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Use of and attitudes toward complementary and alternative medicine among obstetricians in Israel
Author(s) -
Samuels Noah,
ZiskRony Rachel Y.,
Many Ariel,
BenShitrit Gadi,
Erez Offer,
Mankuta David,
Rabinowitz Ron,
Lavie Ofer,
Shuval Judith T.,
Oberbaum Menachem
Publication year - 2013
Publication title -
international journal of gynecology and obstetrics
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.895
H-Index - 97
eISSN - 1879-3479
pISSN - 0020-7292
DOI - 10.1016/j.ijgo.2012.12.008
Subject(s) - childbirth , medicine , varimax rotation , pregnancy , family medicine , alternative medicine , obstetrics , clinical psychology , cronbach's alpha , psychometrics , genetics , pathology , biology
Objective To examine attitudes toward and use of complementary and alternative medicine (CAM) by obstetricians during pregnancy and childbirth. Methods Between 2010 and 2011, obstetricians from 7 medical centers (n = 170) in Israel completed questionnaires examining the use and recommendation of CAM treatments during pregnancy and childbirth. Attitudes were examined via the CAM Health Belief Questionnaire (CHBQ). Results Over half of the participants (58.8%) reported using at least 1 CAM treatment, and nearly two‐thirds had recommended or would recommend CAM to pregnant patients. By contrast, use of CAM during childbirth was recommended by only 26% of respondents. The total CHBQ score was moderately high (mean ± SD, 40.4 ± 7.30; possible range, 7.0–70.0), indicating an overall positive attitude toward CAM. Female board‐certified specialists answered more favorably regarding attitudes toward CAM ( P = 0.004). The structural validity of the CHBQ was examined using varimax rotation factor analysis, which produced a 3‐factor solution explaining 63.1% of the variance. Conclusions Most obstetricians exhibited positive attitudes toward CAM and recommended its use during pregnancy, but did not support CAM use during childbirth. This discrepancy might be partly due to the involvement of Israeli obstetricians in predominantly high‐risk cases of childbirth requiring intervention.