The relationship between psychology practice and complementary medicine in Australia: Psychologists' demographics and practice characteristics regarding type of engagement across a range of complementary medicine modalities

Carrie Thomson-Casey; Erica McIntyre; Kris Rogers; Jon Adams

doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0285050

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The relationship between psychology practice and complementary medicine in Australia: Psychologists' demographics and practice characteristics regarding type of engagement across a range of complementary medicine modalities

Journal article

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Peer reviewed

The relationship between psychology practice and complementary medicine in Australia: Psychologists' demographics and practice characteristics regarding type of engagement across a range of complementary medicine modalities

Carrie Thomson-Casey, Erica McIntyre, Kris Rogers and Jon Adams

PloS one, Vol.18(5), e0285050

04/05/2023

DOI: https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0285050

PMID: 37141280

Appears in Recent Faculty of Health Publications

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Abstract

Australia

Complementary Therapies

Demography

Humans

Mental Health

Practice, Psychological

Psychology

Surveys and Questionnaires

Nutrition

Developmental psychology

Introduction Many people with mental health problems utilise a range of complementary medicine (CM) practitioners, products, and practices. Psychologists are likely to consult with clients who are seeking and using CM, in some form, as part of their wider mental health treatment. The aim of this research is to determine how much, and in what ways, Australian psychologists recommend CM products and/or practices, and/or initiate referrals to CM practitioners as part of their clinical practice and to explore if these behaviours have any association with the characteristics of the psychologist or their wider practice. Methods Survey data was collected from psychologists in clinical practice who self-selected to participate between February and April 2021. Participation in the study was via an online 79-item questionnaire exploring core aspects of CM engagement in psychology clinical practice. Results Amongst the 202 psychologists who completed the survey, mind/body approaches (90.5%) were the most recommended CM and cultural/spiritual approaches the least recommended CM (7.5%). Participants also reported referring to CM practitioners with naturopaths the most common focus of their referrals (57.9%) and cultural and spiritual practitioners the least common focus of their referrals (6.69%). Our analysis shows the demographic and practice characteristics of a psychologist are generally not predictors of a psychologist’s engagement with CM in their clinical practice. Conclusions Substantial numbers of psychologists recommend CM products and practices and/or refer clients to CM practitioners. Alongside subjecting CM interventions for mental health to an evidence-base assessment, the broader discipline of psychology needs to also consider psychologist engagement with CM in clinical practice in order to help ensure cultural-sensitivity, client safety and client choice.

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Title: The relationship between psychology practice and complementary medicine in Australia: Psychologists' demographics and practice characteristics regarding type of engagement across a range of complementary medicine modalities
Creators: Carrie Thomson-Casey - Southern Cross University
Erica McIntyre - University of Technology Sydney
Kris Rogers - University of Technology Sydney
Jon Adams - University of Technology Sydney
Publication Details: PloS one, Vol.18(5), e0285050
Publisher: Public Library of Science
Identifiers: 991013118310602368
Academic Unit: Faculty of Health
Language: English
Resource Type: Journal article

The relationship between psychology practice and complementary medicine in Australia: Psychologists' demographics and practice characteristics regarding type of engagement across a range of complementary medicine modalities

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