupuncturist(s) may also have concerns about clinical trial methodology, including but not limited to the delivery of a control condition, e.g., sham acupuncture. Investigators should anticipate certain questions and even a level of resistance to the requirements of research among acupuncturists and be prepared to address them. This manuscript presents a brief review of the subjective experience of the research acupuncturist within the available scientific literature as it pertains to the delivery of active and sham clinical research protocols. Our goals are to better understand the perspectives of acupuncturists who may participate in clinical research, so that their concerns may be addressed in study design and methodology. To that end, we suggest the creation of a novel training program specifically for clinical trial acupuncturists, intended for qualified TCM- and Western-trained practitioners, that would help to standardize the research acupuncturist's role and help to strengthen the design and execution of acupuncture studies. Please cite this article as: Anastasi JK, Capili B, Neumaier J, Hackett L. Delivery of acupuncture in clinical trials: Research acupuncturists’ perspectives. J Integr Med. 2023; 21(4):315–319.
KW - Acupuncture
KW - Clinical protocols
KW - Health knowledge, attitudes, practice
KW - Placebos
KW - Researcher-subject relationship
KW - Traditional Chinese medicine
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U2 - 10.1016/j.joim.2023.03.007
DO - 10.1016/j.joim.2023.03.007
M3 - Comment/debate
AN - SCOPUS:85153796034
SN - 2095-4964
VL - 21
SP - 315
EP - 319
JO - Journal of integrative medicine
JF - Journal of integrative medicine
IS - 4
ER -